“And it didn’t kill the host,” Tanik added.
“No, it didn’t, but it’s important to note that the Cygnians are a much hardier species than most. If the virus put her at death’s door for the past day, there’s no telling how it will affect other species—or for that matter how it will affect Revenants, whose blood concentrations of the Sprites are much higher. We won’t know what to expect until we test it on them.”
Tanik scowled and shook his head. “There’s no time for that, and even if there were, how do you propose we test all the other species? We can’t abduct a dozen other test subjects, and something tells me we’re going to be short on volunteers from Yuri’s fleet. Besides, we’ll never get the data that we really need, which is how the virus will affect Revenants.”
“Correct. I just thought you should know the risks involved.”
“Is there any way to mitigate the side effects?”
“If we slow the rate at which the Sprites are killed, the effects should be diminished. Slow them enough, and the host might not even notice that they are feeling poorly until their powers begin to fade.”
“What kind of time frame are we talking about?”
“For a Revenant? Who knows. For this Cygnian, setting an elimination period of three to five days would likely have eliminated most of her symptoms.”
“That’s too long,” Tanik replied, shaking his head. “We’re going to have to risk it. We can’t afford to make the elimination period longer, or we’ll risk giving the Revenants enough time to neutralize the virus before it can do its job. The Cygnians might be resilient, but so are the Revenants. It won’t kill them.”
“I hope you’re right,” Gatticus said.
“Make sure you create enough of the virus to infect at least twenty thousand people.”
“Twenty thousand?” Gatticus blinked in shock. “I’ll need several hundred kilograms of nanites for that.”
“Then you’d better get started. We leave for Tarsus in two days. Can you do it?”
Gatticus nodded absently. “If Yuri cooperates, I should be able to make it in time.”
“Good...” Tanik trailed off, nodding to the Cygnian. “Has she demonstrated any behavioral changes?”
“Such as?”
“Reduced aggression, increased tolerance for other species, reduced impulsivity...?”
“There’s no way to be sure from here,” Gatticus replied.
“True,” Tanik said. “Let’s go open the door. I’m going to have a chat with our prisoner.”
“Are you certain you want to do that?”
“Why not? She’s not contagious, is she?” Tanik asked.
“No, but she may try to kill you,” Gatticus replied.
“With no claws and no teeth?” Tanik snorted. “I’ll be fine. Let’s go.”
Chapter 33
“What is your name?” Tanik asked.
A series of growls and hisses followed.
“I am Queen Rassura. Who are you?”
“Tanik Gurhain. You are not trying to kill me. Why is that?”
The Ghoul bared her ragged, toothless black gums at him. “With what teeth?” Then she held up a hand and fluttered six claw-less fingers. “And what claws?”
Tanik nodded. “Futility wouldn’t stop the Cygnians I know. The Cygnians I know are driven by emotion and instinct, not reason. What makes you so different?”
“Why should I answer your questions?” Queen Rassura countered. “What do I get out of it?”
“You could save your people,” Cassandra said, stepping forward quickly. “They’re not all dead. Not yet.”
Tanik shot a warning look at her. The Cygnian drew herself up onto her hind legs and hissed loudly. “What do you mean we’re not all dead yet?”
Cassandra cleared her throat, probably about to describe her father’s xenocidal rampage through Cygnian space, but Tanik put an arm in front of her chest, and pushed her back.
“What she means is that the Cygnians are losing the war, but there might be a way to negotiate peace if your people were more reasonable.”
“And how do you propose to make us more reasonable?” Queen Rassura asked, while stepping forward and looming over him with all four of her massive arms poised to rip him apart.
This time Tanik didn’t need to push Cassandra back. She backed up all by herself, and he could hear Trista, Yuri, and Gatticus all doing the same thing. Calling them here for this behavioral test had been Gatticus’s idea. Tanik hoped it wasn’t about to get one of them killed. That would really mess up his plans.
“We administered a treatment that was designed to eliminate an alien parasite in your blood,” Tanik explained. “It made you sick.”
“I remember,” Queen Rassura growled, and her hands curled into fists.
Tanik went on blithely. “The parasites made you sick with toxins that they released when they died. We believe that while they were alive, these parasites were influencing your behavior, making your species more aggressive and impulsive.”
“You are mistaken,” Queen Rassura replied. “We would have noticed such changes in our behavior.”
Tanik shook his head. “Not if the onset was gradual. The proof is in the fact that you are talking to me rather than attacking.”
The Ghoul’s body tensed, and her legs bent. Here it comes... he thought. But then she appeared to relax, her eyes narrowed, and she gave an ugly, toothless smile. “You are trying to trick me. It will not work.”
Tanik couldn’t believe it. “Yes, you are clearly too smart for that,” he said, and began backing away, forcing the others to leave the Cygnian’s cell.
“Release me!” the Ghoul snapped in a throaty roar.
“Soon,” Tanik replied, nodding. “We will take you home to your people as soon as this is all over.”
“How do I know that?”
“You will just have to trust us,” Tanik said.
Queen Rassura narrowed her eyes at him once more, but still she made no effort to attack. They all managed to leave her cell and shut the door behind them without incident.
“I think we have our answer,” Tanik said, turning to face the others in the corridor. Yuri and Trista nodded slowly, while Gatticus gave no reply. Tanik glanced at Cassandra. “This is proof that we can save your father.”
She offered a trembling smile and wiped sudden tears from the corners of her eyes. “When do we leave?” she asked.
“In two days. As soon as Gatticus has finished preparing enough nanites to infect all of the Revenants.”
“I’m going to need all of the booster shots you have,” Gatticus said, looking to Yuri. “And access to the fleet’s manufacturing facilities to make more.”
Yuri’s pointed black ears twitched, and he hissed with displeasure, but he gave in with a nod. “Very well.”
“How are we going to get the virus into position to infect everyone?” Trista asked. “Orbital patrols will be searching inbound transports, and security at the inauguration is going to be on high alert.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Tanik explained. “Remember the patrols that Darius sent looking for his daughter? I’ll do the same thing again. It won’t be a problem.”
“Why don’t you just use a portal to get us there?” Trista asked.
“Because Darius already has one open, and I can’t open one big enough for a transport, so we’re going to have to go to Tarsus the conventional way.”
“All right, let’s say it all works out just like you’re planning,” Trista said. “What happens after we’ve infected everyone and you’re the last Revenant standing? You really expect us to believe you’re just going to let us infect you and take away your powers too?”
“She makes a good point,” Yuri said.
Tanik favored each of them with a paper thin smile. “So what do you suggest?”
“How about we infect you now?” Trista said. “You can be our next test subject. That will also tell us how it works on a Revenant, which we’re only
guessing at right now.”
“It will work,” Tanik replied, waving his hand to dismiss those concerns. “Regardless, you can’t afford to infect me yet. You’re going to need my help to smuggle the virus past security and orbital patrols.”
“Well, isn’t that convenient,” Trista replied.
“What if we infect him with a dormant version of the virus,” Gatticus suggested. All eyes turned to him.
“How would that work?” Yuri asked.
“Simple. I set a timer to activate the virus during the inauguration. We could also use that version to infect Darius prior to the event, just in case he doesn’t get infected with the others.”
“Timing would be critical,” Tanik mused, while stroking his chin between his thumb and forefinger.
“The event has been widely publicized,” Gatticus replied. “It won’t be hard to time the activation sequence to coincide with the ceremony.”
Tanik nodded. “True. And you’re right, we can’t assume that Darius will be infected with the others. He might see the crowd reacting to the release of the virus and manage to escape before it reaches him.”
“Great. It’s settled then,” Trista said. “Gatticus will infect you before we leave.”
Tanik noticed that she was watching him carefully, trying to gauge his reaction. “Why not do it now?” he replied, smiling back at her. “Gatticus has the virus ready. All he has to do is set a timer. That shouldn’t take him more than a minute or two, right Gatticus?”
“Less than that,” Gatticus confirmed.
“Then let’s do it,” Tanik said.
Trista’s eyes narrowed in suspicion, and her lips flattened into a dissatisfied line, but she relented with a sigh. “Okay, but we still have a lot of details to work out. So maybe the plan won’t fail because you’re planning to betray us, but it could still fail by sheer lack of planning.”
“There’ll be plenty of time to work out the details while we’re en route to Tarsus,” Tanik replied.
“But I won’t be there for that,” Yuri pointed out. “Where’s my role in all of this?”
“Defeating the Revenants will create a power vacuum. We’ll need to set up a legitimate government as soon as possible to avoid chaos. That will be your job. We’ll arrange a rendezvous before we leave, and as soon as it’s safe, I’ll send for you.”
Yuri nodded. “I will be waiting.”
“Are there any other questions or concerns?” Tanik asked, his eyes flicking from face to face.
“Just one,” Cassandra said. “How do we know the virus is safe?”
“The girl makes a good point,” Yuri added. “Thanks to Queen Rassura, we know that it makes non-Revenants sick. How do we know we won’t be releasing a deadly pathogen that later goes on to kill billions?”
Tanik turned to Gatticus. “Well?”
“The virus won’t be able to spread from one host to another, and it’s not self-replicating, so it won’t be as dangerous as a biological pathogen. As an additional measure of security, I will be able to deactivate the virus with remote access codes.
“Aha!” Trista said. “So what’s stopping Tanik from deactivating the virus to protect himself?”
Tanik spread his hands in a placating gesture. “I don’t have the codes.”
Trista frowned. “You expect us to believe that?”
“He’s right. Only I know the codes,” Gatticus replied. “And I am immune to the Revenants’ mental influence, so there is no way for him to steal the codes from me.”
“He could still coerce you,” Trista pointed out.
Gatticus shook his head. “I would not allow it. If he tried, I would activate the virus prematurely, and neutralize him as a threat.”
Trista still didn’t look satisfied.
Tanik fixed her with an innocent look. “You see? There’s no reason for you not to trust me. Why don’t we all go to the med bay now? You can watch while Gatticus injects me with the virus.”
“Maybe someone else should do it,” Trista replied. “Just in case you’ve found some way to get to him.”
“My programming is impossible to alter,” Gatticus replied. “The Cygnians made sure of that.”
“He’s right,” Yuri added. “We’ve tried re-programming Executors before. It triggers a complete memory wipe and an SOS call to anyone close enough to hear.”
“Well, how do we know he hasn’t found some other way to beat the virus? Maybe he’s been developing a vaccine or something.”
“If you’re looking for reasons not to trust me, I’m sure you’ll find them,” Tanik replied. “But if I really am planning to keep my powers and betray you all, then the solution is simple. Have Gatticus deactivate the virus before it runs its course, and let Darius and his Revenants deal with me. It’ll be one against twenty thousand, and I’ll never stand a chance.” Tanik spread his hands in invitation. “Either way, you’re still holding all of the cards.”
Trista still didn’t look convinced, but Tanik suspected that was a product of stubborn pride and an old habit of distrusting everyone but herself.
After a protracted silence and a brief staring contest with him, she gave in with a huff and shook her head. “I suppose it will have to do. Let’s get down to the med bay and get this over with.” Trista turned and started down the corridor, heading for the nearest bank of elevators.
“After you,” Tanik said, smiling politely as she breezed by him. Buddy pulled his cheeks open and stuck out his tongue in a childish gesture of contempt, but that only made Tanik’s smile stretch into a grin.
Chapter 34
Darius stood on the speaker’s podium before a crowd of tens of thousands of Revenants and ordinary citizens. The palace courtyard and surrounding streets were crowded to the point that not a single gap remained. Hovering camera drones buzzed in the air, zipping around above their heads. The inauguration ceremony was being recorded for subsequent distribution to news networks throughout the known galaxy. This was a moment that would go down in galactic history.
Darius smiled and took a deep breath. As he did so, unintelligible whispers crowded in at the edges of his hearing. The sound gave him pause, and he hesitated. His eyes darted through the crowd searching for a threat. He recognized that sound. It was a warning from the Sprites, but what were they trying to warn him about? The crowd began murmuring amongst themselves, feet and clothes rustling as they waited for him to speak. Perhaps it was nothing. Just his imagination.
“Welcome, everyone!” Darius said. “This day we come together with one heart and one mind to celebrate the end of the Cygnians’ rule over us. They are defeated, and they are never coming back!”
The crowd roared and screamed in response, and Darius smiled winningly for the cameras. He waited for everyone to settle down, but the commotion showed no signs of stopping. If anything, the screaming was growing louder. A moment later, Darius saw why. The crowd was thinning out rapidly; people were dropping in waves.
Darius stumbled back a step, his eyes darting to find a cause. He summoned a shield to protect himself, but there was no discernible threat anywhere. No sign of anything...
Then he spotted the silvery clouds undulating through the crowd, glittering like sand in the sun. People fell wherever the clouds went. But not everyone was reacting the same way. Some collapsed in fits, while others ran away screaming, stampeding like wild animals, only to collapse a few seconds later. Someone had released a nano virus into the crowd.
Darius turned and ran from those silvery clouds of death as they came drifting toward him. Just then, a blinding wave of agony stabbed through every fiber of Darius’s being. He sank to his knees with gritted teeth. A splitting headache began, and he pressed both of his hands to the sides of his head, wailing in agony. He couldn’t see through the tears streaming from his eyes, or hear through the ringing in his ears. In the next instant, every muscle in his body went into spasms, and he collapsed on his back, flopping around like a fish. The pain intensified, forcing raw unintel
ligible noises from his lips and making him chew through his own tongue.
He tried to fight back by drawing on the ZPF, but he’d lost his connection to the zero-point field. Darkness swirled in, promising a release from the pain, and Darius welcomed it.
* * *
Darius awoke bathed in sweat. He sat up, shaking with rage and echoes of the agony from his dream. No, not a dream—a vision, he realized.
Someone was going to release a nano virus at the inauguration ceremony. He’d have to call it off. Or change the venue and double down on security. Or... maybe he wouldn’t do any of that...
Darius recalled his recent meeting with his governors. The Revenants were turning on each other and vying for power in a self-destructive spiral of backstabbing and treachery. It was only a matter of time before they turned on him, too. If someone was planning to release a nano virus at the inauguration, maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
Yes, having someone wipe out all of the Revenants for him would be a blessing. But who was that someone? Who would want to wipe them out? There was, of course, one obvious answer—Tanik Gurhain and the Keth. It would make sense if the virus was their doing, but whoever planned the attack they couldn’t know that the Sprites had warned him in advance. The ceremony was in three weeks. He had more than enough time to put precautions in place. Afterward, it should be a simple matter to identify the pathogen and develop a vaccine. In the worst case, he’d simple isolate Tarsus from the rest of the empire and turn it into a quarantine zone.
The trick would be taking precautions in such a way that wouldn’t scare off his enemies or alert the other Revenants to the threat. Darius smiled. If everything went according to plan, after the inauguration he would be the last living Revenant in the galaxy.
Chapter 35
—NINETEEN DAYS LATER—
Everything was ready. Trista was below decks, loading supplies and the cargo of nanites into her ship, the Harlequin. The others were either sleeping or out enjoying their last few hours of freedom aboard Yuri’s flagship before transferring to Trista’s transport for the last leg of the trip to Tarsus.
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