Vanguard

by G. P. Hudson

Jamie often had difficulty understanding normal humans, but this went beyond anything he had ever experienced. If Anki cared about him, why was she attacking him? And if she wanted to attack him, why wasn’t she using a weapon? Surely, she knew she couldn’t hurt him with her bare hands. “I don’t understand what is-”

  Anki kissed him on the lips, further confusing him.

  “Didn’t I tell you to shut up?” she said. Taking his hand, she then pulled the perplexed Chaanisar into her quarters.

  Chapter 28

  The hammer hit the collaborator’s face in slow motion. The iron tool forced its way into the skull, crunching bones and cartilage. The other two collaborators went for their weapons. Their movements exaggeratedly slow. Jamie tried to move but couldn’t lift his feet. They were glued to the ground and the more he struggled, the more stuck he became.

  Helpless, he watched the collaborator slowly raise his sidearm. His father turned toward him, raising the hammer for another swing. The collaborator fired, and Jamie saw the bullet leave the barrel and bridge the distance to his father’s chest. It made contact and broke through the breastplate. His father fell backward, landing on his back. Dark blood seeped out of the wound in sluggish waves.

  Events sped up, and the collaborators ran into the woods after his mother, but Jamie remained glued to the ground. His father turned his head to look up at him and said, “Why did you let them do this to me, Jamie? Why didn’t you save me?”

  Jamie jumped up in a panic. At first, he couldn’t get his bearings, and the darkness confused him. Scanning the room, he realized he was in Anki’s quarters. He had stayed the night. It was all just a dream. He turned to look at Anki lying beside him and jumped away from the horrific sight. Anki lay beside him as expected, only she was covered in blood, and blunt force trauma rendered her face unrecognizable.

  Jamie reached for his weapon and scanned the room again, looking for intruders. How could this happen? he wondered. How could I not have heard anything?

  “Jamie?” Anki said, sitting up in bed. “What are you doing?”

  He blinked and shook his head, trying to make sense of what he saw. Anki’s face had returned to normal, and the blood was gone. What the hell is going on?

  “Why are you waving that gun around?” Anki said, the concern clear in her voice.

  He lowered the weapon and gave the room another once over to make sure. “I’m sorry. I had a bad dream.”

  “What kind of dream makes you jump out of bed and reach for your weapon?”

  “A bad one.”

  “You want to tell me about it?”

  Jamie put the gun away and sat at the edge of the bed. He told Anki about the dream and about how he saw her dead body lying beside him.

  “I think the Erinyie really messed you up,” Anki said.

  “I always had nightmares about my mom, but now they’re about my dad. But I don’t understand what you have to do with any of it?”

  “The Erinyie were inside your brain implant, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “They did something to you. I don’t know what, but that is the only thing that makes sense. Unless you were still asleep, and it was all just part of the dream.”

  “No, I was awake. I was sitting up in bed when I saw you, uh…”

  “Dead?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, whatever it was, I’m alive, so you can relax. You might have gotten up, but you could have still been dreaming. It happens. Haven’t you heard of sleepwalking?”

  “It happens, but not to me. I am a Chaanisar. I shouldn’t see things that are not there.”

  “Jamie, it can happen to anybody.”

  “No, you don’t understand. It doesn’t happen to Chaanisar. It is one of the features of the brain chip. It protects us from things like sleepwalking and hallucinations.”

  Jamie, I see you are awake, Colonel Bast said through his implant.

  Yes, I am, Jamie replied.

  We have received word from Admiral Pike. He wants us to return to the Sol System. We will be disembarking shortly. Another Chaanisar ship has arrived to replace us.

  Understood. I will inform Anki.

  “What is it now?” Anki said, studying him closely.

  “It was Colonel Bast. Admiral Pike has ordered us to return to Sol,” Jamie said.

  “Return to Sol? But what about the planet and everything that has happened?”

  “Colonel Bast said more Chaanisar have arrived to relieve us.”

  “Alright. Do you think this has something to do with the Erinyie?”

  “I’m sure of it. The AI recorded my experience and shared it with the Admiral. The order makes sense.”

  “Considering your hallucinations, it is probably for the best. When we return to Sol, I want you to see Doctor Ellerbeck.”

  “What for?”

  “She has worked on Chaanisar implants before. She might have some insight into what has happened to you.”

  “If it makes you happy.” Jamie didn’t like the idea of letting someone examine his brain chip, but he trusted Anki’s judgment.

  “It does.”

  “Then I will see your Doctor Ellerbeck.”

  Chapter 29

  “I don’t see anything wrong with the implant,” Doctor Ellerbeck said while studying a holographic image of Jamie’s brain chip.

  Jamie lay on an examination cot in a medical facility on Earth. This particular area of the facility was outfitted with specialized diagnostic equipment for examining Chaanisar patients. The Chaanisar warships all had their own diagnostic equipment on board, and Doctor Ellerbeck had used their design as a template to create equipment better suited to her own needs. The equipment built by the Juttari was only focused on the implants. Doctor Ellerbeck needed a more holistic system that could tie in the effects on the body and not just the implant.

  “Are you sure, Doctor?” Anki said, standing off to the side.

  “Yes, Anki, I don’t see any problems here. The implant is working properly, and there are no injuries or abnormalities. Jamie is in perfect health.”

  “Then how do you explain my hallucinations, Doctor?” Jamie said. “My brain chip should prevent them, but it didn’t.”

  “Unfortunately, I cannot answer that question, Jamie,” Ellerbeck said. “You said you believe the Erinyie have something to do with this?”

  “It is the only thing that makes sense,” Jamie said. “They entered my mind when I was captured by the Kemmar. They made me see and experience things. Live them. Then, after that, I have this hallucination. It all seems related somehow.”

  “Yes, it does, but if they did something to you, my equipment is incapable of spotting it.”

  That didn’t surprise Jamie. The Erinyie’s capabilities defied comprehension. Frankly, he would have been surprised if the Doctor did uncover something. No, whatever the Erinyie did to him would remain a mystery. “Then there is nothing more you can do?”

  “I’m afraid not. I’m sorry.”

  Jamie sat up. “Don’t be sorry, Doctor. If the Erinyie have subjected entire galaxies, what hope do you have of deciphering their methods?”

  “Thank you for looking into this, Doctor,” Anki said.

  “You’re welcome, Anki. If anything else comes up, don’t hesitate to contact me.”

  Jamie and Anki left the examination area and made their way through the large medical facility. Jamie glanced at Anki and noted the concern on her face. “I’m sure this is nothing to worry about,” he said. “There were probably traces of whatever the Erinyie did still in my implant. It will repair itself in due time.”

  “How do you know that?” Anki said.

  “I don’t, but I’ve spent my whole life with this technology inside me. It is remarkably robust and has often surprised me with its restorative capabilities.”

  “Well, you’ll have to excuse me if I’m not as confident as you. What if the Erinyie purposely did something to you? What if they programmed you to do something horrible?”<
br />
  “You think I am a security risk?” Jamie said.

  “No. I don’t. I’m just worried, that’s all.”

  The pair stepped out of the medical facility onto the street, and Jamie froze. Everything before him was ablaze, and the sun was blocked out by thick clouds of ash. But how could this have happened?

  “Jamie? Jamie, are you alright?” Anki said.

  But Jamie did not respond. Instead, he stared at the sky, watching a long, sleek black ship penetrate the cloud of ash. A blinding silver beam shot out of the menacing vessel. It hit the ground before Jamie and penetrated the earth. The beam drove down deep below the surface melting everything in its path.

  “Jamie!” Anki said while shaking him vigorously.

  Everything before him turned to dust, and he found himself standing on a normal city street. The buildings around him were all intact, the sky blue, the sun shining. Jamie searched the heavens but found no trace of the black ship. The planet killer.

  “Jamie, what is going on?” Anki said.

  “I… I had another vision. I think I saw the Erinyie destroying the Earth.”

  Anki seized his arm and pulled him back inside the facility. She took him straight to Doctor Ellerbeck’s lab and told her what just happened. The Doctor did another diagnostic of Jamie’s implant.

  “Still nothing,” she said. “I’m sorry.”

  “Could this be something other than a malfunction?” Jamie said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Could I be seeing the future?”

  “That is a little far-fetched, don’t you think?” Ellerbeck said.

  “But not unheard of,” Jamie said. “The Erinyie and the Antikitheri can do it, and so could the Great See’er on Diakus.”

  Ellerbeck nodded. “I’ve spent a lot of time on Diakus and am trained in Diakan medicine. The Great See’er did not see the future. She had visions of potential futures.”

  “What if I am seeing a potential future, like the Great See’er?”

  “Wait a second,” Anki said. “You think the Erinyie gave you the ability to see the future? Let’s say they had the power to do that, why would they?”

  “I don’t know. All they said was that I merited further study.”

  “I have an idea,” Ellerbeck said. “Most of the other Chaanisar have allowed AI into their implant. If you did the same and she witnessed one of these visions, she might offer greater insight into what is happening to you.”

  “No,” Jamie said.

  “But if she can-”

  “Doctor, I do not like connecting to other Chaanisar. There is no way I am going to allow an AI to take up residence in my brain.”

  “I understand.”

  “I’m afraid you don’t, Doctor. I spent most of my life enslaved by the Juttari because they controlled my brain chip. The only reason the other Chaanisar let the AI into their brain chips was to protect them from the Juttari. I do not need that protection, and I am not about to risk anything else gaining control of me through my brain chip.”

  “Jamie, Doctor Ellerbeck is just trying to help,” Anki said.

  “I know. Forgive me, Doctor. I did not mean to offend you.”

  “No offense taken, Jamie. You’re right. I am not a Chaanisar. I am only looking for a way to understand what is happening to you. Unfortunately, there is nothing else I can do.”

  “Thank you, Doctor. I appreciate all your efforts.”

  Jamie and Anki left the facility once more. Jamie tensed as he walked out the doors, but nothing changed.

  “You alright?” Anki said.

  “Yes,” Jamie said.

  “No visions?”

  “No.”

  “Good. Let’s go.”

  “Where are we going?” Jamie said.

  “I have an idea.”

  Chapter 30

  Jon poured over the readiness reports in front of him. He needed to ensure that there were no problems before he left for the Dvorkan Empire. He felt comfortable that the UHSF was well defended and able to withstand any new Juttari offensives while he was gone. Then there was the readiness of the invasion fleet. If they were going to aid Emperor Kriss in taking back the Empire, then everything needed to be at peak efficiency.

  The last time he offered military assistance to Emperor Kriss, he had several thousand AI warships at his disposal. Jon decided against taking those ships with him this time due to the recent problems with the AI copy. Miira had used the virus against it and had been successful. Nonetheless, he did not want to risk losing that arsenal to a resurgent AI copy. It had tried to hack into those ships once before, but AI had stopped it. Could she defeat it a second time?

  He would take regular, human controlled ships instead. As always, that included a contingent of Chaanisar warships, and Jonas wanted to bring his Reivers along too. With the threat of this nanoweapon, Jon wasn’t willing to leave Breeah and Anki behind.

  Anki’s situation had him concerned. She had developed a relationship with Jamie, a Chaanisar assassin. That didn’t bother Jon too much. He had been an assassin himself, although he killed for Sol, not for money. Still, he had been spared Jamie’s fate and had never had to endure the horrors of becoming a Chaanisar. Jamie also intervened to save him when mercenaries tried to kill him and Anki. Beyond all of that, Jon genuinely liked the man.

  This latest news was something different, though. Jon had seen AI’s recording of Jamie’s memories. It was bad enough that the Erinyie were now helping the Kemmar insurgents. Clearly, the Dark Ones had given the Kemmar the nanoweapon. But why did they run these experiments on Jamie? What did the Erinyie want with him? And why did they let him go?

  The whole thing was a mystery and Jon didn’t like any of it. Had the Erinyie altered Jamie somehow? Was he a threat to Anki? To the UHSF? There was no way of knowing. His only option was to keep a close eye on the Chaanisar assassin, which was why he called the Ronin back to Sol.

  He received notification that Anki and Jamie had arrived and hoped to get some more information from them. He stood up from his desk, stepped up to the door and accessed his comm. “Let them in.”

  The door opened, and Anki and Jamie stepped into Jon’s office. Anki smiled and gave Jon a hug, while Jamie stood stoically. Jon shook hands with Jamie and gestured to a small table and chairs for the three to sit down.

  “Thank you for making time to see us,” Anki said.

  “Don’t be silly,” Jon said. “I always have time for you. Now what is this all about?”

  “I’m sure you’re aware of what happened to Jamie on Kem.”

  “Yes, I saw AI’s recording,” Jon said. “Although I’m not sure why the Erinyie put you through all that, Jamie.”

  “Neither am I, Sir,” Jamie said convincingly.

  “The problem we’ve come to see you about is what has been happening since Jamie’s encounter,” Anki said.

  This piqued Jon’s curiosity even more. He hadn’t heard of any new developments since Jamie’s rescue. “Really? What else has happened?”

  “I’ve been having… visions,” Jamie said.

  “What kind of visions?” Jon said.

  “In one, I saw Anki’s bloodied corpse. In another, I saw the Erinyie destroying the Earth.”

  “Have you seen anyone about this?”

  “I took Jamie to see Doctor Ellerbeck,” Anki said. “But she found nothing wrong with him or his implants. In fact, he saw the Erinyie destroying the Earth as we walked out of her facility. So, we immediately returned, and she examined him again, but found nothing wrong.”

  “I see,” Jon said. ““Do you think the Erinyie did something to you to cause these hallucinations?”

  “I don’t think they’re hallucinations.”

  “Then what do you think they are?”

  “I think they are showing me the future, or a potential future,” Jamie said. “I don’t know if the Erinyie are doing it or if they gave me the ability somehow.”

  “The future?” Jon said incr
edulously.

  “You said that the Great See’er on Diakus showed you the future,” Anki said.

  “She showed me a lot of things,” Jon said. “The past, the future, where to look for the Antikitheri.”

  “What was it like?” Anki said.

  “It felt real. Like I was there. It was like I was watching it as it happened,” Jon said.

  “That is how I feel,” Jamie said. “It is as though I am living through the event.”

  Jon nodded. “Still, that is not enough evidence to think that you are seeing the future. And even if you are, there is not enough information to do anything about it. You say you saw the Erinyie destroying the Earth. Do you know when it happened? Or what led up to it?”

  “No, Sir, I don’t,” Jamie said.

  “Then the vision isn’t of much use, even if it is a potential future,” Jon said. “What makes you think you see the future?”

  “I don’t know. It is a feeling I got after the second vision.”

  “Did you have the same feeling when the Erinyie showed you your past?”

  “I thought it was real. I thought I could save my father. The thing is, I never saw my father get shot when I was abducted, but I knew that I was watching what actually happened. So, yes, it was the same feeling. When I had the vision of that black ship destroying the Earth, I knew that it was real. Or, potentially real. Does that make sense?”

  “It does. You know, there is a lot of strange shit in the universe. The stars know I’ve seen more than my fair share of craziness. I’m inclined to believe you, Jamie. I don’t know if the Erinyie did it on purpose, or whether it is a side-effect of the game they played with you. Either way, I’ll accept that you see a potential future until that theory is proved incorrect. So, if you have any more visions, try and glean some clues from them. Anything that can help us determine a response.”

  “But, how can you be sure?” Anki said.

  “I’m not,” Jon said. “But how did the Diakans know to trust the Great See’er?”

  “I’m not the Great See’er,” Jamie said.

  “I know,” Jon said. “But she obtained her ‘sight’ from the Antikitheri, so why couldn’t you get the same thing from the Erinyie?”