The Last of the Firsts

by G J Ogden

  “Good, good,” muttered Darien, rocking back in the chair as his PVSM bleeped an incoming message. He checked the screen and rose suddenly. “I should take this.”

  “I hold military rank now, Major,” said Kuba, stopping Darien before his exit. “Surely it is not something that should be kept from me? It is imperative that we trust one another, if I am going to be able to help you too.”

  Darien’s eyes narrowed; he hovered above the chair for a moment and flopped back down into it again. “Very well, Governor, I’ll patch the message to the holo in here,” he paused for effect and then added, “as a show of trust.” He tapped a few controls on his PVSM and the holo emitter in the center of the slab-like black desk hummed into life, displaying the ethereal image of a young, severe-looking soldier, visible from the torso up. She was wearing dark combat clothing that blended with her onyx-black hair, which was pulled back into a tight ponytail that seemed to stretch her eyes back into a persistent, penetrating stare. Her ident appeared alongside the image, which read, Jnr. Lieutenant Katrina Zahn, Sector Commander, Training Sector.

  “Report, Lieutenant Zahn,” barked Darien, sounding and acting like an officer for the first time since Kurren’s death had been confirmed.

  “Sir, a recon drone has sighted Maria Salus entering the technical flight training campus. Major Page is also with her. Requesting permission to move my team in and engage them.”

  Zahn’s robotic-sounding report was equally as clinical as her appearance.

  “You have their exact location?” said Darien.

  “Yes sir, they entered one of the campus buildings and have not yet emerged. I have my covert ops team standing by for your order.”

  Darien glanced across to Kuba, who was staring back at him intently but giving nothing away, and then he returned his attention to the holo, “Standby, Lieutenant.” He tapped his PVSM and the holo image blurred into a white fuzz.

  “If Maria Salus dies she will become a martyr,” said Kuba, not bothering to wait for Darien to invite his comment. “It will bolster support for the insurgency, and potentially plunge us into a civil war.”

  “So you suggest we don’t move in?” said Darien, not following the governor’s train of thought.

  “No, only that your soldiers understand the importance of keeping Maria Salus and Major Page alive,” clarified Kuba. “If I recall correctly, you and the General did not select the sector commanders based on their tact or restraint, but rather on their zealotry and ruthlessness.”

  Darien wasn’t sure whether this comment was meant as a rebuke, or if it was just another one of Kuba’s long-winded attempts to say something simple in the most obtuse manner possible.

  “I will ensure that Lieutenant Zahn understands the importance of taking them in one piece, if that’s what you’re getting at?”

  “Excellent!” said Kuba, smiling broadly. “Once captured, may I suggest that Maria Salus and Major Page be brought here, away from prying eyes and ears?”

  “Bring them to the Teardrop?” said Darien, again not following Kuba’s thinking. “Why here?”

  “For the same reason we are here, my dear Major. Here, they will not feel intimidated by a garrison of soldiers, and here also I can discuss the situation, and our plan, without being monitored or overhead. In short, Major, if you bring them here then I can ensure their co-operation.”

  “Very well,” grumbled Darien. He honestly didn’t care where they were held, so long as they did what he wanted. “But I will be present for the interrogation.”

  “Interview, my dear Major, not interrogation,” Kuba corrected him, continuing to play the role of the pacifist, though an interrogation was more what Kuba had in mind. Darien, however, was not part of his plan.

  “Call it what you like, Kuba,” snapped Darien. “So long as they agree to do what we need, I don’t care.” Darien hit a button on his PVSM and the holo image sharpened again.

  “Lieutenant Zahn, move in your team and capture Maria Salus and Major Page alive. If either are killed or significantly harmed, I will hold you personally responsible. Is that clear?”

  “Understood, sir,” said the holo image of Lieutenant Zahn, though from the further narrowing of her already sharp eyes, the order for restraint clearly did not sit well with her.

  “Once you have them, bring them directly to the Teardrop, and nowhere else. Darien, out.”

  The image fizzled to nothing and the cool white glow of the holo emitter faded. Darien shook his head, “It would have to be Zahn,” he said, irritated.

  “Is she not capable?” asked Kuba, concerned.

  “Quite the opposite. She was one of Kurren’s top recruits,” said Darien, “but, like Kurren, she’s harder than diamond, almost to the point of being cruel.”

  Kuba raised his bushy brown eyebrows, inviting Darien to elaborate further.

  “Let’s just say she’s not known for her lightness of touch,” said Darien. “She will bring them in alright; I just hope she doesn’t kill them and destroy half the sector in the process.”

  “I see…” said Kuba, making a mental note of the young officer’s name. He then reached over the table and drew the refreshments tray towards him. From it, he took two heavy, ornate crystal tumblers and poured two large measures of the amber liquid. “Do you take ice, major?” he asked, knowing full well that Darien did.

  “Yes, thanks.”

  Kuba lifted the lid off a small metal container and then with a pair of tongs carefully lifted out two cubes of ice and gently placed both into one of the tumblers. He then delicately slid the tumbler towards Darien, being careful not to spill the contents, and picked up his own tumbler.

  “Here’s to the end of the war and our prosperous futures,” said Kuba, his half-smile even more sickly than usual. Kuba took a polite sip of the liquid and watched Darien over the lip of the glass.

  Darien grabbed the tumbler and took a soldierly gulp, draining the contents in one, and then banged the glass down onto the desk. “Hopefully, this will be over soon.”

  Kuba’s forced half-smile suddenly widened into a toothy grin. “Yes, Major, it most certainly will be.”

  Darien’s eyes scrunched into a frown, then his throat closed shut like a valve and his eyes shot wide open, as if he’d just been electrocuted. Struggling for breath, he slid off the chair and clambered towards Kuba, reaching out to him like a desperate beggar. Starved of breath his mouth was unable to make a sound, though his eyes implored the politician to help him. Kuba simply stood and casually backed away.

  “I must apologize, Major Darien, but I’m afraid our time together has necessarily come to an end,” said Kuba, as Darien’s terrified, wild eyes locked on to his. “I regret that it had to come to this, but I’m afraid you simply lack the conviction to see this through.”

  Darien tried to stand, but immediately slumped onto the table and clawed at the smooth black surface, as the strength in his body began to fail. His arms flailed madly, crashing into the refreshments tray and the decanter containing the amber liquid tumbled over, spilling its contents onto the desk.

  “I have not come this far, enduring the constant discourtesy and contempt of that belligerent oaf, Kurren, only so that you can ruin everything!” said Kuba, his voice growing louder and angrier. “I will say one thing for Kurren, however; at least he had the fortitude to do what was necessary. You would undo everything we fought for, and deliver us to Maria Salus like scolded children. What you have failed to understand is that there is no turning back from what we have done, Major; there never was!”

  Darien slid off the table and hit the floor like a carcass fresh from slaughter, grasping his throat and making a low gargling sound. His skin had turned a bluish-gray and his mouth yawned wide open, desperate for the breath that could not come.

  Kuba took several deep breaths to compose himself – he disliked overt shows of emotion; they were uncouth and not befitting the character of a governor. As his equilibrium returned, so did his well-practiced hal
f-smile. “I will control this base, as governor and general. Where Archer’s weakness and sentimentality led him to falter and Kurren’s cruelty and ego blinded him, I will ensure prosperity for the people of the UEC. I am sorry you will not live to see the glorious society I will nurture.”

  Darien’s eyes bulged, almost popping out of their sockets, and then with one last, low gargle, his body became rigid, as if it had suddenly been frozen solid, and the Major lay silent.

  Chapter 13

  Page slowly raised his hands above his head, his eyes fixed on the weapon in the woman’s grasp. He was still holding the blank ident card in his right hand; the woman’s eyes flicked up to it and then back to Page.

  “Where did you get that?”

  “I’m afraid we didn’t get his name,” called out Maria, who was hidden from view in the corridor.

  Ashley Jansen arced her neck, trying to see where the voice had come from. “Maria? Is that you?”

  “Yes, so how about you stop threatening to shoot my partner, and let us inside?”

  Ashley lowered the weapon and used it to wave Page inside. “It’s not actually loaded. I hate weapons.”

  “And I’m not especially fond of having them pointed at me,” quipped Page, lowering his hands and stepping further inside the room.

  Maria followed, closing the door behind her. Ashley shot a warm smile towards Maria and then focused on Page again, looking the soldier up and down, as if he was being subjected to an evaluation.

  “I remember your partner being older... and taller.”

  “It’s a long story,” said Maria.

  Then the two women closed the distance between them and embraced as if they had not seen each other in years. The pressure of the hug made Maria suddenly aware of just how many cuts, grazes and bruises were littered all over her body, but she didn’t care, and closed her arms even more tightly around her old teacher.

  “There were rumors you had come back, though I found them hard to believe,” said Ashley, drawing back but keeping a grip on Maria’s shoulders. “Then we picked you up in a hacked security feed, and I sent Byrne to get you before Kuba’s men tracked you down.”

  “Byrne? The big guy who sounds like he has broken glass in his throat?” said Maria.

  “He found you then?”

  “It would be more accurate to say that the heel of Sal’s boot found him,” interrupted Page, deciding to invite himself into the conversation, since no-one else had. “His voice is a few octaves higher now.”

  Ashley stood back, shot another penetrating look at Page, and then looked back at Maria. “Is he alright?”

  “He’ll live,” said Maria, “though he might find it difficult to walk properly for a while.”

  Ashley laughed openly and clasped her hands together. “You always did like to bust balls.”

  “I learned from the best,” said Maria, smirking.

  Page cleared his throat with a loud and deliberately fake-sounding cough. “I hate to be the one to break up this happy reunion, but there’s still the small matter of ending a coup to deal with?”

  Maria and Ashley raised their eyebrows in almost perfect unison, then Ashley wandered behind her desk and sat down. “Quite right, Major Page. But first, I’m curious to learn how the commander of General Kurren’s planetside task force ended up here, fighting alongside the UEC’s most-wanted criminal.”

  Maria pulled up a chair and flopped down into it, placing her boots on Ashley’s desk. The older woman did not complain, and both of them stared up at Page, expectantly waiting for his answer.

  Page had felt like he was under scrutiny from the moment he entered the office, but it was beginning to feel like more of an interrogation. It reminded him of his awkward personal meeting with General Kurren before accepting his promotion, and that was something he did not want to be reminded of. He thought for a moment, and then folded his arms and locked his earnest brown eyes onto Ashley Jansen.

  “I made a bad call, and I’m trying to make it right,” he said, plainly. “That’s all there is to it.”

  Ashley stared back into his eyes; neither of them blinked. “Fair enough,” she said after a few silent seconds had elapsed. “Besides, if Sal trusts you then that’s good enough for me.”

  Maria slid her boots off the table and pulled her chair closer to Ashley’s desk. “You said there were rumors about my return. What more do you know?”

  “Not much,” Ashley replied, motioning for Page to also pull up a chair, which he did. “We heard that a ship from the planet had infiltrated the base and that two people were seen escaping from it. I knew it had to be you, even before we saw the holo feed from the security cameras. I know of no other pilot who would be crazy enough to pull a high-g burn inside a spaceport.”

  “Except you, of course,” said Maria, smiling. Ashley pouted, contemplating whether that was a fair statement, and then nodded to concede the point.

  “So, Kurren is dead?” Ashley added, skipping to the crux of the matter.

  “Yes, he and his entire squad, bar Karl of course.”

  “That has to be one hell of a story,” Ashley replied, relaxing back in her high-backed chair. “But it will have to wait for another time. Right now, you may be exactly what we need to help defeat Kuba and Darien.”

  “Your heavyweight friend, Byrne, talked of organized resistance,” said Page. “How many of you are there?”

  “Not enough,” said Ashley, and for the first time her voice lacked sparkle. “We use the hacked idents to communicate over a dark channel, and we’ve so far established links with four sectors, all Flying Corp. There are perhaps fifty of us in total.”

  “Sounds like you’ve been busy,” said Maria, impressed. Fifty was more than she had expected.

  “You didn’t think I’d just sit here on my decrepit old ass and do nothing, did you?” Ashley replied, with a hint of her earlier sparkle, but her mood was still somber.

  “What about the Security Corps? Have any of the blue boots joined with you?” asked Page, but Ashley simply shook her head.

  “Reports from the other sectors suggest that many of the units are conflicted about what they are doing, but they still follow orders. Blue boots are very good at that.”

  “Not all of them,” added Page. Ashley’s statement didn’t sound like an intentional dig at him, but he still felt the need to defend himself.

  “The reality is that everyone is afraid of reprisals from the sector commanders, especially now that Kuba has also been given military authority.”

  “What?” said Page, leaning forward.

  “Darien granted him the effective rank of major; it was communicated to the sector commanders about an hour ago. We managed to intercept the transmission.”

  “Why the hell would he do that?” wondered Page, his eyes flicking across to Maria.

  Maria frowned; it was a good question. But then she remembered how Kuba had been the one to make the public holo announcement, and her conversation with Page where he’d suggested that Darien appeared weak. Perhaps Kuba was exploiting this weakness; perhaps their alliance was more fragile than it appeared.

  “He could be making a play for control,” suggested Maria. “That oily snake liked Kurren about as much as he liked Archer, and the only thing that kept him in his hole was his cowardice. But if this Major Darien lacks the wits or steel of Kurren then Kuba could easily manipulate him.”

  “Great…” said Page. “The only thing worse than Kurren calling the shots would be that guy.”

  “It won’t come to that,” said Ashley. “We don’t need fifty allies. All we need is already in this room.”

  “What do you suggest?” asked Maria.

  “We need to let everyone see you,” said Ashley, vitality fizzing in her voice again. “Major Darien is weak. Kuba lacks the charisma of Archer or the menace of Kurren. So, a stronger voice, one that calls for an end to martial law, one that uncovers the lies and promises to set things back to the way they were – that could be the
spark we need.”

  Page was nodding as Ashley spoke, but he also saw a flaw in her plan. “That all sounds great, but there’s one problem; how do you plan to hack the base-wide holo? These phony idents won’t get you that level of access, and it would take double the numbers you have to storm the comms control center in the government sector.”

  “I don’t plan to hack the system from the CCC,” continued Ashley, undeterred. “Well, not from inside it, anyway.”

  Maria laughed and clapped, as if Ashley had just told an exceptionally witty anecdote. “And you have the audacity to call my stunt in the spaceport crazy?!”

  Page’s eyes flicked from one to the other, waiting for either of them to explain, but neither did. “Anyone care to let the blue boot in on the joke?”

  “Former Commander Jansen here means to hack into the main holo system from outside the base,” explained Maria, still beaming broadly. She knew it could work, but it was still the gutsiest of gutsy proposals.

  Page’s eyes widened. “But you’d have to be practically parked on top of the CCC to broadcast a signal hack that was strong enough to override the main feed!”

  “One meter above it should be enough,” said Ashley, coolly.

  Now it was Page’s turn to laugh. “Are you sure you two are not related?” Then he threw his hands up. “What the hell, it’s been a week for crazy plans, I say go for it!”

  Ashley smiled at Page. “You always did have a good eye for partners, Sal.” The clock on Ashley’s desk bleeped an hour marker and she read the time, noticing how late it had become. “I suggest we move this discussion back to my apartment. They run security sweeps through all the training facilities at night.”

  Maria and Page agreed and they all stood to leave, but then Page heard the sound of heavy footsteps outside the window. He immediately recognized the distinctive thump of Security Corps boots and drew his sidearm, swiftly chambering a round. He moved to the window and cautiously peered out. “Is there another way out of this room?”