Deceit of Humanity

by Arthur McMahon

  The outdoors revitalized her spirit, giving her a second wind of energy. All she wanted to do was dance, but her leg was in rough shape. Darn thing.

  Dominski and Kapoor were relieved as well, but they hadn’t been down there for as long as Silhouette, hadn’t seen what she had seen.

  “That was hell,” said Silhouette.

  “Sounds like it,” said Dominski. “But I’d like to see it for myself. I’ll want to view your Ocu’s files when we get back to the Krajova.”

  Silhouette said nothing. Ocular enhancements weren’t uncommon, but the vast majority were limited to standard vision correction and media access. He had assumed a lot with that statement. Dominski knew how dark it was in those caverns, and he knew that Silhouette didn’t carry any everlights.

  “Look,” he said. “It’s the only way you could possibly navigate down there. You’ve got to have an augmented one, especially if you’re an agent for Senator Folami. I’m sure you get away with plenty of illegal stuff. That’s high-tech, though. Hope I can get my hands on one someday.”

  Silhouette sighed. “Sorry, Dominski. My recordings are for the Presider’s eyes only, her orders. You’re out of luck, but trust me, you don’t want to go down there and find it for yourself.”

  “Such bullshit,” said Kapoor.

  “Kapoor,” said Dominski, cutting her off before she could continue. “Contact Kapral Yost and find out if the situation has changed.”

  “What situation?” asked Silhouette.

  “None of your damn business,” said Kapoor.

  “It’s Kapral Jordan,” said Dominski. “He’s locked himself in the Krajova and won’t respond to anyone’s comms.”

  “Is that why Yost decided to stay behind and not come to your aid with Kapoor?”

  “Jeden, she doesn’t need to know about Krajova Team’s business.”

  “Like hell she doesn’t. Get it through your head that she is a member of our crew for the duration of this mission. Another word out of line from you, Kapoor, and I will strip you of your weapons.” Dominski led the trio as they walked their way back to the nearby bio-dome where they could grab their rover and return to the facility.

  “No response from Yost, Jeden.”

  “Keep trying,” said Dominski. “We must not be in range yet. Something ain’t right about this planet. Those scientists went nuts, and now Jordan is acting crazy. That plant monster must’ve destroyed the domes with its massive vines, but how the hell is it making everyone so paranoid?”

  “My guess is the pollen,” said Silhouette. “Your crew has been breathing it in ever since we landed on this planet, and the scientists were exposed to it for weeks before we arrived.”

  “Shit, why didn’t you say anything earlier?”

  “Only occurred to me when I saw that creature in the caverns. It was spewing out the stuff like crazy.”

  “And you didn’t feel obligated to share?”

  “Wouldn’t have mattered. If it is the source of the insanity, then it’s too late for you guys to do anything about it, and you don’t have any breathing masks with you anyway. I went through your pack earlier.”

  “This is fucked,” said Dominski. “The mission is a failure. We can’t restore the facility under these conditions.”

  “I agree,” said Silhouette. “Thuun is too dangerous. That ancient, nasty creature doesn’t want us here— we’re like a parasite that it’s trying to get rid of. We were wrong in assuming Thuun was a planet. It might not be a planet at all, not anymore, at least. I think we’ve found a gaia.”

  “What the hell is she on about now?” said Kapoor.

  “That’s impossible,” said Dominski. “Gaia are a Jjask myth, a campfire story.” He turned to Kapoor. “They’re monsters that consume planets. The Jjask stories say that they can travel through the vacuum of space, floating aimlessly for millennia until they can find a living world to feed upon. They burrow into the planet and consume its resources from within.”

  “That’s horrific,” said Kapoor. “Sounds like a giant space hermit crab or something.”

  “Yeah,” said Dominski. “I mean, everyone knows its silly stuff. The Jjask shared their literature with us years back when Archon Pewts hosted those culture-sharing seminars on Erde.”

  “The thing I saw,” said Silhouette, “it fits the description. Maybe we mistakenly interpreted the Jjask stories as fiction when they were actually trying to warn us. It sounds like you know it pretty well, Dominski— doesn’t the legend say that a gaia will turn the world mad? Something about bewitching the inhabitants, poisoning the world?”

  “Yeah, but...”

  “Jeden,” said Kapoor. “I’ve gotta hold of Kapral Nguyen on channel two. She’s in a panic.”

  Dominski switched over his comm to the correct channel and static crackled from its speaker. “Nguyen, move to a better channel. I can barely hear you.”

  “I’ve been trying to reach you f-for hours,” said Nguyen. Her voice was distant, difficult to hear over the white noise. “Jeden, we need you here, now.”

  Dominski cranked the volume to its maximum setting. “We’re on our way. What’s the problem, Kapral?”

  “It’s Yost, s-sir. He’s...not right.”

  “Don’t be dramatic, Nguyen. What is it? Get to the point.”

  “He’s k-killed all of the facility’s scientists, sir.” Nguyen sniffled as she spoke. “All of them. He was screaming something about aliens, like he thought they were going to attack h-him.” She tried to clear her throat. “Dr. Carter hit him over the head with a pipe and we’ve locked him in the infirmary adjacent to the c-command center. He’s unconscious now, s-sir.”

  “Holy shit,” said Kapoor.

  “Are you all right?” asked Dominski.

  “Yes,” said Nguyen. “But I’m scared. I don’t know what to do, and Kapral Jordan still won’t respond to any of my m-messages. It’s just me and the two doctors.”

  “Remain calm, Kapral. We’ll be back soon. Until we return you are in command of the facility. Tell Bourdain and Carter to prepare for evacuation. The facility is a lost cause at this point.”

  “But the ship,” said Nguyen. “Jordan has it locked down. We can’t get in.”

  “I’ll take care of that, Kapral. Keep Yost confined and make sure the others stay safe.” Dominski looked over to Silhouette. He couldn’t see her facial expression, but he could read her body language, and that posture clearly said ‘Now do you believe me?’.

  “Nguyen,” continued Dominski, “find respirator masks for yourself and the doctors. We think the pollen might have something to do with this.”

  “Yessir. There are some in—” The channel cut to dead silence. Not even the static remained. Dominski and Kapoor switched through the other channels, but it was more of the same. Their link had been severed.

  “Jordan,” cursed Dominski.

  “The Krajova’s comm relay?” asked Kapoor.

  “He disabled it— must’ve been listening in and decided to shut down the link. Why would...what is going on with my crew?”

  “Thuun,” said Silhouette. “The gaia. It’s destroying their minds.”

  Chapter Ten

  ROTTEN THOUGHTS

  EARLIER, WHEN RUSHING TO THE aid of her unconscious Jeden, Kapoor had managed to maneuver the rover she had taken to the murky pool where Dominski and Fukumura had been attacked.

  Now, it was blanketed in a dusting of pollen. Dominski wiped off the fluff that covered the windshield and the rest blew off after they loaded into the vehicle and started rolling forward.

  Silhouette was relieved to finally have a chance to rest. She sat in the back alone while the other two rode up front, Kapoor in the driver’s seat. Dominski fiddled with a device that was strapped to his wrist. It looked to Silhouette like he was trying to remotely access the Krajova, but she didn’t care to ask what he was doing.

  “What about us, Jeden?” asked Kapoor. She swerved around a dead tree and then gassed the rover over the m
uddy terrain.

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’ve been breathing this yellow shit in this whole time. What if we start to go crazy like the others?”

  “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there, Kapral.”

  “Well, what if the shadow bitch turns on us? She could catch us with our backs turned.”

  “My suit protects me,” said Silhouette. “I don’t think I’ve been exposed, at least not as much as you two have. Even microscopic particles can’t penetrate the fabric.”

  “Well lah-dee-fucking-dah,” said Kapoor. “Why don’t you rip off your other pant leg and I’ll pull it over my head like a stocking.”

  “No.”

  “Jordan, respond,” said Dominski into the gadget on his wrist. “I know you can hear me. Respond, now!”

  There was no response.

  “Shit,” said Dominski. “Shit, shit, shit!” He was tapping on the wrist display, frantically searching for something on the device.

  “What is it?” asked Kapoor.

  “Jordan’s activated the Krajova’s launch sequence. Ah, shit! No, no, no!” Dominski jammed his fingers into the display, hitting the screen hard and fast.

  “Can you stop him?” asked Silhouette.

  “I’m trying. I’m trying!” Dominski held his breath and stared at the display, then exhaled through gritted teeth as a red checkmark flashed on the screen. “Okay. We’re good. I was able to lock down the ship. It’s not going anywhere until I get into the cockpit.”

  A sigh of relief escaped from each of them as the unexpected incident was neutralized. They travelled in silence for some time. Silhouette imagined the horror of being abandoned on Thuun with no hope of rescue for weeks to come. She could only assume the others were doing the same.

  Kapoor steered the rover out of the dead forest and back over to the dilapidated bio-dome. The cloudless night sky was host to millions of stars as they drove across the unobstructed terrain, Kapoor increasing the rover’s speed on the even ground. Within minutes after passing the dome, they had a visual of the colonization facility ahead. Its exterior lights were on.

  At first they could only make out the silhouetted shape of the building through the falling pollen, but as they closed in on the structure they could see the vines that had spread over its surface.

  “Oh no,” said Dominski. “Kapoor, punch it.”

  * * *

  The vines wriggled and slid across the building’s surface. They had pushed through the nearby ground and climbed the walls of the facility, some of the larger ones constricting with enough strength to buckle sections of the metal exterior, while others had punctured through the walls.

  Kapoor parked the rover just outside of the garage entrance. The gate had been lifted partly open by a collection of green tendrils. Dominski pulled out his knife to cut away at all of the plant material near the entrance and Kapoor followed suit, the two of them clearing the area and raising the gate just high enough for them to crouch under and enter the facility.

  Silhouette followed the others inside. Something grabbed her arm as soon as she ducked under the gate and she swung her other hand around in a tegatana strike, her fingers flat and arm stiff like a slashing sword, but she halted the motion once she noticed that she was about to break Dominski’s wrist.

  “Don’t sneak away from us this time,” said the Jeden. He released his grip on her arm and turned on his hip light. “We need to stick together.”

  “Do not grab me again,” said Silhouette. “I won’t hesitate next time. You could have gone crazy or been a plant tentacle for all I knew.”

  “Understandable,” he said. “But please, and I don’t say that word often, please remain close. We need you by our side.”

  “Jeden,” said Kapoor, “we can handle it ourselves.”

  Silhouette ignored Kapoor and nodded to Dominski, then realized that he probably couldn’t see her head that well in the darkness of the garage. “Sure,” she said.

  Their immediate area was clear of any dangerous vegetation. Silhouette used her Ocu to navigate through the corridors toward the elevator, guiding the others. The building was still being powered, but their location wasn’t receiving any of it.

  “I can see the vines in the walls,” said Silhouette. “They’re everywhere— must’ve messed up the wiring on this floor.”

  “You can hear them,” said Dominski. He signaled for the others to stop walking and listen. The walls and inner pipings were being pushed out of position from within. Distant groans of bending metal echoed through the halls and wooden bark scraped along inside the inside of the ceiling like heavy furniture being dragged across the floor above.

  But most frightening of all were the weeps and murmurs coming from the woman who was frantically waving her rifle toward the source of every sound she heard. At first, Kapoor appeared to be nervous, as could be expected from anyone in her predicament, but her movements quickly became erratic and she started talking to herself.

  Silhouette and Dominski were shocked by a sudden scream. They turned around to see Kapoor shuffling her feet, spinning herself in circles. “It can’t. I won’t let it. It can’t. I won’t. Itcant Iwont itcantiwontitcantiwont—“

  “Kapoor!” shouted Dominski.

  She turned her rifle toward him, its light shining on Dominski and Silhouette. They both rolled low in opposite directions and behind cover.

  “I won’t.” Kapoor let go of her weapon and let it hang loosely from its strap. “Sorry. Jeden, I’m sorry. I was just using the light to see. I didn’t mean to—” She grunted in frustration and rubbed her hands into her eyes.

  “Come here.” Dominski stood back up and hurried over to Kapoor. She started sobbing and fell into her Jeden’s arms. He held her tight for a few moments, then took a step back and brushed the sweat-soaked bangs away from her face. “Open your eyes. Let me see ‘em.”

  Silhouette stood in the hall and watched. I can’t believe I’m putting up with this.

  Dominski grabbed Kapoor by the shoulders and stared deeply into her eyes. “Since you were a kid I’ve never known you to break under pressure. Hold it together, Rosh. Don’t give in. We’ll be back on the Krajova soon.”

  Kapoor nodded gently as her Jeden spoke. “I’m ok. Let’s get moving.”

  Dominski looked at her for a moment more, considering his options. “Move to the front of the line, Kapoor. Silhouette will guide you on what’s ahead, give you direction.”

  Dominski turned around to face Silhouette. As he did, Kapoor’s head tilted and her eyes shifted to the woman’s shadowed form. That glare could have burned a hole through the wall behind Silhouette, if she weren’t there to absorb it.

  Kapoor straightened herself, then walked forward and past Silhouette, leading the way down the corridor.

  They were able to keep to a path clear of danger, avoiding the green monsters by following Silhouette’s instruction. Kapoor listened to the directions without conflict, but Silhouette kept an eye on the woman, knowing that the young mercenary would likely soon have another mental breakdown. She’s going to snap, and I’m going to be ready when she does. Kapoor’s primitive brain structure is taking control— its destructive impulses are starting to overpower her higher logical functions. “Koestler was right,” whispered Silhouette.

  “What was that?” Kapoor snapped as she looked back over her shoulder.

  “Nothing. Thinking out loud.”

  Perhaps the gaia’s pollen is an antigen of some sort that causes a rapid deterioration of the cerebrum. Silhouette rolled her eyes in response to her own thoughts. Or maybe it’s just some weird alien vegetable hoodoo magic. I’ll let Folami’s intelligence team figure that one out.

  The Presider had always balanced Silhouette’s training equally between the body and mind. Growing up as a secret child of the busy politician, she never had free time to herself. There was a tight schedule planned out months in advance which was filled day to night with endless tutors, trainers, and teachers
. An administrative assistant kept track of it all, one that was dedicated full-time to Sue’s activities.

  The assistant would have been Sue’s closest friend, but Folami brought a new person into the position every few months to avoid any unnecessary emotional attachments. The teenage Sue was in training to become Silhouette, an Enforcer, a diplomatic warrior for Folami and the Cooperation. It was a consensual agreement, at least originally. Folami had offered the young girl this life after saving her from an enslaved world, promising the eventual freedom of Sue’s homeworld and her family.

  Becoming an adult offered Sue a taste of freedom. She was given her own place to stay, and evenings to use as she wished, but the training never stopped. She was a student of the body, of the universe, of human history, technology, poetry, and everything else her instructors were told to impart upon her. There was a purpose to it all, the promises that Folami had made, the ones she had lived up to.

  With the skills and knowledge that a decade of intensive study had given her, Silhouette was able to save her brother, Davi, and all of planet Nye from the bondage of Burmin chains. She had freed a world and kicked into gear the machine of politics that reunited humanity under a common flag, but that was done with. It was over.

  Now, she retained the knowledge and skills attained in those pursuits, and she continued to work for Folami and the Cooperation, but with no personal reason to continue doing so other than misguided feelings of loyalty and obligation to the Presider.

  Damn that woman for sending me to this world. She didn’t need me to be the one to tell her that Thuun was fucked.

  The inner monologue rant was over. Silhouette knew that there would be a better time to worry about such things, like when she got back on the Krajova and had several weeks of boring space travel to endure while locked up with the other looney toons. Ok, enough.

  “Figures,” said Dominski. Silhouette’s body had been on auto-pilot. She had no idea how they had already walked all the way to the elevator. “I mean, I assumed since we had no power that the elevator wouldn’t be working, but I thought you would have warned us that it was squirming with plant snakes.”