by Andrew Gates
Donovan Gomez calmly raised his hand again.
“Please,” he said, “this will only take longer if you continue to interrupt.”
Sanja chuckled amusingly. As much as she missed her job, she did not miss addressing crowds like these.
“Earlier today, the surface survivors claim to have discovered dormant maelstrom neutron missiles housed within the compound,” the man continued.
Maelstrom neutron missiles? Sanja suddenly found herself very interested in today’s news.
“Reports indicate that most of the missiles are badly damaged beyond repair. Only one appears to be intact and properly functioning. Survivor Daniel Georgopolis studied physics at the Atlantic Institute for Science and inspected the missile himself.”
“How can we fire it?” someone shouted.
“Is there a risk of it exploding in the fortress?” shouted another.
“Please, please, ladies and gentlemen, I will get to all of your questions!” the man said, trying to calm the crowd. “Reports indicate that the missiles can only be launched remotely through the old surface-built computer system. The survivors have no way of accessing it. It’s highly secured.”
Highly secured, huh? Sanja snickered. She knew exactly who to speak to next.
The glorified janitor turned away from the speaker and walked away. Zoran turned to face her. He looked like he was about to say something, but remained quiet. He simply stood there as she exited the room, pushing past the crowd of dirty ocean scum.
Baltir Yavenna, she thought. If anyone can remotely access that missile, it’s him.
Sanja knocked against the thick metal door. It was cold against her touch. At first there was no response, but after a few seconds, she could hear shuffling inside.
“Is that you, Linda?” Baltir asked through the door.
Sanja remained quiet. There was no need to expose her identity just yet. Only a few seconds later, the door opened, revealing a tired Baltir covered in his own sweat. He seemed surprised to see her.
“Not who you expected?” Sanja asked.
“How did you find me?” Baltir wondered. He peered left and right down the hall.
Sanja took a step past him into the office. The spineless half-breed let her pass. His office was small on the inside. There was only space for a desk and a chair. It was more like a closet with monitors than anything. Sanja pushed some equipment aside and sat on his desk.
“You’re easy to find, Baltir. I had Yuri follow you a few weeks ago. You didn’t think I’d allow you to hide from me, did you?” she said with a grin.
Baltir sighed and closed the door behind him. She could tell he did not want to have this conversation. He hobbled closer to her. His leg was still in a cast, though it seemed to be healing.
“Didn’t you use to have a fancy security camera set up outside your residence?” she asked, toying with him. “What happened to that?”
“It’s the afterlife,” Baltir answered with a sigh. “We all have to deal with cutbacks.”
“Everyone but you, it would seem,” she retorted.
Sanja studied the room. She did not know what half the equipment here did, but it all seemed important.
“Look at you, look at you,” she continued. “Wow! And just think about the position of power you’ve gained in such a short time.” She held her hands up as if to suggest she were impressed.
“Not my choice. It came from necessity,” Baltir challenged. He slowly hobbled to his rolling chair and sat down.
“Still, you must admit, you’re closer to the President than ever before.”
“I don’t think that’s necessarily true. I’ve always done work for Ortega,” he replied.
“Yes, but in secret. Tell me, did you really expect Linda Faulkner to be knocking on your door just now?” she asked, tauntingly.
Baltir turned his head away from her as if he did not want to answer that question.
“Look, let’s stop playing games,” Sanja said, getting right to it now. “I’m guessing you’re the one who helped initiate the radio conversation between the survivors and the FCP.”
“Is that public knowledge now?”
“It is. Straight from the mess hall. I’m just getting my news like everyone else,” she explained.
Baltir finally returned eye contact.
“Well yes,” he said. “That was me. They somehow managed to redirect the radio signal through an old network called the internet, a rather advanced system given how old it is. I was able to detect the transmission through-”
“I don’t care about the internet. I heard Gomez’s version of the story already,” Sanja interrupted. She leaned forward on the desk, getting right into Baltir’s face. “What I want to know is if you can access that maelstrom neutron missile they found.”
Baltir slowly wiped his forehead.
“Somehow I knew that’s what you were after,” he said with a sigh.
“And your answer?”
He turned to one of the monitors near him and pointed to the screen.
“I’ve been trying, but it’s tough. I can’t hack into this computer like I could in the station. The system is old. Everything works completely differently. I have to relearn all I know just to talk to this thing,” he explained.
“It can’t be that hard. This is an ancient computer, right? Isn’t it basically a calculator?”
Baltir shook his head.
“It’s not like that at all, actually. Believe it or not, I do know what I’m talking about. And by the way, I’m not so sure I should even be telling you any of this anyway,” he said, suddenly finding the courage to talk back.
“So why bother telling me now?”
Baltir tapped his bad leg.
“You shot me, remember? I’m not looking for another bullet. To be honest, I’m surprised you didn’t bring your hulking friend with you.”
“Yuri has his own business to deal with right now,” Sanja said. “But I’m glad I can still intimidate you without him.”
“Damn, no wonder Tracey called you a kunda,” Baltir replied with a shake of the head.
Sanja paused. What the hell did he just say?
Kunda was perhaps the most horrid word one could use to describe a woman. No other expletive came close to providing the same impact. Just the sound of it was like a grenade. Once it went off, it destroyed anything around it.
So Tracey Saljov thought I was a kunda? Fuck him. Now he’s dead like all the rest.
“You would be wise not to use that word around me again, Baltir. Now that I know where you work, you may not want to test your limits,” Sanja warned.
“I know, I know,” Baltir replied. “Look, those were Tracey’s words, not mine.”
Sanja glared at him.
“But you agree with him, don’t you?”
Baltir did not answer. Once again, he simply looked away.
“Look,” he eventually said, turning back to her. “I don’t know why you’re coming here to scare me. What could you possibly do with access to the missile anyway, huh? You don’t have the authority to approve any missile launch. What’s even your endgame here?”
“It doesn’t matter what my plan is. What matters is that I have leverage.”
Baltir suddenly stood up from his chair. His movements were jerky, but he managed to stand nonetheless.
“Sanja, do you hear how fucking ridiculous that sounds? You have no plan. You just want to know if I can launch a missile.”
“If you can launch a missile and I can control you, then that means I can launch a missile,” she explained.
“No! That’s fucking moronic! What would you even do with a missile anyway, huh? Shoot the goddam forest?”
“I don’t need to be lectured by you!” Sanja spat back.
“Why? Because you don’t like hearing logic?”
“No! Because I know that you wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for me!”
“There we go again,” Baltir said with an exhale. He threw his han
ds up and sat back down in his seat. “It all comes back to this, huh? What do you want? A formal thank you note?”
“I expect respect,” she replied.
Baltir sighed. He rubbed his hands together and closed his eyes as if trying to calm himself down. After a few seconds, he turned to face her and opened his eyes again. He studied her body.
“You don’t even have a gun on you at all, do you?” he eventually asked. His tone was much calmer now.
Sanja instinctively looked down and studied her clothes.
“Why do you say that?”
“You’re wearing a t-shirt. There’s nowhere to conceal a gun in there,” he explained, pointing to her clothes. “Here I was worried that you were going to shoot me or Yuri was going to come in and beat me up. You have nothing to threaten me with, do you?” Baltir chuckled.
Is this amusing to you?
“I would hope I would not need a gun to achieve your cooperation,” Sanja said, not even bothering to pretend. The half-breed may have been stubborn, but he was smart enough to know when Sanja was lying.
Honestly Sanja did not even know where to find a gun in the FCP. Black market sales were not the same in the afterlife.
Baltir shook his head and leaned back in his chair.
“Well I’m still not going to help you. I don’t know what you have planned. It sounds like you don’t even know either. But I know putting you in charge of a missile on the surface is not a good idea,” he explained as he threw his hands up in the air.
“Don’t think because I am unarmed that I am-”
“Whatever you’re about to say, Sanja, just hold your breath,” Baltir interrupted. “I can’t do anything for you anyway. That’s the truth. If I can’t get into the missile system from here, then I’m not sure what you want from me.”
“You aren’t able to get in yet. But I’m sure you can access it with a bit of time.”
“You can’t be certain of that.”
“You’re the greatest hacker there is. If anyone can do it, it’s you,” she replied.
“Thanks for the compliment, but I think you’ve overstayed your welcome here,” Baltir said, not wasting anymore time. He slowly stood up from his chair again and pointed to the door.
Sanja stared back at him. They locked eyes.
“My, my, my, the station gets destroyed and suddenly everyone is a different person. Ortega doesn’t trust me, Zoran doesn’t trust me, you won’t listen to me.”
“Get out of my office, Sanja,” Baltir ordered. His voice was stern.
“Fine,” she replied. If Baltir was going to be this stubborn, there was no sense staying any longer. She slowly moved towards the door and pressed it open.
“I feel sorry for you, Sanja. I really do,” he said as she exited the room. The door closed behind her.
I feel sorry for you. What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Sanja stood still by the door as a mob of dirty civilians pushed by her left and right. The people seemed to pay her no attention. It was like she was invisible. I get nothing from any of these people.
“Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention,” echoed Donovan Gomez’s voice over the FCP’s loudspeakers. “It is now time for the daily announcements. The first order of business today, the Security Council has managed to reestablish contact with the surface survivors.”
Sanja ignored the message. It was going to be all the same information anyway.
As the others around her stopped to listen to the speaker, Sanja pushed her way through the crowd. She bumped into a few of them on purpose, just to remind them that she still existed. They did not seem pleased, but they were too distracted by the message to say anything.
She made her way to the mess hall again, this time determined to actually eat something. The room was a lot emptier now that the live news was over. The line was short and there were an abundance of open seats around the room. What a difference half an hour makes.
Sanja got in line and stared forward, not paying any attention to the world around her. There were too many things plaguing her mind for her to worry about what to order. When it was finally her turn, she just pointed to the most edible looking thing on the counter. She did not know what it was, but the server plopped it down onto her tray and handed it over. The brown mush smelled awful, but she would eat it nonetheless.
After receiving her food, Sanja filled her cup with water at the fountain and claimed an open seat in the corner of the room, far away from everyone else.
The mush on the tray taunted her. Sanja sighed and took a bite. She ignored the revolting taste and swallowed it down.
“Oh, Lord Beyond Both Seas,” she said aloud under her breath. This shit tastes worse and worse every day. Part of her wondered if they were just running out of ingredients.
Sanja signed, placed her forehead flat on the cold metal table and pressed both her hands against the back of her head. She closed her eyes.
Everything is going wrong, she thought. Nobody is listening to me. How did it come to this?
The tired woman remembered back to her meeting with the conniving Sandra Walter.
“Our system is different now,” explained the arrogant politician back on New Year’s Day. “The rules are different now.”
The rules are different now. Sanja repeated those words in her mind. She lifted her hands from the back of her head and looked up again. I still haven’t adapted. That’s my problem. I still need to adapt.
She glared down at her tray.
“How do I do that?” she asked herself aloud. “How?”
What bargaining chips do I have? Ortega no longer trusts me, Baltir and Zoran no longer have my allegiance, the missiles are the closest thing I have and even they are unattainable without Baltir’s help.
“Shit,” she said aloud.
“Talking to yourself?” a male voice asked. Sanja looked up. One of her least favorite people in the FCP stood before her, struggling to hold his tray with his tiny arms against his fat belly. At least he’s dressed nicely, Sanja thought, noting his suit.
“Horace,” Sanja said, practically coughing out his name. She did not bother to stand.
Horace Fielder, the new Council Head, stood before her with a Navy guard at his rear.
“I’d heard you made it to the afterlife. I’m surprised to see it with my own eyes,” the fat man said, tauntingly.
“It wasn’t easy,” she replied. “But when I set my mind to something, I get it done.”
“Except keep your operation running back in the station,” the politician teased.
Fuck you.
“What do you want?” Sanja asked, getting right to it. She was not in the mood for games.
Fielder placed his tray on the table and pulled out the chair before him. He sat down with a huff. His guard remained standing, but kept a watchful eye.
“I’m surprised to run into you. I don’t usually make the trip over here,” he said, trying to break the ice politely.
“You mean get your own food?” Sanja clarified.
“Yes,” Fielder replied with a nod. He picked up his fork and stabbed at the grotesque excuse for food on his tray. “During this difficult transition, I have not had much time to eat outside my office. I’ve been sending my staff to fetch my meals.”
Sanja eyed up his guard. He looked like he was in his mid-20s. He had dark hair and a stern disposition. Something about the way he held himself suggested the young man did not even want to be here.
“You mean this guy?” she asked, pointing his way.
“Him and others,” Fielder explained. He lifted the fork to his mouth and chewed the slop without even making a face.
“I see,” Sanja replied. She looked around the room. Nobody else seemed to be paying them any mind. The Council Head is right here eating dinner and nobody cares. What has this place come to?
“I’m sure by now you must’ve heard the news about the survivors,” the EO continued as he consumed more of his meal.
&n
bsp; “I heard it live,” Sanja said. “They’ve discovered an ancient surface fortress. Very interesting.”
“And I’m sure you know, that’s not the only thing they’ve discovered.”
“I may have heard something about maelstrom neutron missiles,” Sanja admitted. “Another interesting find.”
“Indeed,” the EO said as he swallowed. He adjusted in his seat. “And how are you taking this news?”
What is this, a goddamn therapy session?
“It’s intriguing.”
Fielder studied her expression. He placed the fork down flat and leaned in.
“Do I need to be concerned about something?” he asked.
“What do you mean by that?”
“I mean, do I need to worry about you doing something stupid? These missiles are a big find. Knowing how you think, I’m sure you’ve concocted some terrible plan in your head to get ahold of the launch codes,” the EO explained.
Sanja raised an eyebrow, intrigued by his question. That may have been the smartest thing he’s ever said.
“I’ll admit, I’d love to have a missile under my command, but realistically, what would I do if I had it? Shoot the goddam forest?” she asked, repeating Baltir’s words. She raised her hands in the air as if to indicate she were innocent.
“I don’t know what you could do. I’m just afraid you’ll do something,” he answered.
“And so you sat down here today to warn me otherwise?” Sanja retorted.
He nodded.
“Exactly. It would be a huge mistake, Sanja. The Federation has control of this.”
Sanja placed her hands back down on the table.
“Well thank you for the warning. I’ll take it to heart,” she replied in a sarcastic tone.
Fielder rolled his eyes and glared at Sanja again. She could tell he despised her.
“Look,” Sanja continued, “I didn’t come to dinner today to get lectured. If you just came to threaten me, then you’ve done that. Thanks for the warning, now please let me eat in private.”
The fat man sighed and placed his fork on the plate. He sat still.
“Go!” Sanja said, standing up now. She could not endure another painful moment in this man’s presence.
