by M. R. Forbes
Theodore shook his head. "You know, I'm feeling pretty damn fine right now, and to be honest, I've gotten used to the alternate means of transportation. Maybe once the war is done, if I can get some of that synthetic juice, I'll give it a second thought. Until then, I'll be fine with what I've got. Now, let's head on back up to the bridge. We need to collect sitreps from the rest of the officers and see if we can figure out when we can get our asses back into this thing."
TEN
"GENERAL ON DECK," COLONEL Choi announced as Theodore rolled onto the bridge of the alien starship.
The bridge crew was small, the members of it almost lost amidst the many stations afforded to the original bek'hai contingent, but they all stood and came to attention as their leader rejoined them.
"At ease," Theodore said, rolling past the command dais to the front of the space, as Gabriel moved to his position in the first bank of terminals, with Tea'va following to sit beside him. Zoelle remained at the back of the room.
Gabriel turned his head to look back toward the dais. Miranda was sitting in the first row ahead of the raised platform, and she smiled when she saw him looking her way. He smiled back before returning his attention to his father.
"Mr. Mokri, Mr. Larone, are you present?" Theodore asked, seeking the two engineers among the glow of the terminals.
"I'm here, General," Reza said, moving out from beneath one of the stations and raising his hand. "Guy and Sarah are with Lieutenant O'Dea, going over the damage to the Magellan."
"What are you doing down there, son?" Theodore asked.
"Trying to figure out the interface," he replied. "I'm monitoring the impulses along the organic wiring, and tracing them to the precise outputs in an effort to translate them into something we can use. Or interrupt and control, as the case may be."
"Any luck so far?"
"Limited. I think I can turn on the ship wide communication systems through my tablet. It isn't much, but it's a start."
"Still a job well done, Mr. Mokri. Do you have an ETA on shields and weapons systems?"
"Not yet, General. Although the weapons systems seem to be individually controlled, not networked. We can fire the main plasma cannon from the bridge, but using the smaller systems means having a crew stationed directly at the battery."
"Tea'va, how many batteries are on this thing again?" Theodore asked.
"Two hundred, Dahm St. Martin," Tea'va replied. "We only have enough soldiers to operate fifty-three."
"What he means, Mr. Mokri, is let's see if we can get them networked."
"Yes, sir."
"Seems to me your advanced tech isn't always all that advanced," Theodore said.
"There has never been a need to link the systems to one another," Tea'va said. "And it makes the whole vulnerable to a single point of failure."
"He has a point," Reza said.
"Yes, he does," Theodore agreed. "See what you can do, but don't make it a top priority." He paused. "What about flight control?"
"It's going to take a while, General," Reza said. "It's a lot more complicated than communications."
"Define a while for me, will you Mr. Mokri?"
"Two weeks, General. Maybe more."
"That isn't awhile, son, that's forever. We need to do better than that."
"I'm doing the best I can, General. I haven't slept in almost thirty-nine hours."
"I know. You're doing a bang-up job, Mr. Mokri. Don't ever let my impatience suggest that you aren't. But, and it's a big but, not only are we sitting ducks out here, but we've got friends on Earth waiting for our help."
"Dahm St. Martin," Tea'va said, standing and bowing. "I have offered my assistance in flying the Ishur before. Perhaps you have reconsidered?"
Theodore looked at Tea'va. "I'd prefer if Gabriel could take the stick while you observe. No offense because you've done good things for us, but you can understand why I'm hesitant to give you that much control."
"Of course, Dahm St. Martin. I would do the same in your position under most circumstances. However, this is not most circumstances. Pur'dahm Gr'el deposed me by the will of the Domo'dahm. This may not have a lot of meaning to you, General, but what it tells me is that he was reporting back to the Domo'dahm with regularity. There is a very strong possibility that reinforcements have been sent to this system."
"It took you more than two days to get here," Gabriel said. "I imagine it will take those reinforcements a similar amount of time?"
"That is true," Zoelle said from the back. "My team calculated the most optimal course."
"Even so, Dahm St. Martin," Tea'va said. "We currently cannot defend ourselves from an attack by another domo'shah. We will be torn apart."
"I hear you, Tea'va," Theodore said. "I'm open to ideas."
"General," Colonel Choi said. "What if we focused our efforts on getting the shields operational? If we can update them to use Reza and Guy's new modulation, we should be able to defend ourselves from any incoming attacks. Even if we only have the main plasma cannon, it should be enough at that point."
"I can't interface with the systems," Reza said. "Not until I finish the translation. I can probably get the shields online sooner if I concentrate my effort there. Five days, maybe? I really need to get a little sleep, though, I'm fuzzy as it is."
"Five days is still a long time, General," Choi said.
"We should have that much time," Gabriel said. "Assuming Zoelle is correct in her assumption about her slipstream path."
"I am," Zoelle insisted. "But if you don't believe me, I can still help you update the Ishur's shields. I do have some knowledge on their function, and I can integrate our systems directly. You don't have to spend the time on the translation right now."
"No offense, Zoelle," Choi said. "But we don't know you all that well yet."
"You do know me, Theodore," Zoelle said, stepping forward. "You know me better than anyone. You know who I really am."
Theodore smiled at her. Gabriel glanced to Colonel Choi, who made eye contact with him. He could tell she didn't like it either. The enhancements Reza and Guy had made to the phase modulation of the Dread technology was their secret weapon; their one means to level the playing field in a war where they were vastly outnumbered. Passing that information through Zoelle meant giving it to a former enemy, and if Tea'va was right about her, it could be a disaster.
"The lives of everyone on this ship are at stake," Zoelle said. "Please, let me help you, my love."
"Mr. Mokri, show Juliet what we've got," Theodore said. "Protecting the crew should be our number one priority right now. We've got too many people depending on us to take chances."
"Yes, General," Reza replied.
"Thank you, Theodore," Zoelle said.
"Do we have any other scientists on this boat, darlin'?"
"Three of my original cell remain," Zoelle replied.
"Get them working on coordinates for a slip. Tea'va, I'm doubling down here. Do what you need to do to get us going. Make sure you tell Gabriel every move you're making."
"Yes, Dahm St. Martin," Tea'va replied, showing his own version of a smile.
Gabriel expected his father to make eye contact with him, and when he did, he made a point to hold it. He hated the idea of giving so much of their control over to the former residents of the Dread starship, regardless of whose side they said they were on. He hoped his eyes could express as much to Theodore.
"Gabriel, come and see me in my quarters," Theodore said, holding his gaze with confidence. "The rest of you, if you have a specific job to do, get back to doing it."
ELEVEN
"WHAT DID YOU WANT to talk about?" Gabriel said, as soon as the door to Theodore's quarters had slid closed.
It was the space that had previously belonged to Gr'el. It was simple and spartan, with no visible effects to speak of, and no furniture save for a soft, flat surface that served as a bed. There was a regeneration chamber in the center of the room, but Theodore must have gotten Reza to disconnect it becaus
e it was powered down.
Theodore spun his chair around, reversing as he did.
"Your mother," Theodore said.
Gabriel tensed. He had been waiting for this. "My real mother? The one who died on Earth? Or the clone that thinks she's the real deal?"
Theodore's eyes looked angry, but he surprised Gabriel by not yelling. "You don't know she isn't your mother, Gabe."
"You don't know she is."
"Yes, I do, son. Oh, sure, my heart pretty much burst out of my chest when I saw her for the first time. And sure, I know it would be easy, real easy to believe it's her even when it isn't just because I want it so bad. Don't disgrace me by thinking because I'm old that I'm that daft. You've only seen what you've seen, and you haven't seen everything."
"I just saw you give her access to our only edge against the Dread. What if she's spying for the Domo'dahm, Dad?"
"She isn't a spy," Theodore said. "I'd bet my life on it."
"Based on what? She looks like Mom because she's a genetic duplicate. Even if the maturation capsule can reverse the aging process as she claims, there's no way that can be her. Of all of the Dread starships, in all of the Dread communities, and we end up with the one carrying the real Juliet St. Martin? I met another clone on Earth. You know that. How do we know she isn't the real thing?"
"It has to be her, Gabe. You never met your Mom. Oh, I wish you had. I've always felt guilty for bringing you into this world without her. But you didn't know her, and not like I do. That woman, Zoelle? She's your mom."
"I understand that you think that. I understand you want it to be true. I can't imagine what it's like for you to see her come back from the dead, young and healthy like you were never parted. But the Dread have been cloning people for years, and cloning themselves for thousands of years before that. You don't think they can make a convincing copy?"
"No. She knows things, son. Intimate things. Things I've never told another soul."
"Like what?"
"Heh. I'm not about to tell you. That's personal. The point is she told me about them. I didn't ask. She just knew. How would she know if she weren't your mother?"
"They can program brains. Maybe they reverse-engineered Mom's to get that information."
"To what end? Do you think there's any chance in the world the Dread thought we'd be capturing one of their ships? Do you think they ever expected they would come in contact with us? With me? So what would be the benefit?"
Gabriel knew he had a point. He shrugged. "Maybe it's a side effect of the programming? Maybe it comes along for the ride? Or maybe Mom did manage to alter her clones somehow? They have a special name for them, you know. Un'hai. They're different than the other clones."
"And all the others might be clones. Zoelle is Juliet."
"How do you know if we had the other clone from Earth on this ship, that she wouldn't say the same things? Know the same things? Let's say Mom did something to her clones and made them sympathetic to humans somehow. That still doesn't make her Juliet, no matter how much she knows. I'm sorry, Dad, but there are too many questions around it, and I think that by trusting her you're putting all of us at risk."
Theodore stared at Gabriel. When he spoke again, it was still at a normal volume, surprising Gabriel again. "Let's put our difference of opinion aside, son. It don't matter how much I want you to believe, because you're your own man, and I respect that. The fact is, I'm putting us at risk by not trusting her. What am I supposed to do? If the Dread are sending more ships out this way, we have to be able to defend ourselves. We have to. And we can, thanks to Reza and Guy. Damn fine work, that. We can take care of our people, we can get back to Calawan, and we can take care of our own there, too. We can rally the troops, and we can go back to Earth and duke it out with this Domo'dahm. Maybe we can even win. But none of that happens if we don't get the time we need."
"Tea'va can get us out of here. We can catch a stream and start heading home, long before any reinforcements can make it to us. You didn't need to give our secrets to her."
"It's funny to me that you question your mom's loyalty, and yet you trust that one so explicitly. Now, I know he saved our lives, but he wasn't the only one, and he's still a Dread, not a clone of a human. He's further from identifying with us than anyone. Anyway, didn't you hear me give him permission to get us out? I'm not taking any chances on this one, Gabe. We have to rely on every resource we have to get through this. Every resource, no matter where it originated. I know you can understand that."
"That doesn't mean I have to like it."
"Nope, it don't. And again, I'm not asking you to. But I could do without you making dirt face at me whenever I say something you don't like. I'd rather not dress you down in public, but I'm still your commanding officer, and you damn well better respect me."
Gabriel felt the heat run to his face. He had been overstepping his position in the last couple of days. "I'm sorry, Dad."
"I forgive you. We're gonna get through this, Gabe."
"I know. So, are you and Zoelle sharing these quarters?"
"I'm an Old Gator, son. And she might be Juliet, but she's been through more than her share these last fifty years. You saw for yourself; sometimes it's hard for her to separate herself from them."
"Do you think you'll do it? Use the maturation capsule to get your legs back? Heck, I think you'd come out younger than me."
Theodore laughed. "Wouldn't that be something? No, not so long as there's any chance one of ours gave their life in exchange. That isn't what God's about. It isn't what I'm about either. I haven't had these things for a long time, and I conquered that demon not very long ago. I've come to terms with the place I'm at."
"I'm glad to hear it."
"I bet you are. In all seriousness, Gabe, try to give your mom a chance. I know it's hard to believe, and hard to accept. Just try to look at her with a little less biased eyes."
"I'll try," Gabriel said.
"Thanks. And while you're at it, pay closer attention to Tea'va, too. I know you like him, but there's something about that one that I don't. He's got a politician's smile, and I always get the feeling when he talks to me he'd rather be sinking a knife into my chest."
"To be honest, I hate depending on either one of them."
"To be honest, I'd rather not lean on your mom, if only because I don't want her to have to be involved in this. Yeah, I get what you're saying, and overall, I agree. We just have to do the best we can."
"I will, Dad."
"I know." Theodore smiled. "I'm going to get a little shut-eye. Wake me if anything interesting happens."
"Then I'll hope I won't have a reason to wake you."
"Me, too."
TWELVE
"HERE SHE COMES," SOON said.
Donovan turned the mech's torso, rotating it until Ehri came into view in front of him. She had been gone almost two hours, and he had considered going to look for her more than once, forcing himself to resist the temptation. He told her he trusted her. He had to prove it.
She walked calmly through the rubble-strewn streets, not moving in any particular hurry, despite her earlier concern that there might be more Dread units nearby. It would have bothered him, except their sensors had stayed clear the entire time, and he had a feeling pur'dahm Fior'el would prefer to delay his embarrassment for as long as possible.
He opened his cockpit as she neared, evacuating the mech and climbing down to meet her. She smiled at the sight of him, raising her hand in greeting.
"Major," she said.
"Did you find him?" Donovan asked.
"Yes. He will not be troubling us any longer."
Donovan raised an eyebrow at the statement, feeling chilled by the way she said it. "You killed him, didn't you?"
"Yes. He was unwilling to listen to reason."
"You said he was likely a highly skilled hunter. You don't have a scratch on you."
"I was fortunate. He was tired from chasing us all of this time. He confirmed for me that there are no o
ther forces nearby."
"I figured as much, but it's good to have it confirmed."
"Are you nearly finished with the salvage?"
"Yeah. We packed as much in as we could. I think we're all pretty anxious to get moving again."
"I'm sorry for my delay, Major. It took some time for me to find him."
"If it gets the monkey off our back, I'm not sorry at all."
"Hey, Major," Kroeger said, exiting the ped'ek with two Dread rifles in his arms. "This is the last of the weapons. I figure I'll carry them since they're not going to fit inside the big men." He looked at Ehri. "You're back."
"I am."
"Well, hell, did you kill the bastard?"
"Yes."
"Good work, then." He turned toward Mendez. "You owe me."
"Screw you, Kroeger. I wasn't serious."
"Damn right. I was."
"Forget it."
Kroeger laughed. "Good women are hard to find out here. Thompson, get off your tail and let's move it out."
The other remaining foot soldier was crouched nearby, watching the perimeter. He stood and moved over to them, joining them without a word.
"Would it kill you to burp out a yes, sir once in awhile?" he asked the soldier.
Thompson shrugged.
"I'm surrounded by crazies," Kroeger said. "Military company excluded." He laughed again.
"Let's get going," Donovan said. "I want to be in Austin within forty-eight hours."
"Yes, sir," Kroeger said. "You heard the man. Thompson, Mendez, we're on the move."
Donovan retreated to his mech, climbing into the cockpit and sliding it closed. He followed Ehri as she gained her ride, bringing the bipedal armor to life a moment later.
They were underway minutes later, with Donovan leading them through the remainder of the city. It was slow going, even after the soldiers climbed onto the back of the mechs. They couldn't move too quickly without the risk of knocking them off.
"It's like Jack and the Beanstalk," Kroeger said, finding a perch on the undamaged shoulder of Donovan's mech.
