Demon Star

by B. V. Larson

  “I’m sure we can do that, Kwon. Did your men survive?”

  “Nah—well, two of them did. We lost three. They got torn apart and fried. I was lucky because I was up against the blast doors, ready to fly out if needed. When the deck came apart under my boots…that was quite a surprise.”

  “Yeah, sorry about that. Glad to hear you’re still breathing. My father would never have forgiven me.”

  “You’re right about that. He never would have. Kwon out.”

  I heaved a sigh and leaned on the console, sweating. My broken arm throbbed, shooting lances of pain along the ruptured nerve endings. Why did the nanites always repair nerves first? Why?

  -6-

  After we’d all recovered from the immediate aftermath of the battle, I moved to the ready room and called Marvin. My left arm was still out of commission, but the nanites in my system were sewing it back together as quickly as they could. It burned and tingled like a limb that had gone to sleep and still could barely function.

  “Now that you’re not actively repairing our systems,” I told Marvin, “I presume you’ve got some spare capacity to give me a report on your investigations?”

  “About the Demon ships or the threats on your life?”

  I frowned. I’d been thinking of the enemy fleet, of course, but Marvin had reminded me of another topic we’d been concerned with. Why? Was this his odd way of hinting he had information concerning the assassination attempts?

  “Tell me of your internal investigation, Marvin.”

  “I have discovered many interesting things. For example—”

  I sensed he was going to get into gossip and distractions. I didn’t have time for that today. “Get to the point, Marvin. Did you discover further evidence?”

  There was a hesitation. I waited him out in silence.

  “Yes,” he said at last.

  “Who does it point to?”

  “Professor Hoon.”

  “What?”

  “Did my transmission come through garbled?”

  I took a deep breath, mind racing. “No, I’m simply shocked. What evidence do you have?”

  “I’ve discovered a number of vestigial and partial files in the system indicating he altered yours and Kwon’s suit telemetry, as well as the med-bay programming, and he created the video of you mating with Sergeant Moranian.”

  “Fake video of our virtual clones mating, you mean,” I snarled. Of all the attacks on me and my authority, that had actually been the cleverest and most effective, and I found my temper rising once more. “Dammit, Marvin, why didn’t you tell me this before?”

  “You set higher priorities on other activities such as repair, translation and our current battle strategies.”

  “You couldn’t take five minutes out of your day to inform me?”

  “Every time I exercise my judgment to deviate from your orders, you castigate me. As a consequence, I’ve recently decided to comply strictly with your obsessive prioritizations.”

  I was steaming, but I tried not to let it show. “All right,” I said. “That’s how I want you to keep doing it. But you should have reported on these findings. That was your charge.”

  “I don’t recall you asking for a report during the last two weeks.”

  “We were so busy, and I assumed you’d tell me if you came up with something!”

  “I ran across a saying recently in my research on idiomatic speech, which states that when you assume, you make an ass out of—”

  “Yes, I know that one, Marvin… Dammit! Never mind!” I was getting sidetracked again, and I found my mind burning anew with the desire to find out the truth about why Hoon had been undermining my command and trying to kill me. “Talk to you later, Marvin. I have to get on this.”

  “But Captain Riggs—”

  I selected the “ignore” option, squelching Marvin’s prattle. Storming out of the ready room and through the bridge, I headed for the damaged troop pods. I found Kwon in the dayroom, which had survived the destruction. He was bench-pressing at least five hundred pounds on a resistance machine, and he had a heavy bandage wrapped around his groin region.

  That surprised me, I’d thought all that talk about having his dick blown off had been marine-talk, but now, I wasn’t so sure. I decided not to say anything about it.

  “What’s up, boss?” he asked.

  “Get in your armor. We’re going to talk to Hoon in his quarters.”

  “In battlesuits?” Kwon stepped into his suit and sealed up, activating his short-range private com-link and synching it to mine. He did seem tender when his bandaged region sank into the crotch of the machine, but he said nothing. He only winced.

  I suited up alongside him. “The conversation might get a bit heated,” I told him, “and we’ll be under water. I don’t want to be the victim of an accident.”

  “Welcome, Cody Riggs,” the suit interrupted as I closed it around me.

  “Thanks, suit. Now shut up.”

  “Command accepted.”

  “I don’t get it,” Kwon said, reaching automatically for a laser rifle. “You think Hoon’s dangerous?”

  “Marvin just told me he uncovered evidence Hoon was behind the attempts to kill us—he tampered with the suits and the autodocs.”

  “But he’s not even human.”

  “What does that matter? And put down that laser. The suits will be enough.”

  “How do we know what he has in his quarters and lab? Have you ever been in there? Maybe he has weapons.”

  That stopped me. “You’re right, Kwon. I haven’t been in his workspace since the refits.” I switched channels. “Valiant, have you ever recorded Hoon possessing any device aboard powerful enough to pose a significant threat to an armored marine?”

  “No.”

  “There you go. We’ll risk it.” My anger simmered, but I wanted any rage to be under my control. Kwon had a tendency to shoot first and ask later, which was fine in combat, but not so good inside the hull of our own ship.

  “Okay,” Kwon said, reluctantly setting his rifle back on the rack. He surreptitiously checked the suit’s integrated laser. This was a short-range utility beam, usually used for work rather than combat, with approximately the power of a pistol. I decided not to worry about that right now.

  “Let’s go.” I lumbered out of the armory, marines in the half-wrecked passageways scattering before us. The troop deck had been slathered with constructive nanites, and the walls had the look of melted metal quickly shaped into a patchwork.

  I could hear some of the troops calling out to Kwon, asking what was going on. He told them to button it and get back to their business, and then he followed me.

  Kwon and I stomped down the passageways toward Hoon’s quarters. Soon, I was inside the water-lock and pounding on the lobster’s inner door. I could have issued a command override, but I was getting angrier by the minute as I contemplated confronting the annoying creature and finally obtaining some answers.

  After water had flooded the lock and the inner door had opened, I barged in past Hoon to stand in the middle of the room. The water was crystal clear, of course, and the light was bright. For some reason I’d expected a dim, murky environment.

  “What’s the meaning of this, young Riggs?” Hoon said, once again waving his mouth parts in an agitated manner. I found it odd to see the Crustacean naked, without his pressure suit, making him seem even more alien than usual. “Why have you intruded on my privacy?”

  “You will address me as Captain, Professor. As I am the captain, aboard my ship, I can go anywhere I damn well please. I’ve never inspected your spaces, so I decided to pay you a little visit.”

  Hoon scuttled closer to face off with me.

  “Captain Riggs, I find this ‘visit’ highly irregular, and my superb translation software tells me that you are agitated and expressing yourself even more discourteously than usual. I accept your putative authority, but I demand you explain your a
ctions. I am a diplomatic representative of my race and will not be treated this way.”

  “Diplomatic immunity goes only so far, Hoon. I haven’t checked my law books lately, but I bet it doesn’t cover attempted murder of a Star Force officer or sabotage of a Star Force vessel.”

  “Your words convey no meaning I can connect to my situation. Are you implying I have attempted to murder someone or sabotage this ship?”

  I stepped forward, raising my armored fist. “I’m not implying anything, Hoon. I’m flat-out accusing you. Marvin found evidence you tampered with Kwon’s suit and mine. Further, you hacked the autodocs and faked sex vids that got me into so much trouble.”

  Out of the corner of my faceplate, I could see Kwon’s hands working, as if he wanted to grab something and tear it to bits.

  Hoon backed away from us. “Your accusations are preposterous. I have neither the motivation nor the technical expertise to commit such crimes.”

  “You’ve bragged to me many times about how smart you are, how many academic degrees you hold and how much faster than humans you learn. I don’t see how it would be all that hard for you to teach yourself about our cybernetic systems during the time you’ve had aboard.”

  “In that, you are correct, Captain Riggs. I could acquire those skills, but I have better things to do. You are welcome to examine my meticulous research logs and determine for yourself that I simply have not taken the time away from more important tasks.”

  “I doubt you logged your crimes. You’ve had plenty of time to do these things, being a clever lobster.”

  “I cannot prove a negative, but under your own laws, I do not need to. I am innocent until proven guilty. Besides, what possible motive would I have for performing these actions? I am one Crustacean stuck among you disdainful humans. My life is sufficiently miserable right now that I logically have no desire to make it worse by interfering with your semi-competent attempts to return us to civilization. In point of fact, I have more motivation than anyone to get home, in order to rejoin my kind and get away from you humans.”

  I stomped my heavy foot on the deck, creating a pressure wave in the water and causing Hoon to flinch. My voice rose, translated by my suit and spoken in the Crustacean language by the external speakers.

  “You lobsters act so superior and rational,” I said, “but you hold a grudge as well as the next biotic. I’ve read the histories. I’ve even reviewed some communications between you and my father. You blamed him for what happened to your home worlds when it was clearly your own damn fault for changing sides every time it seemed to be to your advantage. Your people betrayed biotics everywhere instead of standing shoulder to shoulder with us. When I showed up, you saw a chance to take it out on me.”

  Hoon scuttled half to the left, and then back half to the right. He was like a sheep looking for escape from wolves. “The first attempt on your life occurred long before we met, Captain Riggs.”

  “Depends on what you mean by ‘first.’ I had some very odd and rather deadly things happen to me long before I graduated from the Academy, things that wouldn’t be that hard for a lobster with brains and money to arrange.”

  “Grim bigotry!” Hoon declared. “Is your dislike for aliens so great you’ve lost your mind?”

  “No, Hoon, I’m seeing things very clearly today.”

  “I insist upon a formal court,” he said. “I must say at this juncture that the situation appears clear to me. You’re the one holding a grudge. Following the treaty between our peoples, I’ll presume this visit constitutes notice that I’m under investigation. I therefore invoke my right to counsel and refuse to say any more.”

  I took a step forward, with Kwon following suit. I wanted to find the culprit who had killed Olivia and who had tried more than once to kill me. If it had just been me that would be one thing, but the fact that Olivia and others were considered collateral damage was beyond irrational. It had to be the work of someone not wholly human. Alien in fact as far as I was concerned. I could feel the rage I’d kept in check for so long boiling to the surface.

  “Laws and regs are pretty thin out here, Hoon,” I said. “If you come clean right now about anything you’re involved in, I promise not to invoke the death penalty. If we end up proving your guilt, though, we might have to manufacture a whole bunch of butter-flavored sauce for your funeral.”

  Yeah, I was that mad. I admit it.

  Hoon’s tone finally began to take on some humility. Perhaps it was starting to sink in how close he was to becoming a crew-sized pot of lobster bisque. “Your disgusting threats to consume my flesh have no additional power to frighten me as I don’t believe in an afterlife. Nor do I respond emotionally to your taboos. However, as I do not wish to be unlawfully tortured or executed, let me assure you that you’re completely mistaken. I am innocent of all crimes. Consider the source, Riggs. If there is evidence, it has been falsified or manufactured.”

  I blinked at him thoughtfully. “Why would Marvin lie?”

  “Why does the robot do anything? He has his own purposes. Perhaps he is mistaken. In any case, as I said, you’re free to examine all my records and correspondences in detail.”

  “Of course I’m free to do that. I don’t need your permission,” I growled.

  Despite my anger, Hoon’s steadfast denials were starting to cool me off. He was right about due process, too. If I turned into a tyrant in this instance, I’d end up paying for it later. A captain didn’t have the luxury of being a hypocrite in front of his crew. They might start to ask themselves what would keep me from chucking the regs if one of them became a suspect, and why they should follow the rules when I didn’t bother to do the same.

  “I stand ready to assist in any way I can,” Hoon said. “I will provide all codes for my encrypted files, but I insist that Warrant Officer Cornelius be assigned to monitor the investigation.”

  Hoon’s request made me wonder if the hooch-swilling chief of the gun deck, whom I’d recently promoted from senior noncom to warrant officer, was somehow part of the conspiracy. Then it occurred to me that Hoon would want to keep any co-conspirators as far from himself as possible. Maybe he thought that Cornelius’ alcoholic tendencies would make her ineffective.

  Then I decided to quit wondering and ask him. “Cornelius? Why her?”

  “Because she debunked the false mating videos. To me, that proves she is either impartial or on your side. You will not suspect her of shielding me. And because I have nothing to hide, she will make an excellent witness in my defense when the time comes for the formal hearing.”

  He had me there. I couldn’t see any reason to deny his request, unless I was missing something. But I wasn’t about to be out-foxed by a lobster, or by anyone else for that matter. “Fine. Cornelius it is. Valiant, lock down all of the computer systems Hoon has access to and don’t let him make any alterations. Hoon, provide the AI with your access codes right now so she can make complete copies of your files.”

  “Of course, Captain Riggs. I will do so immediately.”

  Fear seemed to have made him compliant, which was a sensible response for any highly intelligent species, but now that I was calming down, I wondered what it was going to cost me later.

  “I’ll leave you to it, then. Come on, Kwon.” I stomped out of Hoon’s watery quarters, dissatisfied. I’d hoped to find something out by confronting the lobster in his lair, so to speak, but he hadn’t fallen apart. Did that mean he was telling the truth, or simply that he had long prepared for this day?

  My gut had begun to doubt Hoon was guilty—at least, guilty of trying to kill me. Maybe whatever Marvin had found was evidence of some lesser meddling, or maybe it really had been faked the way the lobster claimed.

  Once the water had drained away and left me in a dripping battlesuit, I opened my faceplate to rub my eyes. I wished that for once things would become clear.

  With a flash of insight, I realized that this was why I often felt eager for battle. It was the
clarity and simplicity of combat that I was drawn to. Distances, speeds, weaponry, tactics, winning and losing. None of this murkiness, the guessing of motivations, looking for traitors among my crew.

  I imagined my sentiment went double for Kwon.

  Military service wasn’t supposed to be like this, dammit. I’d gobbled up life at the Academy like a ravenous tiger, digesting everything I’d been taught in order to turn myself into the model officer. I thought I’d done a decent job until now, especially thrust into the role as captain so soon, but sometimes I felt as if I was drowning in a situation that simply didn’t fit the way things ought to.

  My usual response to self-doubt was to knock back a few cold beers and talk things out with one of my closest confidantes—Adrienne or Kwon, depending on the subject matter. Both had their insights, and I really needed someone to bounce my thoughts off of right now.

  As Kwon was handy and informed, I decided it was time for a chat with my most trusted subordinate and, dare I say it, friend.

  “Come on,” I said as we got out of our suits in the armory. “Let’s grab a couple of brewskis in your quarters.”

  “Always a great idea, boss,” Kwon replied eagerly.

  -7-

  I wanted to hang out in his cabin because the marines were used to seeing me come by and talk to him. Going anywhere else might get people wondering. Hell, they were probably already wondering why we’d visited Hoon in full armor, but there wasn’t much I could do about that.

  Once the door was shut, I guzzled two bottles out of a six-pack of the mediocre factory beer Kwon had set in front of me.

  “Not knowing who tried to kill us is driving me crazy. I’m starting to suspect everyone. I told Marvin to look for evidence, and he told me he found some, but…” I rubbed my forehead. “What do you think?”

  “We talkin’ about Hoon?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’d sooner trust the lobster than Marvin.”

  He’d already drained the first two of his own six-pack and then slammed down another.