The Chronicles of Benjamin Jamison: No More Lies (Book 3)

by Thomas Wright

  “Just do as I ask, Binda, we will be in orbit in six hours anyway and on planet shortly after. If you want, you can work a guard duty schedule, as per Benjamin’s orders. He said we should be on our toes. I’ll review it later when I return.”

  zzz

  “We may have a problem,” Mira said. “The location for the meeting I am to attend is not far from the building where your friend was held captive.”

  “It’s daytime, isn’t it? Are you worried? We are cloaked, so we should be okay, right?” I said.

  “The cloak is mediocre in the light of day. It works, but if an onlooker is paying attention they will see the outline of the shuttle. The material the Cjittan use on the hull is in the darkest black. It is as if the material absorbs the blackness of space, so that even the outline cannot be seen. But the problem is that after using it for hundreds of years in the blackness of space, it doesn’t react as it should in the atmosphere of a planet during the light of day. The master tried to explain this to me once, and I listened, but didn’t understand it much at the time.”

  “So what are our options?” I asked, curious.

  “Let me out, that I may attend as scheduled, and you can return later under the dark of night.”

  “Yeah, right!” Shawna said. She had just woken up and was standing, leaning against the door frame. “Do you think we were born yesterday?”

  “Sounds good Mira,” I said quickly, “we’ll let you out. You’ll have to forgive me if I don’t tell you when we will be back, though. Anything I can keep to myself I need to now. You understand, don’t you?”

  “What, you’re just going to let her go? I told you she was bad news, and you wanted me to take her under my wing,” Shawna was yelling. Two hands gripped her by the shoulders and pulled her forcefully from the doorway.

  Taz had Shawna by the arms and pushed her back onto the seat. She stood towering over her, ready to put her back down if she moved.

  “Do not question his motives or actions ever again, young one,” she said down to Shawna. “I do not wish to hurt you, but if you move or open your mouth I will put your lights out.”

  “Hey, hey, take it easy out there and quit using my lines,” I yelled from the pilot’s seat. Mira stood and walked to the side door; there would be no opening the ramp right now. I landed out of direct sight of the building about two sections over and Snake unlatched the door for Mira. Before she could push it open, Taz grabbed her from behind and placed her face next to Mira’s ear so that nobody else could hear what she said.

  “When you leave by that door,” she told her, “you are beginning the end of your created purpose. It is a great gift he gives you, and you should do what you must to ensure your survival. Do not have second thoughts about your loyalty, because I assure we will not have second thoughts either. It is now time to finish what you were created for, however you choose to do that. Remember that you do have a choice.”

  Mira looked up into Taz’s eyes and reminded her again of the blackness of space. She nodded that she understood and said nothing.

  “I take a personal responsibility for you and the pain you cause him. My ship created you, so understand that I will remove your head from your body if you choose. . .unwisely.” Taz reached around Mira and pushed the door open, and this time Mira jumped out and hurried away.

  I lifted the ship, wondering what the hell they were talking about, and why for so long. In the space of a minute and a half, Taz had threatened two people bodily harm or death; that much I knew, without hearing a word. I took the shuttle in the opposite direction of both buildings, leaving them behind us.

  “Hey, Your Meanness, come here,” I said to her.

  “I am not mean, Benjamin,” Taz answered.

  “Shawna, come up here and take over, please.” I had said “please” to smooth things out.

  “I only thought to encourage your clone Mira to do what’s right,” Taz said.

  “Have you ever had one of these shuttles underwater?” I asked.

  “It is capable of being submerged in liquid,” Taz answered.

  “Will the drives work correctly, is what I’m getting at?”

  “Yes, we may have to make some adjustments, but it should work fine.”

  “Shawna,” I said, “take us out over the lake and leave the cloak on. Take us down easy under the water. If they send out any teams to find us, I don’t think they will look there.”

  “I don’t know why being underwater scares me so much, and being in space doesn’t,” Shawna said.

  “Because you have traveled and lived in space. But I bet you have never been under the water anywhere, have you?” I teased.

  “Why the hell would I? It would get boring fast.”

  “Really, and space isn’t boring? Just imagine traveling through space, only you see living creatures traveling along with your ship. That is what you will find here under the water, but not in space,” I said.

  “Benjamin, are you so sure of your statement?” Taz butted in. “You are only partially right.”

  “What do you mean, partially?” I asked.

  “There are creatures that travel through space without the aid of a ship.”

  “Stop it. It’s not time to fuck with the stupid humans, Taz.”

  “I assure you I am telling the truth, and am offended you should doubt me, stupid human,” Taz smiled.

  Everyone had worked their way closer to listen to her. “We do not know much about them,” she continued, with everyone’s attention on her, “only that there used to be many of them when my people were young. Now there are very few.”

  “What are they exactly? You have to know something about them?” Genius asked.

  “They are energy, but not totally, because they carry a speaker inside them. The speaker is not always the same species, so I assume from my reading when I was younger that they chose their speakers from different worlds they traveled to. This speaker communicates for them both. They request minerals and food in exchange for information. If they know your planet to be receptive of them then they will visit, and each one if different, although you could not tell by looking.”

  “When this is over, I want to go, Taz. I want to be as far from here as I can get. I want to see new species, peoples like Harry’s, or — hell, like anything, really.”

  “Let us talk about this later, Benjamin. One adventure at a time,” Taz said and squeezed between Shawna and me. She ran her fingers over a console I had never touched before, and when it came on it turned the hull around the small command center translucent. It was now an observation center; there were creatures swimming all around in a free-form way, turning in the blink of an eye in a new direction for no apparent reason. It was great timing, too, because some of them were rather large.

  Everyone was now trying to cram their heads and shoulders into our small area. The oohs and ahs seemed to never end. Taz dimmed the lights so the ship wouldn’t attract anything that might cause a disturbance; I had no desire to christen the shuttle Jonah.

  “Are you really thinking of going and never coming back?” Snake asked me.

  “I am, buddy. The queen here is pretty tight-lipped about her empire and what exists out there beyond our little corner of the black. She is going to give up her secrets to me, and I am going to see it all for myself.”

  “Ben, you don’t know if there will be food or water or fuel for the Claymore out in the unknown?” Genius asked.

  “Nope,” I answered.

  “If we die out there, no one will ever know,” Genius continued.

  “Probably not,” I said.

  I got out of my seat and walked to the back. Taz took it; Shawna wouldn’t look at her. My people sat down around me like they had done so many times before. The sea was already a memory next to the talk of exploring beyond the lines of where any human has ever set foot.

  Chapter 32

  “Listen to me. We have been together for a long time. A lot longer than the brass ever thought we would be, and loo
k — we are still together. You aren’t under any orders, not even mine. When Shawna brings us up, you are all welcome to leave. I want you with me, of course, but the thought of losing any of you personally overrides my desires. Think about it, and when we surface I’ll open the door for any or all of you.” It was for me as much for them; lately all I wanted to do was give people a choice. My holy crusade didn’t have to be theirs, and if they chose to walk away now, they could come back anytime.

  “If we live through this, we are going to leave and never come back,” Genius puzzled. “So that’s like being dead, as far as our families are concerned?”

  “It seems that way, but maybe we shouldn’t say never, just not anytime soon. Let’s just survive this and see what happens,” I said. “You’ll have until Trillond to decide, and after that you’re on your own.”

  “I don’t have anyone I am leaving behind,” Ronnie said.

  “Neither do I,” Snake echoed.

  “I have my mom and sister,” Genius said sadly.

  “Give them these coordinates and tell them we will give them fifteen minutes’ notice and they can meet us there. We won’t be staying long, but it’s better than nothing.”

  Genius looked up the coordinates, then looked at me. He didn’t say anything to me; he already knew the reason they would be going there.

  “How are we doing? Is it dark yet up there?” I asked.

  “Just about, what do you want to do?” Shawna asked.

  “I would like to make a recon run around the area and look for snipers and lookouts,” I told her. “Then we’ll find a position that gives us a good vantage point to observe the building.” I turned to Taz.

  “Taz, is there anything the shuttle can do that will aid in recon of the area?” I asked.

  “Shawna, would you elevate us so we can view the whole target area below?” Taz asked.

  Shawna glanced at me and I nodded. Taz caught the exchange and laughed.

  “May I have your seat, Benjamin, so I don’t have to reach over you?” Taz asked.

  I gave it up and got out of the way. She sat down. Her fingers moved over the console until a grid appeared. She touched one of the boxes in the grid and it expanded, taking up the whole screen.

  “This should be the area of our target,” she said.

  “Hold on a second. Genius, front and center.”

  “Show him what you did,” I continued, “and how to do any and all things that will be beneficial to us. Shawna, give Genius your seat and stand behind Taz and watch. You two are going to be our eyes in the sky.”

  “Can you be more specific? I imagine you want me to teach him in a matter of minutes,” Taz asked.

  “This is not a thug we are going up against,” I told them. “His people won’t be standing around smoking and bullshitting. Shawna is going to pilot and watch for incoming craft in the air. Genius is going to monitor the ground for movement, people, hovercraft, whatever — if it comes our way, we need to know.”

  Genius took his data pad and pointed at the console. “I’m going to record all of her movements and instructions, boss. I don’t think I’ll forget anything, but it would be good to have on file.”

  “Good thinking,” I said. “Go back now to the screen you had displayed earlier, analyze the info, and find a roof to drop us onto. Then find us a rallying point and be ready.” I went to talk to the rest of the team.

  I approached them. “Harry,” I said, “you’ve been quiet the whole trip, so now is the time to say what you’ve been thinking. Snake, you and Ronnie should speak up too if there is something on your mind.”

  “The only concern I have is the intel, boss. Are we sure it’s solid?” Snake asked.

  “I think Aisling and Mira told us the truth in both cases because this was predetermined,” I answered, wanting to quell his doubt. “Our adversary wanted us to find him. He isn’t aware of what Aisling overheard, but even that info doesn’t change anything.”

  “So he let us find him because he has a great big trap set for us,” Snake surmised.

  “Yes, that’s a given. I think our rescue of Aisling wasn’t part of his plan, but it still doesn’t change things, except he doesn’t have the thugs to throw at us and blame. He’ll have to use new assets.”

  “So we may be up against soldiers?” Ronnie asked.

  “Maybe, or merc’s, but regardless, we know it will be off the books, and he won’t leave this job to just anyone. Are you worried we may have to hurt or kill good guys who are being used unknowingly?”

  “It’s crossed my mind,” he said. “I guess we’ll find out.”

  “Ronnie, if by some chance it comes to that you don’t have to participate, just patch the holes we have in us,” I said.

  “What about her — how do I treat Taz?”

  “Just slow the loss of blood and let her nanites do the rest.”

  “Same with you, I assume?” Ronnie asked.

  “Yeah, same with me. You and Snake stick close to Harry, though, because he is a huge target and the only one with no armor. We may not get the chance to go close quarters, but I am going to try my best to make it happen. The big guy is not a good shot, but if we get him close enough to use that axe of mine and his other three arms, I think we’ve got something then.”

  “Are we ready? I’m itching to get going,” Snake said.

  “Snake, if you’re itching, then so are they. I have waited a long time and won’t sacrifice my team by getting in a hurry now,” I said. “You understand, right?”

  “I understand you are worrying over us like a mother hen,” he answered, eyebrows raised. “In the old days you would say, ‘Snake, shut the fuck up and do what you’re told;’ now, that I understood. But now you’re giving everyone an out every ten minutes. We don’t need that, boss, we know we can stay or go. It’s been an unwritten rule for a long time with you.”

  “I promise I will go back to treating you like shit as soon as this is over,” I said, giving him a rare smile instead of my fist.

  Everyone was evidently through with their questions, and Harry still never said a word. I sat thinking that when Genius was done, which would be any minute, it would be time to put more of a plan together.

  zzz

  “Captain, I’m picking up a repeating message from a beacon in orbit above our destination. It basically instructs all ships to proceed to moon 6410 and bypass 6912 by order of the Alliance Council.”

  “Does it say why, Binda?” Lorelei asked.

  “No, not really, just that you would be endangering your ship and crew if you land,” Binda answered

  “I understand why he chose this moon as a hiding place — and why he said to set up a watch,” Binda commented to herself as she began scanning the moon.

  “Captain, I think it may be wise to let the spider queen out, as per Benjamin’s instructions, and the rest of us can stay within the ship for the duration,” Nedra offered.

  “I agree, Captain; the Alliance doesn’t place beacons around planets or moons for no reason. Whatever is happening on this moon, we don’t need to draw attention to ourselves. I would recommend leaving within twenty-four hours, since I expect Benjamin may need reinforcements in addition to being picked up,” Aisling said.

  “There are a number of unknown species, but I am getting no recognizable life forms from the scan,” Binda reported.

  “Captain.” Grubb’s voice sounded on the bridge. “Are we going to be arriving soon?”

  “Yes, Grubb, very shortly, why do you ask?” Lorelei replied.

  “Imelda has left her bed and is standing at the ramp,” Grubb said. “I just figured she knew something I didn’t.”

  “I understand. She’ll be fine. Tell the others to prepare for landing in five minutes. Binda, let Natalia know as well.”

  “Yes Captain,” Binda responded. “Natalia?”

  “Yes,” Natalia replied.

  “Prepare for landing,” Binda said.

  A click was all Binda heard from the other
end. She shrugged and went back to work.

  It was dark where she stood up in the upper cross members of the hold. Natalia had watched and listened to Grubb report that Imelda was waiting. Imelda wasn’t the only one.

  “Captain, this location looks to be the safest place to land, but doesn’t provide much in the way of cover. Probably an abandoned settlement, by the looks of it,” Binda reported.

  “It might be something safe we can explore to alleviate the boredom over the next twenty-four hours,” Aisling said, clearly a little excited. “Then again, it may be just junk and not worth exposing ourselves to whatever is out there.”

  “Maybe whatever is out there will kill and eat that damn spider and I can be rid of it on my ship,” Lorelei said.

  “You shouldn’t speak ill of Benjamin’s friend. In his eyes, she is no different than you, Captain,” Nedra explained. “She admired him and decided to take up his cause. If I remember the stories correctly, he gave you refuge from the military. Isn’t that right, Captain Aisling?”

  “Captain, the ground seems to be very solid and the ship has a stable footing,” Binda reported.

  “I see no signs of life in the vicinity. It should be safe to lower the cargo ramp,” Nedra reported back.

  “Grubb, let Imelda out and close the ramp behind her.”

  “Aye, Captain, right away,” Grubb answered.

  He pushed the button and the ramp began its journey to the ground. Imelda stood in place, unmoving. Grubb took in the scenery once the door was past his level of sight and he could feel the heat on his face.

  “It’s going to be a hot one, Your Highness, so drink plenty fluids. You don’t drink, do you? Well, you know what I mean.”

  The ramp hit the ground and a large black object fell from the support beams to land on Imelda’s back. It was a body, and it was sitting on her like a rider. It looked over at him and waved, and then Imelda bolted off the ship and into the jungle.

  “Um, Captain? We may have a small problem,” Grubb said.

  zzz

  “We have three live bodies here, here, and here.” Genius pointed them out on his data pad. “It’s going to be hard to get past them. We can get this far before we are caught in a cross fire.” He showed us the distance.