by Dale Musser
I stared at the screen, trying very hard to not look completely astonished at what was being said. None of this was true and, for reasons I didn’t fully understand, both Tonclin and Pheosa were lying to save me. I also realized that it was a good thing Pheosa wasn’t attached to a truth band because, if he had been, the lie would have been revealed. Both Tonclin and Pheosa must have realized that only one of them needed to testify under the truth monitor and the other could simply corroborate publically, and no one would realize the deception. Still, they were putting themselves at huge personal risk to save me.
Pheosa ended his statement by saying, “We, as leaders and as a coalition of planets, owe First Citizen Fleet Admiral Tibby a debt of gratitude and praise for his unyielding dedication to the Federation. Without his service, which was never a requirement for him to provide, the Federation would be in a far worse position than it is at the moment. I hope the testimony of Rebadat Tonclin and my own statement will put an end to this travesty so that Admiral Tibby can return to his duties and continue to in his brave and inspired service to the Federation in the admirable manner that he has thus far.”
The screen view switched back to the hearing hall and focused on Chief Justice Terralisa.
“Senator Wingutt, it would appear that all of your accusations have been addressed and found to be unjustified. Do you have any additional evidence to present in support of your allegations?”
Wingutt was looking quite pale at this point and he stammered, “Uh, no Your Honor.”
“Do you wish to withdraw your charges at this time?” asked Terralisa.
“Ah… yes… I guess I do.”
“Honorable First Citizen Tibby, as representative of the Galactic Federation Legal Review Board, I wish to apologize to you on behalf of the Federation Senate assembly for any discomfort or distress this hearing has inflicted upon you. As Leader Pheosa so eloquently stated, the Federation owes you an immense debt of gratitude for all that you have done and continue to do on behalf of its people and for all peace-loving peoples of the universe. We are all honored by your service. This hearing is hereby ended.”
A roar of cheering exploded from the Senate Hall and a virtual thunder of stomping feet that was the Federation’s version of applause. As I stepped away from the defendant box, I looked at Tonclin who was being disconnected from the truth band by the technician. He glanced at me casually, smiled and gave me a slight nod. I nodded back, still unsure what had just happened.
I was quickly surrounded by a number of senators who wished to personally express their joy that I had been exonerated of the treason charge. Many of them expressed that, if the matter of normalizing relationship with the androids was brought forth, they would be willing to receive the idea favorably. I had hoped to catch up with Tonclin before he left the hearing hall, but he was gone before I was able to free myself of the mob of senators.
When I glanced toward the accuser’s box where Wingutt had been seated during the proceedings with his aides and the small group of witnesses, I saw him arguing with three men, who were discreetly, but forcefully leading him out of the hall. It appeared very strange, because it looked almost as though he was trying to get away from them.
I was about to say something about it, when I suddenly heard a bellowing voice coming from somewhere behind me. “Congratulations Tibby! I knew you would come through this predicament unscathed.”
I turned to see Admiral Regeny bearing down on me. “Thank you, Admiral. I wasn’t so sure for a while, there, but thanks to Tonclin and Leader Pheosa, I’m cleared of all charges and I walk away a free man.”
“Yes, I must admit I was surprised myself to hear their testimony. I never knew that you had been ordered by them to contact the androids. I must confess, you do a good job keeping a secret, Tibby.”
I realized then that Admiral Regeny hadn’t known of their deception either. I wondered just how many people actually did. Obviously, Cantolla knew, or Tonclin would never have gotten his hands on the device that caused the truth bands to display a false reading. Tonclin was aware of this technology, because I mentioned it to him during the events at Epsirt, when we needed to get a spy past the Brotherhood loyalty testing process. Other than that, the existence of this device was a well-kept secret known by less than ten people. While the Admiral was one of those ten people, he clearly did not conceive of a possible deception of this level and would likely remain unaware that both Tonclin and Pheosa had lied.
Regeny wanted me to stop by his office for a celebratory drink before I returned to the MAXETTE. I really didn’t feel up to it, but I went along with him anyway. Once in his office, he poured me a drink of some extraordinary vintage of liquor that he kept hidden away in a drawer for so-called special occasions. I don’t know what kind of alcohol this was, I knew only that it felt very warm going down and it left me feeling light-headed much more quickly than I expected.
“Wabussie tells me his team is extracting some good intelligence from the computers captured at Alamar-4,” Regeny said as he sat back in his chair. “That officer we captured there is also starting to talk, but so far he hasn’t given us anything we don’t already know. Wabussie is hoping that, once we’ve gleaned more information from the recovered computer system, we can leverage some of those details in the interrogation to make this prisoner divulge additional intelligence.
“That would be great, Admiral. In the meantime, I would like to take a news crew to Alamar-4 and conduct a live broadcast of the conditions there. Perhaps if the citizens of the Federation see for themselves just how the Brotherhood is decimating the planets they occupy, they’ll contact their respective leadership and demand that some real pressure be applied to the Senate to expedite a decision that allows the Federation forces to launch offensives against the Brotherhood outside Federation boundaries.”
“Don’t count on it, Tibby. You got lucky in there today. But don’t think for a minute that it means the Senate is ready to hand you a pass to hunt down the Brotherhood anywhere and everywhere.”
“Then we will never see an end to this war. Under the current conditions, the enemy has no incentive to seek peace. Besides, you and I know that Ming has no desire for peace. As long as he is alive he will continue to be a criminal deviant, a despot and a war monger.”
After leaving Regeny, I returned to the MAXETTE, where Marranalis and I sat in my office to discuss the details of the hearing.
Marranalis asked me, “Admiral, do you think Wingutt is a Brotherhood member?”
“He certainly acts like one, but I doubt he is directly. To be honest, I’m not sure exactly what he is – beyond being very unhappy at the moment.”
“Tibby, what Tonclin said in his testimony about ordering you to reach out to the androids – I don’t recall it that way. When did that all happen?”
“It didn’t, Marranalis,” I said. “Tonclin and Pheosa both lied.”
“But how? I saw Tonclin on screen and the truth monitor indicated he was telling the truth the entire time.”
“Then you didn’t notice his fisted hand and the ring he was wearing,” I said.
“The ring! You gave him the ring that Báihuā used to trick the Brotherhood’s loyalty test at Epsirt?”
“No, I certainly did not, and it wasn’t the same ring. Cantolla took the device that disrupts the truth bands out of Báihuā’s ring after the Epsirt operation. I suspect that Cantolla and Tonclin got together somehow and decided to plant the device into another ring for Tonclin. I need to talk to both of them about that. Tonclin is one of the few people who knew about that device.”
“So Cantolla made a second ring for Pheosa?”
“I doubt it. Leader Pheosa wasn’t hooked up to a truth band. He only corroborated Tonclin’s statement by remote attendance. Only Tonclin gave his statement under the truth monitor, so his testimony alone was sufficient to convince the Senate. Apparently it wasn’t necessary for Pheosa’s corroborated testimony to be provided in the same manner. That was added pur
ely for dramatic effect on Tonclin’s part I think.”
“But that means that Leader Pheosa was in on the lie. Obviously there was no such invocation of the War Powers Act. They both lied knowingly,” Marranalis exclaimed.
“Yes, so it appears.”
“Wow,” Marranalis exclaimed. “What do you think would happen if it's ever found out they lied?”
“I don’t even want to think about it. Right now I suspect there are only about six people who know the truth and, for the sake of us all – including the Federation – let’s hope no one else finds out.”
“Six people? Who?”
“You, me, Tonclin, Pheosa, Cantolla, and A’Lappe.”
“You think A’Lappe was in on it?”
“If he wasn’t, I’m sure he and Cantolla talked about it. Even if they didn’t, you know by now that A’Lappe always seems to know just about everything.”
“Well, I swear, Tibby, I will never speak of it to anyone.”
“Good, because after today I don’t want any of us that know to ever speak of it again.”
After wrapping up a few details on the MAXETTE, I returned to the NEW ORLEANS. I was expecting to be greeted by Kala and the twins but found only Kala at our suite when I arrived.
“Congratulations on a wonderful hearing today,” Kala said after giving me a loving kiss. “I don’t see what all the fuss was about and why Wingutt felt you had committed treason.”
“I don’t think he did. I think it was intended ultimately to discredit me and to weaken the military.”
“Why? Do you think he’s part of the Brotherhood?”
“Marranalis asked me the same question. I don’t know, to be honest. Somehow, I don’t think he’s a Brotherhood member, but he’s definitely working on their behalf. Maybe he’s being blackmailed or they are bribing him in some way.
“Where are the twins?” I asked.
“Reide is at the estate, fishing with Rory. Ever since you taught that boy how to fish, it seems to be all he wants to do. Now that the fish stocked in the upper lake are mature, he’s there almost every day.
“As for Lunnie, I suspect she is in one of the teen lounges on the ship, flirting with some boy. That seems to be her favorite pastime. I swear, Tibby, she behaves more like my sister every day.”
“Don’t tell me that,” I cringed. “The last thing I want to hear about is my daughter’s flirting habit.”
“Oh, Tibby! You and your fatherly Earth values! After all this time in the Federation you still adhere to those ideas. You act like boys and girls didn’t get together on Earth before they were 18.”
“Well, yeah, they did, but – I mean – well… oh, I don’t know. Let’s talk about something else, please.”
Kala laughed and kissed me, “Well we’re home all alone. I can think of a few things we could talk about – and a few things we could do – if you feel up to it.”
“Hmm. What do you have in mind?” I asked.
“Oh, I don’t know,” she said as she moved closer, placing one hand on my shoulder as she bent her knee slightly so her thigh pressed against my groin. “I’m sure something will come up. Oh my! I do think something is coming up already,” she said with a twinkle in her eye, as she took me by the hand and led me to the bedroom.”
An hour later we were relaxing in bed, Kala propped up on her side, looking at me intently as I stretched out on my stomach and adjusted my pillow. I could tell she was concerned about something.
“What’s the matter? You look troubled,” I said.
“Tib, I think you need to set up an appointment with Doctor Danjuma. You shouldn’t be aging as fast as you are. I know on your planet people aged faster than here in the Federation, but now that you’re here, eating our foods and receiving our medical treatments, your aging process should be retarded. I can clearly see from the others who’ve come from your planet that you’re aging much faster than they are.”
“I’ll have A’Lappe check me out,” I said.
“Why not Doctor Danjuma? After all, she’s a medical doctor. A’Lappe may be a genius scientist, but he’s not a medical doctor, Tibby,” replied Kala while looking at me curiously.
I realized there was no way to answer that wasn’t going to arouse suspicion on Kala’s part and, if I went to Doctor Danjuma, the truth of my health situation would be revealed. There was only one thing to do at this point.
“Kala, there’s something I need to tell you. You’re right. I am aging quickly – faster than normal. I know what the problem is and A’Lappe has been treating me for it.”
Kala gave me a hard look but didn’t say anything.
“A few years back I noticed I was having a lot of coordination and memory problems. I was losing track of my train of thought, I was increasingly sluggish and clumsy during training sessions and I was unusually exhausted all the time. I was afraid that I was entering the early stage of some disabling disease, so I asked A’Lappe to check into it. I didn’t want anyone to know until I knew myself what was going on. A’Lappe discovered that my body is rejecting the synthetic nerves that were implanted after the crash on Goo’Waddle. The synthetic nerve material is actually undamaged, because it’s designed to be highly resistant to attack from things like the antibodies – the biochemical defenses – that my body has created in response to the foreign material. The synapses in my brain, however, are not resistant to the antibodies. As a result, the very method my body uses to protect itself from the synthetic nerve material is actually damaging the real nerve tissue in my central nervous system, especially my brain.”
“Oh no, Tibby,” Kala gasped. “Is A’Lappe able to do anything for you?”
“Yes and no,” I answered. “He isn’t able to cure me of the tissue rejection, but he can slow the process and keep it in check, though the treatment comes at a high cost to my body’s regular rhythm. If I were to stop the treatments, I would turn into a mentally vacant shell, probably becoming semi-comatose within just weeks or months. With continued weekly treatments, I’m able to function at a normal level for about five days and then I start to slow down mentally and physically again until the next treatment. The first couple days I feel super-charged; the next few days I feel normal and healthy; and the last day or two I can feel that I’m waning.”
“So that’s what’s been going on. I’ve noticed the wide swing in your physical and mental behavior for some time now, and I’ve wondered about it. Every week, just before you and Marranalis have your regular meeting, you seem to be struggling with some cognitive issue and your reflexes seem slower than normal. Tib, is that when you get your treatments? On the night you and Marranalis meet?”
“Yes. Marranalis is the only other person besides A’Lappe who knows about the problem. The meeting is just a ruse to conceal my condition and the treatments. I use the maintenance tunnels to walk to the aft auxiliary lab, where A’Lappe administers the intravenous treatment for several hours. Afterward, I’m very ill for up to another 12 hours. Marranalis stays with me in my study until I feel well enough to return to our suite – and by that time you’re asleep. I stay up to take a series of showers before I come to bed, because the medication causes some initial heavy sweating that has a really strong chemical odor. By the next day, the odor generally dissipates enough that it’s not noticeable, as long as I shower frequently and change into fresh clothing.”
“I’ve noticed. Well, I’ve been smelling something unusual, but I could never pin down the source. The fact that it’s a chemical rather than organic scent threw me off, so I never really thought to connect it to you. For a long time, I thought it was the result of some experiment that Reide was doing.
“So then you’re aging because of the nerve rejection? Or is it a side effect of the treatment?”
“Both, it seems. Without the treatments, I wouldn’t have lasted this long. I’d either be near death or I’d be in a semi-vegetative state, staring at the wall with no mental activity at all.”
“Oh, Tib,” Kala said sa
dly. “Surely there must be some cure. Synthetic nerve replacement has been around a long time. What have others done to combat rejection?”
“There are no others,” I said. “A’Lappe says he doesn’t know whether the rejection is due to my Earth DNA or simply a matter of the enormous quantity of synthetics in my body. Before me, patients have received only localized nerve replacement. In my case, I wouldn’t have survived the crash injuries without using the stuff throughout a large portion of my body. A’Lappe says I have more synthetic nerve tissue than anyone else in history. In any case, the condition that I suffer has never been reported before.”
“So there is no cure?” Kala asked.
“None so far, but A’Lappe is working on it.”
“So… what’s the long range prognosis?” Kala asked carefully.
“We don’t know. A’Lappe will keep treating me and I will, in the shorter term, continue to feel great for five days and not so good for two. In the longer term, the aging process will persist at the elevated rate and, unless A’Lappe comes up with a new and better treatment, I will likely die early or, at least, earlier than most Federation Citizens do.”
“You’re sure Admiral Regeny doesn’t know about this?”
“I’m sure… and I don’t want him – or anyone else – to know. It would be disastrous if word of this got out. People might start losing confidence in me and in my ability to provide them with sound leadership. That’s the kind of problem that the Brotherhood would exploit fully, if they learned of it.”
