The duke smiled. “Then I would suggest you keep them in the dark for the time being, admiral. And prepare the codazine for me. I will send my shuttle back shortly to collect it.”
The comm was closed.
Mace asked. “You don’t look so good, Duke.”
Wellit nodded. “Nor do I feel well, Mr. Hardy. I hope this information is worthwhile. The Dellus royals and military have had a comfortable coexistence for many centuries. That coexistence is based on trust, respect, and each side not meddling in the business of the other. I’m afraid what we’re doing here may have crossed several of those lines.”
Mace looked over at the admiral. “Dlukov, I hope for your sake you deliver.”
The shuttle docked and the group departed. The duke’s ship was sent back to collect the drug to be used on the admiral. The duke and admiral were taken to the conference room where they were left under guard. Mace and Johnny returned to the bridge.
Chapter 24
*
Liam asked, “How long are we staying here, Mr. Hardy?”
Mace replied, “Until the Duke’s shuttle returns. Then we send him home.”
“Did we find anything out?”
Mace shook his head. “Only bits and pieces. We got a name, a Mawga general named Hamok. And we now know the Zinka are involved. They purchased Human embryos from the admiral. You might pull up the star maps of their systems to get an idea of where we might be headed at some point. We’re going to put the admiral on codazine, the drug the Mawga used in our food, to see what he really knows. But that might take a couple weeks.”
Hans said, “I’m surprised they allowed you to take him.”
Mace half smirked. “They didn’t. We kind of forced the duke’s hand. May have put him in a bad position because of it. I hope not. He seems like a fair-minded individual.”
An hour passed before the shuttle was well on its way. The duke was taken to bay three to wait for his ride.
As the shuttle approached, Johnny said, “I don’t like this. I’ve hailed that pilot several times and not gotten a response.”
Mace turned. “Mr. Mallot. Can you provide us with a bioscan of that ship?”
Seconds later Humphrey replied, “There are… hmm. No life signs.”
Johnny said, “Can you tell if there’s a nuke on there?”
Humphrey replied. “One second… yes!”
Mace yelled, “Mr. Hobbs get us out of here! And if that ship looks like it’s gaining on us, circle back close to that Dellus station.”
Liam replied, “Moving away… doesn’t look like the shuttle is matching our speed.”
Mace asked, “How long until we’re out of its sensor range?”
Liam replied, “At this pace, forty-five minutes.”
Mace stood, walking to bay three. When he arrived the duke was sitting in a chair by the control room.
“Mr. Wellit. I’m sorry we put you in this position.”
The duke replied, “What are you talking about, Mr. Hardy?”
Mace said, “Your shuttle was almost here. Only it wasn’t carrying codazine. It was carrying a nuclear weapon.”
The duke stood. “What? There are no nuclear weapons in the Galactic Union!”
Mace nodded. “Yes, there are. Dlukov used them against us. They may be against the rules, but they’re out there. And given that the commodore was willing to use one against you, I’d have to say your days as a royal are over, at least for the time being.”
The duke stood in silence for several seconds before plopping back down in the chair. “That’s it, then. I’m ruined. An order of such could have only come from the Emperor himself.”
Mace sat in a chair next to the fallen duke. “Welcome to our world, Duke. We can’t go home, either. We can go there, but we can’t go down on the planet without risking being grabbed. Looks like you’re joining the ranks of our Mawga guests and our Kaachi guest.”
The duke looked up. “You have Kaachi on here as well?”
Mace laughed. “Yeah. We seem to be good at collecting strays. Anyway, you’re welcome to stay as long as you like. All we ask is you take on enough duties to make it worth our while to keep you. The Mawga like building things. And the Kaachi is sort of a scientist / engineer. You have any particular skills you are good at?”
The duke slowly shook his head. I have been a low level diplomat my entire life, Mr. Hardy. I was just assigned to that ship a month ago. I was to be their Union liaison officer while the ship was out and about. Mostly a symbolic position so that I might one day have something to chat about when at court.”
Mace patted the duke on the back. “Come on. I’ll introduce you to a few of the others. Mr. Montak can work with you on taking on some tasks.”
The duke stood. “Not once did I ever imagine I would be reporting to a Mawga, Mr. Hardy. This is quite the step down.”
Mace replied, “Or the step up. We’re all a team here, Duke. We’re all responsible for the well-being of this ship. I know you said family is important on Nineka. Well, you won’t find any stronger of a family than we have here. So, I guess, welcome to your new family.”
The duke was passed to the care of Bontu Montak. Mace returned to the bridge, settling into his chair. A course was set heading back to the Gerty, and a jump ensued shortly after.
Liam said, “Welcome back to the Rhombia system.”
Mace looked over at Fatso Geerok. “So how do we find this general? And what are the chances of us getting some of the codazine?”
Geerok replied, “Allow me to contact one of our ships. They may not speak to me given my current status. Or they might be interested in capturing me.”
Mace shook his head. “You don’t have to worry about that. You’re a part of this crew. You belong with us now and you don’t get captured unless we get captured.”
Geerok offered a rare smile. “I appreciate the sentiment, Mr. Hardy. I will do what I can. I just can’t promise that will be much.”
The Rogers closed on Rhombia. A hail was sent over the general comm.
Johnny said, “We have a connection.”
An image appeared on the display wall. “I am Vice Admiral Tellak. You are in violation of Mawga space.”
Mace said, “You can skip the pleasantries, Admiral. We know that you know that you have nothing that can harm this ship. We’re here for information and codazine. And we’re willing to trade.”
Tellak replied, “What information could you possibly have that would interest us?”
Mace smiled. “For starters, if you haven’t heard, the Dellus lost one of their Muhatha ships. And several Callista. When this becomes known to the rest of the Union, the Dellus, your superiors, may be viewed as seriously weakened.”
Mace continued, “Were you also aware that one of your generals may be running a rogue operation? And that a new rift has been discovered?”
The vice admiral nodded. “Go on.”
Mace laughed. “This isn’t a one way street, Admiral. Let’s talk codazine. Can you get it? We only need a very modest supply, say, six months worth for a single person.”
Tellak returned a stoic look. “That could be arranged.”
Mace said, “I know you were asked to leave Earth space. This after you’ve made significant investments there. Are you aware of the harvesting of Human embryos?”
Geerok said, “He wouldn’t know. It was a covert operation. My contact was not military.”
Tellak replied, “I’m not certain what it is you are referring to, Mr. Hardy. Explain.”
Mace said, “Some of your people were involved with harvesting Human embryos. They have been conducting experiments on them, mostly gene splicing. And they plan to build a Human army. One that is superior to what King Stark has.”
Tellak huffed. “I highly doubt such an operation could have existed. What kind of ruse are you trying to pull, Mr. Hardy?”
Mace took a deep breath as he selected an image from his video archives, forwarding it to the Mawga admiral
. “This is a birthing center on Reddack IV. I believe that to be a Mawga colony?”
Tellak nodded. “I am familiar with the Reddack system. There are no colonies there. Perhaps a remote research station.”
Mace said, “This is an image of a birthing center there where the gene-spliced hybrids I was just referring to are… were being grown. Power was lost and all the hybrids are dead. But the center is real.”
Tellak scowled. “That is not possible, Mr. Hardy. We have patrols that visit all our colonies. The Reddack system is not in use.”
Mace replied, “Not any more. Up until a few days ago it was being used to grow tens of thousands of hybrid fetuses. And they were ten months old.”
The admiral turned up his nose. “Preposterous. The funding for such a project would be astronomical. I am on the budget committee. There is no black project of that scope or scale.”
Mace laughed. “Yeah, well, there is. You just don’t know where the funding is coming from. You can send a ship out there, if you like, to see for yourself. You’ll also find evidence of two nuclear blasts. Whoever’s running this op has constructed some nasty weapons. Our ship is faster than yours, but the ships containing the nuclear device are far faster than ours. There are all kinds of Galactic Union rules being violated right here in your own system, Admiral. I’m guessing you’d like to see those cleaned up.”
Tellak sat forward in his chair. “Let’s say for a moment you are telling the truth. What am I to do about it?”
Mace replied, “Like I said, clean it up. Your job is to protect the Mawga Empire and the Emperor, is it not? If these things are going on right under your nose, you’re not doing a very good job. And if they get found out by someone other than you, well, I can only guess the consequence for you. Take a look out on Reddack, Mr. Tellak. We can even send you there if you like.”
The admiral said, “Allow me a short time to consult, Mr. Hardy.”
Mace nodded. “Get the ball rolling on that codazine for us, Admiral. It’s the key to an important part of this puzzle.”
The comm closed.
Johnny turned. “He’s not sold.”
Mace said, “He’s sold enough. I sent over data on all the embryos that had been spliced with Mawga genes.”
Geerok replied, “I believe he will come on board as well. He is an honorable man.”
Mace raised an eyebrow in thought. “I’m still a bit confused in your role in all this, Mr. Geerok. Your only contact was with a mystery individual, someone you never saw. Why would you follow orders under that scenario? What made you turn a blind eye to what was going on?”
Geerok lowered his head. “I had business dealings, Mr. Hardy. Dealings that went bad, leaving me in a financially distressed situation. The only responsibility given me was to turn a blind eye. In return I had my debts paid and I kept my position in the Mawga military. Believe it or not, I am an honorable citizen of the Mawga Empire… at least, I was until all this. My confessions to you were my attempts to right the wrongs I had been a part of. I wish I could tell you more, or point you in a better direction, but my interactions with the mystery person were one way.”
Mace held up a hand. “You’ve more than contributed, Mr. Geerok. And the advice you’ve offered has been stellar.”
Johnny chuckled. “Stellar. Doesn’t quit have the same emphasis once you’ve been out here. I mean, we… are stellar.”
Half an hour later a comm from the vice admiral came in. “I desire to see the installation at Reddack IV.”
Mace nodded, “I’ll send over a shuttle. We’ll take you from there.”
The admiral shook his head. “Unacceptable. I go in my own ship or I don’t go.”
Mace shrugged. “Have it your way. Only keep in mind, if we detect any hostility or odd behaviors, we won’t hesitate to destroy that ship. Our cannons are easily powerful enough to do that.”
The admiral nodded. “I accept your terms.”
A run was made to the Gerty, and a wormhole opened to Reddack IV. The vice admiral’s cruiser dropped through the atmosphere and settled where the landing pad had once been.
Humphrey said, “Looks like the whole area has been scrubbed, Mr. Hardy.”
Tellak asked, “What is it we’re supposed to see, Mr. Hardy?”
Mace said, “Mr. Mallot, will a deep scan tell if that shaft going down is still there? Or was there?”
Humphrey replied, “One moment… the shaft has been removed and filled in, but the scan does show evidence of disturbance.”
Tellak’s image displayed a scowl. “Where is your evidence, Mr. Hardy.”
Mace said, “A scan should tell you the dirt in a shaft below there was disturbed.”
Tellak sighed, “That could have easily been done by you, Mr. Hardy. Please tell me my time here hasn’t been wasted.”
Mace sat back in is chair in thought. “Jane, could you come up to the bridge? And bring Zax with you. Admiral, I have your evidence.”
Jane walked onto the bridge carrying her bundle of joy. “What is it?”
Mace said, “Hold him in front of the camera. Humphrey, do a DNA scan of everyone on the bridge and pass that data over to the Mawga.”
Seconds later the information was made available.
Vice Admiral Tellak looked over the data. “A child that is 2 percent Mawga? That is your evidence?”
Mace replied, “I gave you the videos of what we saw, Mr. Tellak. Aside from that, this is all the evidence we have.”
Johnny said, “There is the other site at Merigon.”
Mace nodded. “I know, but we sank it. Whoever’s doing this has the resources to cover their tracks.”
Jane said, “Are you done with me? He was sleeping.”
Mace replied, “Yep. Sorry.”
Geerok raised a hand. “Perhaps I can be of assistance.”
Mace turned. “Tell me what you have.”
Geerok cleared his throat. “The infant. It has 2 percent Mawga DNA. The DNA came from a Mawga individual. Perhaps we start there. Admiral Tellak should have access to the DNA records of all Mawga.”
Mace looked at the camera. “Mr. Tellak? Is that something you can check?”
Tellak scanned over data on a holo-display hovering in front of him. “Curious. The DNA matches that of General Oopin Hamok.”
Mace cliched his fist. “Perfect. Finally a link. Mr. Crawford, can you escort Duke Wellit and Dlukov up here?”
Tellak rubbed his temples. “I suppose his DNA could have been stolen.”
Mace replied, “Hold on, Mr. Tellak. I have someone who can confirm that name.”
The Dellus duke and admiral walked onto the bridge and into the camera view. Tellak stood at attention.
Johnny chuckled.
Mace said, “Vice Admiral. This is Duke Wellit of the Dellus royal family. And this is Admiral Dlukov of the Dellus fleet at Nineka. And you can relax as they are both outlaws from the Dellus people now. Mr. Dlukov, can you tell us again the name of the Mawga general you said was involved in this?”
Dlukov replied, “Hamok. He sold Human embryos to the Zinka.”
Tellak’s rat-like eye’s grew big. “Zinka? The Zinka are involved in this?”
Mace said, “I told you it was a mess you would want to clean up, Admiral. It stretches across at least two founders. The data we sent will show the DNA of all the founders is being used for experimentation. Your galactic Empire is not as solid as you’ve been led to believe.”
Tellak’s whiskers twitched as his face became flustered. “General Hamok is a close adviser of the Emperor. I will have to proceed carefully with this.”
Mace nodded. “You tell us when and where we can find Hamok and we’ll take care of the rest.”
Tellak sat upright. “I cannot allow that, Mr. Hardy. As I said, he’s an adviser to the Emperor. We are talking the ruler of our entire civilization.”
Mace said, “There’s always the possibility that the Emperor is somehow involved. Maybe he’s trying to set up alli
ances with other founders. That could be as part of an overthrow, or maybe to garner votes to move the Mawga up a tier or two within the Union. Both of those could be strong motivators, and, given the right pitchman, many a ruler could be convinced to join in.”
Johnny chuckled. “You have much better conspiracies than I ever did. Yours are at least plausible.”
Mace relied, “All of this is just more evidence of why we need to be self-governing. I think Stark would easily jump into the middle of all this in his quest for power, dragging the rest of us with him.”
The vice admiral was returned to Rhombia, where his investigation of General Oopin Hamok was begun. A generous supply of codazine was delivered, with Dlukov receiving his first dose. Mace walked down to the dining hall for a meal.
Tres brought over a beverage. “I call this one the chocolate swamp.”
Mace nodded as he sipped. “Not bad. Have a seat.”
Tres plopped down in a chair, leaning forward on the table.
Mace said, “Are we doing the right thing out here? I feel like I’m peeling back the layers of an incredibly large onion. I mean, we have food on Earth, and the Mawga have left. But Stark is still in charge. And we’re out here ramming around trying to find four billion stolen embryos, while the Galactic Union looks like it’s about to implode. So much is outside of our control.”
Tres smiled. “I have faith. You’ll figure it out.”
Mace laughed. “That’s it? That’s your pep talk?
Tres shrugged. “I’ve only got what I’ve got, Mr. Hardy. You’ve kept us all alive so far. Just keep doing what you’re doing.”
Mace shook his head. “I’m out of my league, Tres. I feel all this could blow up on us at any moment.”
Tres replied, “And yet it hasn’t. From what I’ve seen, it’s the others that are out of your league. The Mawga, the Dellus, their precious Galactic Union… it’s all a facade. Human intellect and determination are gonna bust this Union wide open. And we’re gonna come out on top, crushing all injustice and resistance.”
Mace half smiled. He took a large bite out of a nutrient bar as he propped an elbow on the table. “OK, well, at least that’s a little better than ‘you’ll figure it out.’”
HADRON Revelation Page 23
