“Okay. I will relay the information to Captain Zonta, and we’ll see what we can do on our end in terms of a rescue team. We’ll also inform you of our decision at the next scheduled communication. Good luck, team.”
“To you, as well,” Skye said, and Mal ended the communication. Commander Bradley placed her hands over her helmet and was silent.
“We need to figure out what to do. The Artemis is in danger. They can’t come for us,” the commander said. “The Drekynns will not give up the search, especially since their acquisition of the Swallowtail. They may not be very smart, but they do have the capability to use the technology for nefarious purposes.” Skye nodded. Bharat was silent. The solution was simple, Skye realized.
“We need to get the Swallowtail back,” Skye said.
“Are you crazy?” Bharat snapped. “We are in enemy territory. If they find us, they will kill us because of you.”
“Bharat!” the commander snapped. “Lieutenant Skye is a very important member of our team. It does not matter what she is, it only matters who she is, and she has been nothing but professional, proficient, and a positive force on this team. What have you done besides complain and bring negativity into this whole mission? Quite frankly, I am sick of your negative demeanor and your blatant prejudices. It stops now. We need to think of a way to get ourselves out of this damn awful situation before we get killed.” Bharat was silent, staring at the ground in front of him. When he finally spoke, his voice was hushed.
“I apologize, Lieutenant,” he said to Skye. He kept his gaze on the dirty ground in front of him, as though embarrassed over his actions.
“Thank you,” Skye said.
“Given the circumstances, it’s the only solution,” Skye said.
“I quite agree,” Commander Bradley replied.
“I can’t believe that we’re going to do this,” Bharat moaned.
“Ask Mal about the current location of the Swallowtail,” the commander ordered.
“Just outside of Tinube. At the legate’s mansion. That’s where the Drekynns are headquartered,” Mal said.
“It’s just outside of the city,” Skye said. “At the Drekynn headquarters.” The commander nodded.
“The legate’s mansion,” the commander said. “That place is going to be swarming with Drekynns. What are we going to do? We need to get the T.A.S. out of their hands, and then we need to board the Swallowtail. It’s going to be nigh on impossible, as the Drekynn leadership tends to be hyper-vigilant.
“Sabotage,” Bharat said.
“What?” the commander asked.
“We destroy the T.A.S.” Bharat said. “We have the capabilities to rebuild it. The Drekynn certainly don’t. We would need to remove key components so that the T.A.S. couldn’t be reverse engineered. The Swallowtail itself is just a standard Spacewing ship without the Lieutenant and the T.A.S.”
“That could work,” the commander said; she seemed pleasantly surprised. “Good thinking, Bharat.”
“Don’t ever say that I don’t pull my weight,” Bharat replied.
“Skye, Mal, do you think the Artemis is out of contact range yet?” the commander asked. “We need to tell them our plan.” Skye nodded as Mal reestablished contact with the ship.
“Hello Artemis,” Mal said. “This is the away team, informing you of our decision on further action.”
“Hello, Mal and Lieutenant,” it was Captain Zonta’s voice coming over the frequency. He sounded tired and overwhelmed.
“Hello, Captain,” Skye replied. “We are going to attempt recovery of the Swallowtail and the T.A.S. However, we will be render the T.A.S. unusable so that the Drekynns do not have the opportunity to reverse engineer it.”
“That is certainly a bold move,” the captain replied. “However, given the circumstances, it may be your only viable option for escape. The Drekynns know that you are in the vicinity, so you need to get yourselves out quickly. We have been able to pick up on the Drekynn communication, and they are watching the ground from their destroyers. They’ve been looking pretty intently out here as well. Once you have recovered the Swallowtail, contact the Artemis for coordinates for a rendezvous.”
“Understood.” Skye replied as Mal ended the communication. The team walked back toward the hole in the roof where Dai was waiting below. They heard voices down in the darkened hallway. One was rasping, the other was Dai’s tiny, bubbling voice. The team froze. The commander peered down, then gestured for the others to move back from the opening.
“Drekynns,” she hissed. The group dropped flat on their stomachs, so that they wouldn’t be detected. There was a heated discussion going on inside.
“Mal? Can you translate?” Skye kept her voice as low as possible.
“Yes,” Mal replied. “They are asking her if she has seen us.”
“Nebulae,” Skye whispered, her heart pounding. Although she was disposable, she had been programmed to feel fear.
“She is saying that she’s never seen a human before,” Mal replied. “At least we know that she’s on our side.”
“Now they are saying that a transmission came from somewhere near this building. So they’ve noticed us. Oh, dear,” Mal said. Suddenly, there was a loud thump, and Skye heard the sounds of heavy footsteps leaving the room below. Slowly, Commander Bradley pulled herself over to the opening in the roof. She looked down for a few seconds before gesturing toward the others.
They all climbed down the ladder and into the darkness of the hallway, waiting while their eyes adjusted. Slumped over against the foot of the ladder, Dai lay unconscious. Commander Bradley leaned forward, trying to wake her. A cry came down the hallway, and Qur’lag rushed toward them.
“Quickly! Let us get her back into the tenement,” he said. He and Bharat took her limbs and carried her down the hallway. Inside of the tenement, they placed her on one of the sleeping pallets. Qur’lag bustled out of the room and returned with a damp cloth. Kneeling beside Dai, he began dabbing at her face with it. He sighed deeply.
“She resists them even to their face. I fear that it will be the death of her,” he said sadly.
“This treaty between the Drekynn and the Council needs to end,” Commander Bradley said gravely. “This isn’t right. Your people don’t deserve to suffer in this way. The Drekynns need to be stopped.”
“I just hope that it won’t be too late,” Qur’lag said. “For Dai. That’s twice today that she has had violent encounters with the Drekynn. I don’t know how much longer it will be until they issue a bounty on her head.” The Commander nodded. Qur’lag wiped the rag tenderly across Dai’s forehead. “The best thing for her right now is to sleep. Let me feed you and get you on your way.”
The Vorian food was green and leafy. On top of the bed of greens, there was a purple, pulpy paste with a vinaigrette. The team ate awkwardly, their helmets were in the way, so they had to bring the bowls of food inside of their suits in order to eat.
“What is this?” Bharat asked, frowning at a purple paste. Commander Bradley gave him a look of warning.
“It is called Tarir,” Qur’lag said.
“Oooh! The tarir!” Mal said in Skye’s ear. “It’s crushed and aged root of the taguaro plant.”
“What is a tarir?” Bharat asked.
“It’s a paste made from aged taguaro root,” Skye supplied.
“Exactly right!” Qur’lag said. “You are so knowledgeable!”
“Actually, my AI component is the one with the knowledge,” Skye said.
“Beg your pardon?” Qur’lag asked.
“The lieutenant is, how can I explain this?,” the commander began. “She is a manufactured human who carries another mind, an artificial intelligence, inside her suit.”
“Impressive!” Qur’lag said, reminding Skye of V’ktal’s questioning earlier. “And how do you like the Vorian cuisine, Lieutenant?”
The food was spicy. Skye found her nose running. She took a sip of the cold, sweet Vorian water. She didn’t actually require it, a
ny of it. But it was polite form to accept. Skye found that it helped to be able to adapt in social situations.
“It is delicious,” she said to Qur’lag. “Although I haven’t much to compare it with.”
“It is my pleasure,” he replied, bowing slightly. “I just wish that I could equip you with weapons of some kind, but alas, the meager stockpile we’d accumulated was wiped out during the Drekynn raid this morning.”
“We have our Spacewing-issued weapons,” the commander replied. “Hopefully, we won’t need them.” Skye reached down to the space on her utility belt where her blaster usually hung. Its absence made her nervous.
“We’ll be fine, Skye,” Mal reassured her. “We never needed it to begin with.” Knowing that Mal was right, Skye tucked back into her food.
When the team was finished eating, they began their preparations to leave. The commander looked at Qur’lag.
“We can’t thank you enough for the respite,” she said, taking his large, green hands in thanks. “The food, the safety, and the rest was an absolute necessity before continuing our mission.”
“It is my pleasure,” Qur’lag said, his tiny eyes sparkling as he smiled. “It is my greatest hope that the Vorian people will one day be free members of the Council planets. Your presence here today heralds change in favor of that hope.”
“We will do our best to not let you down,” Commander Bradley said. Qur’lag bowed, which Commander Bradley returned.
“At least allow me to lead you part of the way out of the city,” Qur’lag said.
“We would be even more grateful to you for that,” the commander said. They all covered their heads with the dark hoods of their cloaks before slipping silently out of the tenement. Dai remained unconscious on her pallet.
Qur’lag led them through the back streets, peering around corners to check for the Drekynns. With his Vorian features, he was less conspicuous than the rest of the team members. They threaded their way until they got to the very edge of the city, where the buildings began to taper off. There was a long waste that stretched out before the white stone walls that encircled the legate’s mansion.
“This is where I leave you,” Qur’lag said. “I wish you much luck.”
“Thank you,” the commander replied. “And you, as well.”
“Perhaps we will meet again in this lifetime,” Qur’lag said. “Under significantly better circumstances.”
“I hope that, as well,” the commander replied. “Please give Dai our deepest gratitude and best wishes once she wakes. We owe her our lives twice over.”
“I will do so,” the Vorian replied. “I imagine she would have gone with you, if she could.”
“She would’ve been most welcome,” the commander said.
“I have no doubt. But I would not have been able to do without her. Farewell,” he said.
The team each shook hands with Qur’lag, and then watched as he disappeared back
into the maze-like streets of the city.
Chapter Seven
The legate’s mansion pierced the purple sky with hardened dark brown brick polished to a glowing brilliance in the daylight. It was eight hundred meters outside of the city, nestled within the stark landscape and stood out from everything that surrounded it. The away team followed the only road leading up to it, squeezed within a steady stream of broken Vorians, their heads angled downward, gazes on the ground before them. The team joined the Vorians, and crossed the barren land. They kept their gaze angled downward, so that no one could see what was beneath their hoods. Several Drekynns passed them, their long strides passing them quickly.
“That was close,” Mal said in Skye’s ear. Surrounded by a large crowd of Vorians, traversing the wasteland between the city and the mansion seemed to stretch on for hours. The team, upon reaching the outer wall of the mansion, ducked around the corner, crouching out of sight of the road.
“This is certainly bizarre,” Commander Bradley said in a hushed tone as they peered over the stone wall that separated it from the rest of the city. Inside, there was a lush garden, filled with flowering plants that were surrounded by a wall-to-wall bed of smooth, round white stones. Massive fountains dotted the manicured land, adorned with sculptures of animals that were definitely not native to Vorian: the red-chested Aldarian lark; Ylvian river worms; Zortrosian flying carp. Large, healthy-looking trees from very disparate climates added a much-needed shade to some of the garden walkways. Skye noted several palm trees, as well.
“How is this possible?” Skye whispered. “Those roses only grow on Ascarat.” She was looking at a blossom that was flushed a deep crimson, with a bright yellow center and petals edged in aubergine.
“The Drekynn Empire has many talented scientists at its disposal,” Mal said. “Whether those scientists like it or not. If I were to guess, this appears to be the work of Doctor Jonathan Sentry. He is a botanist. Very talented. He went missing about five years ago.”
“I see,” Skye said. “Where’s the Swallowtail?”
“It is located on a landing pad toward the rear of the mansion,” Mal replied. “We will have to cut through.” A map of the mansion appeared on the inside of Skye’s helmet.
“That was fast,” Skye said.
“Their security systems here are very lacking,” Mal replied evenly. “Evidently, the Drekynns have not kidnapped any quality programmers in recent years. Or else I would have been detected immediately.”
“I have a map and a location for the Swallowtail,” Skye told Bradley and Bharat. “We have to cut through the mansion, but it looks like there is a servants’ entrance on the side of the building that we can use.”
“Okay,” the commander said. “Let’s go in and get out as quickly as possible.”
“Agreed,” Skye said. “I only have twelve hours left.” The commander nodded.
“If it comes down to it, Bharat can extend that.” Bharat nodded.
“Captain Zonta told me,” Skye said, frowning. “Why can’t Mal do that?”
“Technically,” Bharat said evenly, “Mal is the system, and as advanced as he is, there’s still a certain finesse involved with pushing certain engineered systems past their original specifications.”
“If you hate me so much, then why do you know so much about me?”
“It’s not relevant,” Bharat replied bluntly.
“I think it is.”
“Captain Zonta, in the case of a failed mission, does not want you to be able to upload your consciousness to the Swallowtail Network,” Bharat explained. Skye’s stomach dropped. She felt manipulated. She felt angry. Now it was more vital than ever that she get the Swallowtail back. Humans, she realized, didn’t all have good intentions. Again, she’d been reduced to feeling like a pawn in a game whose rules she couldn’t understand.
“We will make sure that it doesn’t happen,” Commander Bradley reassured her. “I think the Council needs to know what’s going on here.” The other two nodded. “Let’s get moving.”
Skye studied the shining brick more closely. The polished surface reminded her of the dark brown hues of the Orion nebula. It looked completely out of place in the desert-like landscape, an exotic oasis amid the dust and foggy, cloudy skies. The team walked around to the servants’ entrance. There was a large arch in the garden wall, which allowed access to the mansion. The team kept their heads down, so that their dun-colored hoods covered their helmets and faces.
There was a Drekynn guard lounging in a wooden chair beside the door to the servants’ entrance. His long, muscular legs were askew, and his head lolled to the side. He held an ancient-looking spear adorned with a gold inlay across his lap. The spear was long; it would have been almost as long as the Drekynn was tall. Its diamond-shaped tip was sharp, and darted up and down with each breath the slumbering guard drew.
“He’s sleeping!” Mal chirped excitedly. “Oh! I was so nervous!” Using their good fortune to their advantage, the team passed the guard swiftly and silently as ghosts in the night. As sh
e opened the large wooden door to the servants’ entrance, Skye heard the sound of the hinges protesting. The team froze in unison as the guard shifted position. He made a snuffling sound in his sleep, as though he were about to wake. After a tense moment, the guard began to snore with regularity again. The group quickly entered the mansion, Skye in the lead with her access to the map.
The interior of the mansion was elegant beyond anything Skye could have imagined, especially after seeing how dirty and deteriorated the buildings were in the city. The walls were extravagantly papered in maroon and gold stripes. Dark Tulgarian hardwood flooring gleamed warmly. Along the hallway that they found themselves in, sconces were lit with cleanly burning candles, and potted plants were placed in calculated distances. It all seemed like a rather unlikely and incongruous place for the Drekynn leaders to be headquartered.
“Mal, are you sure that this is the Drekynn headquarters?” Skye asked, confused.
“Oh, yes,” Mal replied. “Much of the architectural style of this structure comes from Vorian architects. The Drekynn don’t appear to have much patience for things like redecorating.”
The mansion was lit dimly by soft phosphor lights along the walls. They felt tucked away from view. Many Vorians rushed to and fro, carrying platters of food, baskets filled to the brim with laundry. Other Vorians were cleaning, one on her hands and knees, polishing the floor. Their faces were expressionless. There was no emotion of any kind in their movements.
“Walk as though you have a purpose,” the commander whispered urgently. Bharat and Skye immediately began a brisk walk through the mansion. They came out of the end of the hallway and into a type of atrium. The ceiling was high and vaulted. Skye looked at the map inside of her helmet.
“No! Not this way!” she gasped, and as they all tried to go back into the hallway from whence they came, a cry in a screeching, foreign language arose. They ran, fleeing down the hallway. Looking behind them, Commander Bradley yelled out:
“We’re being chased by about five of them. Skye, does Mal know if we can outrun them?”
“Mal?” Skye asked, terrified.
The Vorian Incursion: The Swallowtail Voyages, Book 2 Page 6
