Star Force: Scruples (SF37)

by Aer-ki Jyr

  “Are you still in the sanctum?” Darren asked the air, pausing for a response that Sander couldn’t hear. “Did you see Larry?...Yeah, I’m guessing he’s not wearing his comm. Can you tell him to meet me at the sanctum entrance, I’ve got a situation he needs to deal with…I’d tell you if I knew…thanks.”

  Darren dropped his hand after terminating the call and stared Sander in the eye.

  “Follow me.”

  He did as told and walked slightly behind the Archon as the man led him to the sanctum’s entrance where another hand scanner was in place next to what looked like chrome blast doors. A few seconds before they stepped up to them the doors opened from inside and a mildly sweat-soaked Archon dressed in an armless shirt and shorts walked out.

  “What’s up?” he asked his fellow Archon while glancing towards the red uniformed logistics officer.

  Darren turned to him as well. “Go ahead,” he prompted.

  “I need you to take me to Earth off the books,” Sander said, realizing this was the point of no return, “and I need you to arrange for me to meet with Director Davis.”

  Larry raised an eyebrow and exchanged a glance with his fellow, yet lower ranking adept. “For what purpose?”

  “I’m turning myself in, and I have information that he will want. Information that others will try to stop me from revealing if they become aware of my intent. That’s why I didn’t go to Earth on my own or send the Director a message. You need to take me there directly, before I’m missed.”

  “Turn yourself in for what?” Larry said as he microscopically stiffened. He didn’t have psionics yet, but he could tell this man wasn’t one for hyperbole.

  Sander let out a light breath. “I’m a member of The Word…and I don’t want to be anymore.”

  “He just walked up and surrendered?” David asked Larry after he arrived in the Pluto spaceport some 18 hours later along with Nathan and Quenton, who were now both snooping around the city looking for and prepping for Word threats.

  “He used his access to get into the Archon zone then flagged down the first one he saw and asked to talk to me…then he just bluntly stated he was a Word operative and he wanted to be taken to Davis incognito to avoid reprisals.”

  “That’s no joke. We’ve seen the lengths they’ll go to to cover their asses,” David said, thinking back to Glasir as they walked up to the same handprint scanner Sander had used to access the Archon zone, with David letting Larry go through first.

  “Nothing’s happened yet,” the adept said as the shields cycled him through automatically, registering the ID signature in his armor, “aside from his coworkers wondering why he didn’t show up from work. I took care of that, and everything has been quiet since.”

  “How many guards do you have on him?” David asked as he pressed his palm against the flat panel and it flashed his Archon ID number above his fingertips.

  “12 Archons, four in and 8 around.”

  After that there was a brief period of silence as they rounded the corner ahead and ducked into a stairwell, traveling up three floors before they came to the level that had another fully armored adept standing guard just inside. Larry clapped him on the shoulder as he passed, with the adept giving David a nod of respect as he walked by.

  Four doors down the hallway and they came to the empty Archon quarters that they were using to hold him in at David’s request, which the leader of Green Team knew was better than putting him in a security station where The Word would know to look…assuming this wasn’t all some devious plan of theirs. Regardless, David was about to get some answers.

  Sander, who was sitting in a lounge chair watching TV surrounded by four more red-armored guards, turned his head as the two men entered…then stood up respectfully when he saw the green trim on David’s white uniform.

  “Have a seat,” the level 3 ranger said before the man could utter a word. “I’m not here to take you to Davis, but he has been told of the situation. If you want him to know something, you’ll have to send it through me.”

  “What I want from him is his permission to remain in Star Force,” Sander said bluntly, yet gently. “I no longer wish to be part of The Word.”

  “So you’ve said,” David noted as he sat down on a stool next to one of the armored adepts, keeping his head above Sander. “Why the change of heart?”

  “I’ve learned a lot since being assigned to infiltrate Star Force. Our previous attempts all failed because of the longevity required. You don’t have much turnover, so placing individuals in the Star Force hierarchy was problematic, and confounded by the issue of self-sufficiency. The Word believes it is unnatural and counter to predetermined design…yet the widespread and well documented cases have challenged that assumption.”

  “The last theory that I know of was that your self-sufficiency is chemically induced and creates an unnatural state…stronger proponents have suggested brainwashing as a side effect, rending you zombies after a fashion. Those Word operatives that have had more contact with you testify counter to that point, resulting in a philosophical division that The Word was trying to rectify.”

  “Now that I’ve become self-sufficient I’ve been exposed to a number of truths that I cannot ignore. The Word is in the wrong, Star Force is in the right. I want to switch sides, and will accept any punishment or demotion you deem necessary, though to date I have not taken any action against Star Force. My mission was to infiltrate, and in order to do that I could have no contact with The Word. My identity is real, as is everything else. The best cover is the truth, and I’ve stuck to it the past 4 decades, becoming a part of Star Force…and now that I am, I no longer want to betray you.”

  “How were you going to accomplish that?” David asked, his tone calm and hyper serious.

  “The Word infiltrates through cracks created by corruption or forgery. Neither is present within Star Force. Your computer systems are too robust for us to penetrate without notice, most are not even accessible, and your high ranking members are extremely disinclined to turn on you. They aren’t greedy, so we can’t bribe them. They aren’t power hungry, because you give them so much leeway and responsibility as it is that they’ve got their hands full. And most don’t have families for us to use as leverage…and those that do have been wise enough rebuff such threats, which is why so few have been made.”

  “None that I am aware of,” David commented.

  “No, because that avenue of infiltration was tested and discarded long ago. After which it was determined that personnel would have to be inserted at the lowest levels and work their way up, but they never got very far. The societal dynamic within Star Force is something that The Word cannot fully wrap their minds around, and as a result they don’t know how to mimic it. The people they sent were not deemed worthy of advancement, so no worthwhile plants were feasible.”

  “And you’re different how?”

  “It was eventually determined that a traditional operative could not be used, thus a new approach had to be taken. I was chosen to be a clean slate, to enter into your ranks, learn your ways, and become one of you rather than trying to mimic you. It may sound like semantics, but it’s an important difference…though you may not understand given that Archons don’t operate in such ways.”

  “You’d be surprised the varied work that comes out way,” David said, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “You scare us…or more precisely them. I no longer fear you, ‘you’ being Archons. The Word does, because it doesn’t understand you nor your source of power. You are secretive, even within Star Force ranks, but working alongside you for so many years I have a better understanding than they do.”

  “You haven’t explained it to them yet?”

  Sander shook his head. “I haven’t transmitted anything to them, nor been contacted by them for the past 42 years. To do so even once was a possible slip in my cover. I had to be completely clean, which is why I haven’t been in a position to undermine Star Force…until recently. Now that I am, I have
chosen not to and turned myself in.”

  “Undermine how?” David asked, curious, but with a few ideas of his own.

  “Star Force members in the upper tiers couldn’t be corrupted, so The Word needed to put one in who could be. I was supposed to use my position to cover for lower level operatives being inserted and assist them in rising through the ranks. The more plants in place, the more we could let in. I was to be the seed to start the growth of the corruption…but I would not count on my being the only one. That is what I was told at the time, but I could have been lied to, or they could have started others since my insertion. Being out of contact means I have no idea what they’ve done since then.”

  “So you’re not an ordinary operative then?” David asked offhand, trying to prick a bit of pride in the man to use as a leverage point to steer the conversation in a direction of his choosing, still under the assumption that this was all some ploy and that he could get the man to an area of uncomfortability that he wouldn’t compromise, thus signaling that his intentions in turning himself in were a ruse.

  But to his shock that wasn’t the case, and the man’s blunt honesty caught him off guard.

  “Technically I’m not an operative at all. This assignment was deemed too demanding for an operative, because he’d have to adjust to unforeseen factors once on the inside in order to set up an inroad without security or the Archons discovering it and overturning decades of placement work. For that reason an Agent was assigned.”

  10

  January 8, 2450

  Solar System

  Earth

  Sander walked side by side with David up to the staircase, then the Archon nudged him in the arm to go first, with the former Word Agent climbing up the circular stairs and seeing four people as soon as his eye line rose above the ceiling/floor into the Director’s office in Atlantis. As he climbed the last few curvy stairs he noted that three other Archons were flanking Davis, all of which were acolytes according to their gray uniform stripes.

  The Star Force leader, seated behind his desk while the Archons stood on the wings, pointed towards a chair opposite him which Sander promptly sat down on.

  “I’ve been reviewing the intelligence you’ve been providing us,” Davis said without preamble, though this was the first time he’d met the man, “and it appears to check out, but The Word has been exceedingly devious and I’m not wholly convinced that this isn’t some type of ploy, so I have a few questions of my own, if you don’t mind?”

  “Ask what you like,” Sander prompted, “but I know you’ve already come to the conclusion that I can be trusted, else I wouldn’t have been brought here.”

  Davis frowned slightly, but didn’t say anything for a handful of seconds.

  “To a point,” he finally added. “You’ve stated that you haven’t compromised Star Force in any way to date, and that you want to remain a part of the corporation, even if it’s on a minimal level. Why now and not 10 years ago?”

  “I didn’t have to make the choice until now,” Sander answered honestly. “Becoming part of Star Force was my assignment for The Word, so there was no conflict of interest. Now that I’m in a position to start undermining the personnel structure I either had to carry out my orders and betray Star Force or stay loyal to Star Force and betray The Word. I chose the latter.”

  Davis tapped a finger lightly on his clear desktop, but didn’t take his eyes off the man.

  “What does the name mean?”

  “The Word is an acronym for World Order achieved through Retrograde Dominion. The basic fundamentals of The Word state that Humanity will achieve its golden age by returning to the old ways, supplemented by advancements that don’t encroach on the proper structure of life. That structure must be maintained, protected, and in some cases forced on the populace for their own good, with freedom limited within its confines. Star Force has strayed from the path, as far as The Word is concerned, and must be brought back into line.”

  “And the flaw in their logic lies where?”

  “Hierarchical structure of life. They believe that some lifeforms are superior to others, and that the higher placed ones can justly lay claim to the lowers for use as they see fit. That order seemed to make sense to me in the beginning, because the notion that everyone is equal is rather absurd, but when I finally understood Star Force’s angle I had an epiphany, and from there on out other things started falling into place and the entire Word philosophy was shown to be nothing more than a highly calculated façade to justify bad behavior.”

  “What is Star Force’s angle?”

  “You would know better than I, but from my perspective, climbing up through the ranks, Star Force also believes in a hierarchy, but one based on the individual’s skill rather than right of birth. You also state that it is the role of the higher tiers to protect and guide the lowers, as if they were younger brothers, equal in peerdom, if not in ability. That last bit is what I had been lacking, for The Word does uplift many through a myriad of functions, but it does so through destruction and sacrifice, which makes a certain amount of sense when all are intended by nature to expire after a given amount of time. Take away that lie and you see how sacrifice is a core betrayal of the stated purpose. You cannot save the masses by betraying the individual, for the masses are composed of individuals.”

  “But you thought at one point it was acceptable to betray the individual?” Davis pressed.

  Sander sighed. “I would say it was more ignorance on my part, but yes, academically I accepted that fact, though I never had the occasion to put it into practice.”

  “You said,” Davis noted, referencing the long interrogation sessions that Green Team had already put the man through, “that you were never given any Agent duties prior to your insertion into Star Force. How is it that you achieved that rank without any prior experience?”

  “Experience doesn’t create an Agent,” Sander said, seemingly at ease with the conversation and his conscience, “its innate skill that has to be developed and honed through field work. Mine was infiltration and breaking down the inner Star Force structure to know where and how to create blind spots to hide operatives and plants, both in the flesh and electronically. There are no apprentice Agents. When we’re assigned we’re in full control, no matter how green we are.”

  “You gave us the descriptions of the other 5 Agents you trained with, but no names.”

  “For security reasons we use none. I had to retain my name in order for my cover to be legit, but the others never knew who I was, nor I them. I assume our Master did, but he never spoke of it,” Sander said, referencing the man who’d trained the Agents and given them their assignments.

  “Our?”

  Sander hesitated. “I didn’t say anything earlier because I cannot confirm it, but my suspicion was that the man who trained us was not the leader of The Word. If I had to guess I’d say there were several Masters. Even I don’t know the scope of The Word’s operations, and not just because of my mission. The others weren’t told either, though they may have learned more afterwards as their assignments necessitated. Information is very segmented, and while an Agent has his hands in many affairs, they are all regional, insuring that if one Agent is compromised the damage will only spread so far.”

  “We captured an Agent once,” Davis said, offering up a secret that he’d held until now. Publically, the term ‘Agent’ had never been used by Star Force or The Word’s propaganda campaigns. “The Word staged a military raid into one of our security stations in order to kill him. What do you know that’s so valuable to warrant that?”

  Sander’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly as he thought. “Glasir?”

  Davis smiled. “Good memory. Yes.”

  “We are supposed to kill ourselves prior to capture that we feel we cannot escape. Failure to do so is considered cowardice, and for that reason alone an Agent would be terminated if they had the chance…but no Agent had ever been compromised at the time of my insertion, so it was a theoretical topic. Depend
ing on the Agent, knowledge on his regional structure could compromise large cells, along with others he’d been assigned to previously. Agents don’t rotate around, but when one operation is completed the personnel are deactivated and reassigned…but if they accessed permanent bases in the course of their duties that knowledge would travel with them, exposing more threads for you to follow.”

  “Above that,” he continued, “I know The Word…and The Word doesn’t want to be known. Anonymity is its greatest weapon, and for that reason they will try to kill me if they find out that I’ve abandoned their twisted cause. I have no doubt they are following my career, and when they suspect something is wrong they’ll take action. I doubt they have cracked your computer security, but I didn’t want to take the chance that they had and could intercept me before I was able to speak to you, hence the insistence that I be brought to Earth incognito.”

  “There has to be something more than that,” Davis pointed out. “Something that you Agents know in particular that is worth exposing themselves to neutralize. We took a lot of prisoners on Glasir and extracted a considerable amount of information from them…information that allowed us to backtrack and shut down several dozen of their operations. I suspect they knew this when they sent their private army to get to the Agent in question, so I ask again…what’s so important to warrant that?”

  Sander shrugged. “It could be a number of things. I’ve been out of the loop so long I can’t point to an achilles heel for you to hit…but then again, I don’t know what you don’t know, and it’s possible that there’s something I consider common knowledge and am overlooking that you might see as critical information.”

  “Go back to the beginning then,” Davis prompted, getting the feeling that the man wasn’t purposefully trying to hold back information. “What do you remember of the training facility?”

  “When I was recruited I was told that I was going someplace not on the map and was delivered into the back of a truck in lower Florida, some small town I can’t remember. From there I had no knowledge of where I was being taken, but the trip lasted a total of 6 hours and 52 minutes. I timed it on my watch. There were also several transfers of the crate I was in, and it included wheeled and anti-grav transit, I could tell that much from the vibrations.”