by H. T. Kofruk
Reluctantly, he kneeled down and put his hand into the pool. The substance felt lighter and warmer than water. He dangled his feet in the liquid from a seated position on the edge of the pool and then slowly lowered himself. He looked one last time at the dark, star-filled sky and then at the helpers in the shadows ready to rush forward once the knowledge transfer was complete.
The liquid allowed greater manoeuvrability than water. His skin felt smooth and oily as if it was seeping into his pores. It didn’t sting his open eyes as he watched the serene expressions of the other members of the Five. All of a sudden one of them, the second eldest named Primba, started to convulse. His face still held a measure of serenity as if drowning was a banal affaire. One by one, the others started to show the same symptoms. Hinroo even managed to smile before the end of the convulsions. He soon found himself submerged with four corpses, each one with a satisfied look of pleasure imprinted on their faces.
The need for air came down on him hard. His lungs felt as if they would burst and it took no small manner of willpower to stop himself from swimming to the surface. In the midst of the panic, warmth seemed to fill the inside of his body. He knew it was impossible but he swore he could smell the fragrance of spring flowers as if the liquid had been lightly perfumed. He felt himself calming even though the urge to breathe was still strong. He closed his eyes and focused on the new fragrance…
Strong hands pulled him out of the pool and laid him on the stone floor of the temple. A helper opened his mouth and inserted a small white ball. As soon as it made contact with the back of his throat, he woke with an eruption of liquid coming from deep inside him. He was helped to his side to let the water drool out of his mouth. A salty liquid also secreted from his eyes.
He would later describe the experience ‘as if the whole universe was open to your curiosity, as if the largest nebula or the smallest atom would yield all their secrets if you just asked’. Knowledge was pleasure and freedom and he would never understand how he could have weighed that value against a few extra wrinkles and premature grey hair.
Though the process was pleasurable, as he had connected to all the entities of the universe, the knowledge itself was painful. No one had ever seen the galaxy in such a state of violence. Grinya shuddered at the pain inflicted by intelligent beings. Since the last Branialia, the galaxy known as the Yinhexi to Rendens had changed for worse.
Chapter 11: Eavesdropping
‘The idea of the wise, autocratic leader has plagued our imagination since the beginning of government. He or she is all-knowing, free of any political leanings, and almost magically knows how to lead his or her people to a better life, to a stronger future. He or she answers to no one for who would dare to question the almighty leader? This person has no flaws, vices or personal ambitions that are not aligned with his people's welfare. The only thing is that, in reality, such a person does not exist.’ - Terry Southend,
“Captain Derek Wurth. You’ve been missing in action for more than three years. You finally appear on a Chinese ship near the United Terra protected zone. You have provided a story that requires no proof. How do we know that you’re not a Chinese spy?”
Qin Huei looked at the navy officer with a good combination of confusion and frustration. “I’ve told you the same story, sir. I was held captive for the last four years and I expected a little more sympathy.”
Lieutenant-Colonel Franck Ducos didn’t seem convinced. The United Terra naval intelligence officer was probably aware of the elaborate brainwashing techniques used by the Chinese Imperial Forces to convert enemy soldiers into spies and assassins. “It is not lack of sympathy that fuels my suspicions. A man of your professional background and experience should know what keeps me up at night when it comes to your case.”
Qin nodded. “I swear they didn’t convert me, sir.”
“Then why did they keep you alive while every naval member of the fleet outside Janpu was killed?”
“They weren’t. They captured a good number of us after most of the fleet crewmembers died. I don’t know exactly how many but my estimates range from one hundred and fifty to three hundred. I’m sure that many of the others were converted but not me.”
“Explain”
Qin put his head down and faked a tremble. “Because I was trained to resist brainwashing techniques. My military occupational speciality required me to undergo training to thwart any tampering with my mind.”
Ducos looked at the woman in the room. Qin could tell right away that she had received Phantom training. Did she sense any deceit in what he was saying?
“Then why did they keep you alive?” asked the woman.
Qin was relieved by the question; it meant that they were starting to believe his earlier lies. “Because I was the security officer for a mothership. They knew I had valuable information.”
“And did you tell them anything?” she asked again with piercing eyes.
He lifted his shirt to show them the scars he had inflicted on himself. His training in blocking out pain had made it relatively easy yet he could still picture himself ramming red hot rods into his muscle tissue. “This is what they did to me. So yes, I may have divulged some knowledge but nothing mission critical. Besides, everything I knew four years ago was probably out of date within a few months.”
“We lost everything within those few months, captain. What kind of knowledge did you leak?”
Qin lifted his palms in frustration. “I’ve already been debriefed several times. How many times do I have to repeat the same story?”
“Then tell us again why the Chinese transport vessel was taking you alone so close to our protected zone? The only reason we can think of is to plant you as a sleeper agent. But they crashed for some reason” said Ducos.
Qin forced his body temperature to rise suddenly to bring a sweat to his forehead and a red colour to his hollow cheeks. He didn’t know exactly how Phantoms sensed lies but thought it could be through such vital signs as temperature and heart rate. “I don’t know! All I know is that I survived three years of hell and now I’m supposed to be among friends. Yet I’m being treated like a criminal and a traitor!”
“Calm down, captain” said Ducos.
“Stop telling me to calm down! Everyone is pissing me off with all these questions and then they try to calm me down once I get pissed! Just give me a gun so I can join you and hunt down these sons of bitches!”
“We are not hunting down the Chinese, captain. We are defending ourselves while trying to get their cooperation to reconquer Earth” said Ducos.
“Not after what they did to me. You wouldn’t think about cooperating with them if you went through what I did” he said as he managed to make tears swell in his eyes.
Ducos looked down at him with remorse in his eyes. Qin knew that he had won him over while the Phantom bitch still held a good amount of suspicion in the way she looked at him. Would he have to kill her at some point? It was risky, especially with her training, but if the expected benefits outweighed the risk, then it would have to be an option to explore.
He looked with masked satisfaction when Ducos started whispering in her ear and she gave away a tiny grain of displeasure in her face. She obviously didn’t agree with whatever was being said but made no sign to express it.
Two weeks later he was finally free from the cell in which he had spent nearly a month. Since he wasn’t strictly a member of the United Terra military, he was given a small quarter in the civilian area where politicians, contractors and public administrators would stay. That also implied that his area of activity was restricted to the dining facility, the gym and the botanical area.
He needed to do three things; get information about the whereabouts of Han Fann; gain the trust of the military hierarchy; get accepted back into the navy, preferably as security officer. Though nobody told him, he felt a tense atmosphere among the crewmembers in the dining facility. Talking to one another was the most effective and most common met
hod military personnel used to dispel anxiety and stress. For the time being, he had to keep up the role of torture survivor housing bitterness towards the military for not accepting him. He would maintain a sullen, disturbed look while listening intently to the conversations around him.
It was during lunch time on the third day when he heard one of the key phrases for which he had been scanning.
“…and Prince Han, no General Han was right there when it happened…”
The speaker had a strong Chinese accent and was sitting two tables behind Qin. He wanted to turn to see the face of the speaker but didn’t dare. Using mental sound cancelling techniques, he focused his sense of hearing on the speaker.
“So how did he survive?” said a deeper voice with a slightly Germanic edge.
“His ship was at the edge of the formation. More than half of the crew survived the Death Beam.”
Death Beam? He had known that the United Terra interim government had taken refuge in the Carulio System. The alien technology was still beyond Renden know-how so its use could only mean that they had been betrayed by their hosts.
“A quarter of our ships and all our civilian government members” said a third female voice, also with strong hints of her Chinese mother tongue.
“Do you know what’s going to happen now?” said the German again.
“I think there was a massive plan to reinvade Earth, but now it’s been postponed indefinitely.”
“I don’t know why we haven’t tried already” said the female.
“Because those aliens are now able to use advanced Chinese weapons technology. They have control of dozens of warships around Earth, not to mention armed satellites” said the German.
“My friend from Strategy told me the other day that they’ve started to use the wormhole stations” said the Chinese man.
There was a brief lull in the conversation as each participant pondered what that could mean. Qin decided that they had no more practical information so he got up and left his half-eaten meal. So Han Fann was alive?
The hate deep down in his gut started to squeam and turn as it threatened to explode in a rage-induced tantrum. The two Chinese crewmembers were talking as if their Empire had not been brought down by treachery, as if their universe was still intact. Hot tears welled up in his eyes as he imagined his father, the late head bodyguard to the Emperor, looking down with disbelief at the still-warm corpse of his liege. Only the deepest grief would have left him vulnerable to the oafish attack of Han Fann. He pretended to look at the plants of the botanical area while he struggled to regain control of his emotions.
“Captain Wurth?” said a soft female voice behind him.
He turned and saw Major Geraldine Schmitt, his ‘rescuer’, looking at him. She was in civilian attire and wore her light brown hair loosely around her shoulders. It gave her a much softer, feminine look that reminded him of somebody.
“Are you okay?” she said.
He managed a smile and nodded. “I’m sorry, but you should no longer refer to me by my rank since I’m officially a civilian.”
“I’m sorry…err…”
“Derek” he said after sensing her hesitation as to what to call him. “Derek will do just fine.”
“I’m sorry, Derek. I know how frustrating this must be for you.”
“You have no idea, Major Schmitt.”
She smiled slightly abashedly. “Geraldine will do just fine. I was thinking that since you don’t know anyone on board, that you might need someone to talk to. Off the record, of course.”
Despite himself, he smiled weakly back at her. “That’s very decent of you to offer. But for the moment I think I just need more time on my own.”
“Wasn’t four years enough?” she said but then immediately laughed nervously. “I’m sorry. I’m just not really used to approaching people like this. But all I can say is that I know what you may be going through.”
“I highly doubt that” he said suddenly coldly.
She looked slightly startled at his sudden coldness. For some reason, he felt slightly remorseful about what he had just said. The pair looked awkwardly at each other for a moment before a yellow light abruptly started to flash.
“I’m sorry, Derek. But I think I may have to get back into uniform” she said after briefly listening to something through her Web-Com terminal.
“What is it?”
She hesitated momentarily before replying. “A ship has appeared near the station. Probably nothing.”
He watched her as she jogged away.
He didn’t see her for the next few weeks. He kept mostly to himself while keeping his ears open for any more information. It was at the gym that he heard something of interest.
He was running in a cool, slightly humid forest. The moist earth cushioned his feet and a refreshing breeze blew away the sweat on his face. His strength and stamina had suffered from the injuries from the Battle of Lordsphere and the many scars on his body became painful if he exerted himself too much. The illusion disappeared to reveal the interior of the gym and the pulse-mill on which he had been running. He walked a few more minutes to cool down and went over to the mats to stretch out his muscles.
Two women were speaking in Swahili nearby, one of the languages in which he had had the least training. He strained his ears to try and understand what they were saying when he heard them talking about the ship that had appeared a few weeks ago.
“Maria says that the ship had only two passengers”
“How does she know?” said one with a slightly husky edge to her voice.
“She has a new boyfriend in the security detail. You know the tall Malaysian guy who used to come all the time to check supply levels?”
“Oh yes. I always thought those two got along too well.”
They started laughing heartily.
“Well, you know meeting someone is always a good thing in these times” said Husky Voice.
The other one sighed. “Yes I suppose.”
“Don’t worry, Tanis will be fine. He’s been on those missions a hundred times already.”
“I know. But can’t help it.”
At this point, Qin started to get worried that the conversation would digress completely to another subject. He started swearing under his breath.
“So what’s the deal with the ship?” said Husky Voice, obviously trying to change the subject.
“Maria didn’t say much. I don’t think she knows a lot but she did say only two people were aboard.”
“That was a dolphin-class cargo ship. Only two people?”
Her companion only answered after a few moments of controlled breathing as she stretched her muscles. “One of them wasn’t a Renden.”
“Really? Did she say what kind of alien?”
“No. But it seems to be a big deal. We’re scheduled to return to Jibaru in two days.”
“What about our mission here?”
“Abandoned indefinitely. I guess a lot of high-up people are curious about this alien and the woman who came with it.”
Qin left the gym in a hurry. He had learnt that the new United Terra headquarters were located in the Jibaru System where the Atlantic Alliance had mined the past two centuries for geratinium, zinc and a host of other minerals. The system had been abandoned a decade ago once resource levels were low enough to be uneconomical. It seemed reasonable that Han Fann would be there.
He didn’t know how important a discovery the alien was but it at least seemed that the United Terra leadership was deeply interested. For now, the most important thing for him was to get accepted back into the military.
Chapter 12: Allegiance
‘I want to believe that millennia of civilization have instilled in most of us a moral compass that does not point to any divine figures, but to the person beside us, to our very souls’. - Terry Southend,
Chairman Rhee was not a patient man and was certainly not accustomed to being made to wait. His time was expensive and so
far he had wasted ten minutes. He gulped down a mouthful of strong coffee but left the bottle of fine cognac untouched. During his forty years at the helm of the largest private corporation in the Yinhexi, he had dealt with politicians, generals, smugglers and other ruthless businessmen but he had never been more anxious about a meeting as he was for this one. Mister Kang, his enormous, Phantom-trained bodyguard shifted his weight to show impatience, a solidary gesture to what he thought his boss was feeling.
“The swarmy is late” exclaimed unnecessarily Chairwoman Katsutoshi using the common pejorative for Chinese people.
Rhee just coughed politely at the remark by his nearest rival and head of Shin Daimyo Biochemics.
“That’s why they say to always ask them to come half an hour before the expected time” said Chairman Tang.
Rhee didn’t even bother to register a reaction. The Diatex Company had been the largest private company just a generation ago and Rhee considered the clueless Tang the reason for its relative demise. The swarmy had managed to get the heads of the three largest private companies, together accounting for more than sixty per cent of all electronics, bio-chemical and arms production in the known universe. His tardiness was nothing more than to remind them of the power relationship between them; they would do his bidding, not the other way around.
The door flung open and the silhouette of a smallish man appeared. He walked slowly into the room with light and confident steps. Rhee knew that the bodyguards of the other two chairmen were also the best that money could buy; one of them was a former Celestial Guard while the other was also Phantom-trained. But the man showed no signs of intimidation. Instead he actively appeared to be mocking everyone else.
“Colonel Bo, I presume?” said Rhee. As head of the largest conglomerate, he felt he had the right and duty to represent the others.
“I don’t think that title suits me any longer. I am in a transitional phase, in between jobs if you like. Please just call me Mister Bo.”
“I am…”
“Mister Rhee. I saw you at Heavenly Tower five years ago with your business delegation.”
