Tree of Liberty

by Wayne Basta

  “You know it,” she said, hefting her large rifle. He knew she had weaponry built into the armor but preferred to carry a gun in her hands.

  “Let’s keep everyone on stun. Most of the people on this ship are no more criminals than we are. No need to kill any of them unnecessarily. And we don’t want to risk damaging our new ship,” Solyss said, adding the last part to soothe her objection.

  She still frowned but nodded. Solyss turned toward the door to the cargo bay, but an armored glove on his shoulder stopped him from hitting the release switch. Turning back around, he was startled to see Asheerah’s face centimeters away.

  Without a word, she leaned in closer and kissed him. He was too shocked to respond at first, but after a second, he let himself get into the kiss.

  After a moment of eternity, Asheerah pulled away. She gave him one of her rare smiles. “If a Ni’jar master can get killed in this war, there’s a chance even I could be brought down. Not to mention a wrinkled old man like you. I’m not waiting anymore for you to man up and get over your silly belief that captains shouldn’t be involved with anyone.” With that, she pulled her helmet over her head.

  Still surprised by what had just happened, it took him a moment to reach over and secure the seals on it. Gone completely now was the beautiful woman, replaced by the terrifying visage of death. He wondered if the last minute had really happened. They had slept together on a few occasions, usually after a battle, but Asheerah had never kissed him on the mouth before, and he had never pursued her romantically.

  Putting that aside, Solyss stepped back and triggered the door. Asheerah strode through and then shouted through her speaker, “All right, boys and girls. Remember to set your weapons to stun. We’re going to play nice until they give us no choice. Keep things simple and clean. We don’t need to take the entire ship, just reach our objective. Clear?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” The response from the other armored marines rang through the cargo bay.

  Solyss stood back, away from the cargo ramp. The marines would precede him, and with luck, he wouldn’t have to get involved in any of the fighting. He had killed before, so he knew he was capable of it, but he wanted to avoid it as much as possible.

  A few minutes later, Kard appeared beside him, escorting Josserand Renard. The crime boss gave Solyss a sneer. “I believe it would be best if I had a weapon. To defend myself.”

  “Sorry,” Solyss said, no hint of actual regret in his voice. “We’re all out of weapons.”

  Josserand frowned. “This boy beside me has four guns. He could certainly spare one.”

  Solyss glanced at Kard, who had strapped on his usual assortment of pistols—two on his hips and two on his back underneath a black jacket. Not looking at Josserand, Solyss said, “Like I said, all our weapons are in use.”

  A shudder went through the deck of the ship, ending the conversation. They had been set down on the Black Market’s deck. It was almost show time.

  Several tense moments stretched out into minutes. Isaxo would lower the ramp as soon as the other two gunships docked, and moving early would be a mistake. Even knowing that, Solyss felt eager to go.

  When the boarding ramp finally lowered, it took him by surprise. Fortunately, the marines were more prepared. They stormed off the ship in twos. Immediately, he heard the sound of blaster fire as they started taking out automated defense systems in the hangar.

  Even after all the marines had exited, Solyss and Kard remained where they were. If the reception the marines received proved tougher than anticipated, they would need to make a quick getaway. It would also be within the Fox’s power to blow the air in the hangar. As neither of them had airtight armored suits, remaining on the ship would be safer until that danger had passed.

  Finally, Asheerah signaled him that the coast was clear. Moving quickly, Solyss led Kard and Josserand across the hangar to the nearest door leading off the hangar. As he ran, he caught sight of the other two gunships. Fracsid was leading a group off the Bright Blade. He noticed that Fracsid wore a new duster that was surprisingly similar to the one Maarkean used to wear. He really hoped Fracsid had bought his and not pilfered Maarkean’s from the Cutty Sark, though he wouldn’t put it past him.

  Leaving the other teams behind to their own objectives, Solyss followed Asheerah’s squad into the corridors of the ship. They came across several people who were leisurely moving through the corridors, unaware of the events on the hangar. Not taking any chances, the marines dropped anyone they saw. That was one advantage of using stun—you could shoot first and ask questions later.

  They moved several dozen meters down the corridor before coming up against a security barrier. A sealed bulkhead blocked the way forward, and a set of automated turrets deployed from the ceiling. The lead marine took a few blasts on his armor but managed to pull back around the corner before taking too much damage. Asheerah sent the marine back to the center of the group and brought another scout forward.

  “Now it’s your turn,” Solyss said pointedly to Josserand.

  With a slick smile, Josserand pushed past the marines. Before anyone could stop him, he walked around the corner toward the turrets. To Solyss’s amazement, Josserand wasn’t blasted.

  Turning back to face them, Josserand smiled. “I told you, they’re keyed to my biometric signature. They won’t fire as long as I’m in their firing arc. So I suggest you stay close.”

  Solyss exchanged a look with Kard and then followed. Asheerah and another marine took flanking positions beside Josserand, who managed to walk as if he had an honor guard. Solyss doubted that Asheerah saw it that way, but at least Josserand was living up to his end of the bargain. The other teams would have a much tougher time.

  When Josserand got close to the sealed door, it unlocked and receded into the wall. They walked through, and it sealed behind them, almost cutting off the rear-guard marines. Bunching closer together, they continued down the corridor.

  They passed two more checkpoints before encountering any security forces. A team of four guards stood outside an elevator access. As soon as they spotted the marine scout coming around the corner, they started firing. Their shots missed and the scout returned fire.

  The rest of the marines came around the corner, blasting away. Fortunately, these guards weren’t equipped with similar armor and were taken down without much trouble. Josserand summoned the elevator and stepped aboard.

  “Doesn’t look like there’s enough room for all of us onboard,” Solyss said.

  Asheerah said, “I don’t think we should split up.”

  “We can go in two groups,” Kard suggested.

  “The lift is only working because of me. We don’t have time to come back for anyone. As brilliant as my plan is, the crew of this ship will eventually find the virus and shut it down. We can’t delay,” Josserand said impatiently.

  Solyss frowned. “As much as I hate to say it, he’s right. Asheerah, leave a squad of five to guard our retreat.”

  He could almost hear the objection in Asheerah’s head, but she didn’t voice it. More than half of their marine squad remained outside the elevator as Solyss climbed aboard. The doors shut, and they accelerated through the ship.

  They reached the deck with the ship’s bridge, and the doors opened. The three remaining marines and Asheerah took position in front of the door, protecting Solyss and the other unarmored people. As soon as the doors opened, blaster fire started coming into the narrow opening.

  The two lead marines ran off the lift, followed by Asheerah and the remaining marine. Solyss took up a position on the right side of the door. There was almost enough room to fully cover him. He raised his pistol and fired shots over the heads of the marines, trying to cause some confusion among their attackers.

  This time, the forces they faced wore armor similar to the marines. Their stun blasts proved ineffective against the armor. It took several valuable seconds for everyone to switch their weapons to a lethal setting. It was the exact situation Asheerah ha
d always warned him against when using stun.

  Fortunately, their opponents didn’t prove as effective at aiming. The blasts coming into the elevator failed to find him, Kard, or Josserand. One of the lead marines dropped from combined fire, but by the time he hit the ground, Asheerah and the other two had taken care of his attackers.

  The remaining members of the ship’s defense force backed down the corridor, disappearing behind a corner. As soon as they did, a turret deployed from the ceiling. Josserand stepped into the corridor, and the turret sat motionless.

  With the way clear, Solyss raced forward to the fallen marine. “How is—”

  Asheerah cut him off, her voice more a growl than words. “Dead. We need to keep moving, or we’ll all end up the same way,”

  Not waiting for him to reply, she led the way down the corridor with the two remaining marines. Blaster fire erupted as soon as they turned the corner. Solyss tried to catch up, but a shout from Kard held him back.

  “Behind us!” the Braz yelled, and then he started firing with both blasters toward a door that had just opened.

  Solyss dropped to his knee and raised his pistol. His aim was poor, but the new defender was close enough that it didn’t matter. The figure coming out of the door dropped, and his pistol slid across the floor.

  They had been fortunate that the man hadn’t been armored. Solyss doubted that his or Kard’s pistols had enough power to penetrate combat armor, though he couldn’t be sure about Kard’s. The man often bragged about how tricked-out his guns were.

  “Let’s move,” Solyss said, pushing the group forward to catch up with the marines.

  Cautiously coming around the corner, he found Asheerah and the marines standing over the bodies of the rest of the armored defenders. A destroyed turret hung from the ceiling, sparks popping out of the severed power cable. Each of the marines bore burn marks on their armor, but all appeared to be in relatively good shape.

  “What took you so long?” Asheerah asked.

  “Reinforcements came from behind,” Solyss said.

  “Don’t worry, I got him,” Kard said with a self-satisfied grin.

  Solyss sighed at Kard’s enthusiasm. Some things never changed. “We need to keep moving and get to the bridge.”

  The marines started to move forward, one holding back to take rear-guard position. Before they got very far, the rear marine called, “Where’s Josserand?”

  Solyss looked back and saw that the crime boss was no longer with him. He ran back toward the corner they had come around. As soon as he stepped around the corner, blaster fire shot out at him. He managed to dive backward to safety.

  “That blast came from the turret,” he shouted.

  Kard asked, “You think they found his virus and neutralized it?”

  “I’ll check,” the marine said. He peeked his head around the corner, drawing fire from the turret. He pulled back a second later. “No body. He must have gone down a different corridor.”

  “I told you we should have just killed him,” Asheerah said. “But it doesn’t matter now. We’re not far from the bridge.”

  Solyss thought for a moment and then shook his head. “Josserand wouldn’t have left us now unless going to the bridge wouldn’t help him take over the ship. There must be a more important objective nearby.” Looking back at the corner with the defense turret, he said, “We need to follow him.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Lahkaba sat in the interrogation room for what must have been several hours. When he had turned himself into the Alliance, he had never expected first-class treatment, but he hadn’t anticipated the casual brutality he’d gotten from the guards. His sides hurt, and sitting in one place, chained to a table, hadn’t helped.

  The waiting had given him plenty of time to question his sanity. He had made a snap decision to join Zeric on Sulas. At the time, he had only had a vague idea of what he intended to do once he got there. Even now, the plan was still vague, but every variation of it involved him sitting here, in Alliance custody.

  Even though he had come this far—past the point of no return, as far as his personal safety went—he still debated whether or not he would go through with it. Saracasi’s offer of Commodore Dolan for a prisoner exchange gave him only a little leverage, but then, getting Maarkean and Lohcja released had only been part of his reason for coming.

  He had never supported an alliance with the Dotran, but he’d gone and secured their help anyway. It had cost the lives of an unknown number of Kowwoks. The Dotran had to pay for that atrocity. Revealing the existence and attack plans of their fleet to the Alliance would do that. He had no doubt in Admiral Sartori’s ability to defeat a Dotran fleet if she knew about them in advance.

  Unfortunately, doing so would mean betraying the Union. Saracasi had done amazing work with the fleet they had, but he knew that they would not survive a direct fight with the Alliance’s main force. They needed the Dotran for that.

  The door to the interrogation room opened suddenly, drawing Lahkaba back to the present. Through the opening, Admiral Sartori strode into the room. A marine guard came in behind her, but she waved him back.

  Taking the seat across from him, she sat down. He was surprised by her appearance in person. He’d seen her on videos before, but those didn’t do her justice. She looked much older in person, and far more tired, but there was an air about her that radiated authority and confidence.

  “So you’re the famous Lahkaba, champion of the downtrodden aliens of Sulas, delegate to the Kreogh sector congress, former Confederate soldier, traitor against the Alliance,” Sartori said after looking him over, her tone overly grandiose.

  Lahkaba said nothing in response. He could have argued about her characterization of him, but it was all true.

  “Why, exactly, are you sitting in my holding cell?” Sartori asked. “We didn’t capture you. I won’t believe for a moment that you’ve changed your mind about the rebellion. What could be so important to your cause that you would allow yourself to be in our custody?”

  Remembering the accusatory faces of the Kowwoks who had been arrested at the club on Dotra, Lahkaba said, “I’ve come here to negotiate with you for an end to hostilities.”

  Sartori raised an eyebrow. “I see. You’re prepared to surrender and disband your insurgent government?”

  “No, but we wish to make peace. A treaty between governments,” Lahkaba said.

  Shaking her head, Sartori said, “The Alliance doesn’t negotiate with terrorists. Even terrorists calling themselves a government.”

  “Not even in its own best interest?” Lahkaba asked.

  “Negotiating with terrorists is never in our best interest.”

  “What if I told you I could help you prevent a war with the Dotran Confederacy by making peace with us?” Lahkaba said, leaning forward as best as his restraints would allow.

  Sartori frowned briefly and considered him for a moment. Finally, she said, “All right, I can save my intelligence officers some work and hear what you have to say.”

  It wasn’t much, Lahkaba thought, but it was a start. “In exchange for the Alliance pulling out of the Kreogh sector and ending the conflict between us, I will reveal full details about a planned Dotran attack against the Alliance.”

  “A Dotran attack against the Alliance? How convenient,” Sartori said. “How about, instead of surrendering to a bunch of rebels, I promise that you don’t get the death penalty.”

  “Admiral, it should come as no surprise to you that I’m not at all concerned with what happens to me,” Lahkaba said, summoning as much bravado as he could. He held Sartori’s gaze for a moment. “However, I’m willing to negotiate. I have no wish to see the Confederacy win in a fight with the Alliance.”

  Sartori gave him a thoughtful look and then said, “No, I don’t suppose you would. Despite what many in the Fleet might think, I don’t believe you’re actually a Confederate agent. But the fact remains, we don’t negotiate with terrorists.”

  “Wh
at if I told you I’m not here on behalf of the Union, but on my own initiative?” Lahkaba said. “You do negotiate with informants.”

  “Only informants that provide valuable information. And you don’t strike me as someone who would turn coat for a few credits,” Sartori said suspiciously.

  “I’m not,” Lahkaba said, his tone more defensive than he had intended. “Release Maarkean Ocaitchi and Lohcja Cargon. Do that, and I’ll provide you the details of the Dotran attack.”

  “Ocaitchi is far too valuable to release on spurious claims,” Sartori said dismissively.

  “Then, in addition to the information, I’ll get Commodore Hari Dolan released from our custody,” Lahkaba added.

  For a moment, Sartori’s face showed signs of shock, followed by what might have been relief. Then, a dangerous look took over. “I will not participate in a hostage negotiation,” Sartori said, her voice low.

  Taken aback, Lahkaba stammered, “I meant nothing like that. Commodore Dolan is a prisoner of war, as are many other Alliance officers. They’re being treated according to the terms of the Treaty of Ailleroc. As I’m sure are all Union prisoners in Alliance custody.”

  Sartori frowned slightly with an expression Lahkaba couldn’t decipher, though he didn’t take it as a look of suspicion. He continued, “I only meant to offer him as part of the exchange for General Ocaitchi and Colonel Cargon.”

  After a long moment, Sartori seemed to recover herself, and she said, “You ask a lot for an informant.”

  Lahkaba thought he might be running out of options. He could just tell Sartori the information, but then he really would be a traitor. If he got something out of her that helped the Union, it wouldn’t be a complete betrayal.

  “But Cargon is fairly minor. I would be willing to release him in exchange for Commodore Dolan,” Sartori said after a moment.

  Restraining himself from agreeing immediately, Lahkaba paused, pretending to consider the offer. “Agreed. Once I have confirmation that he’s safe, I’ll share the details with you, as well as the location of Commodore Dolan.”