by Dave Lemel
While they were down in the mines, the transmissions from Jay and Doug were choppy. As best as the subsequent investigation could piece together, at some point they subdued the suspect and recovered the key. After that, Jay, like so many before him, had failed to resist the temptation of the Bopecan port key. He attempted to convince Doug that they should keep it for themselves and see all the wonders of the galaxy. Doug tried to talk Jay down, and in the process a fight had ensued that ended with Doug dead and Jay vanishing along with the stolen key.
“Todd…Todd!” A wadded-up gum wrapper bounced off the side of Todd’s head, snapping him back to the present. He looked over at a slightly pinched face Simon, who asked, “You okay, dude?”
“Yeah…” Todd said as he forced a smile. “Yeah, just thinking about my dad for a second.”
Simon tilted his head slightly. “You feel like talking about it?” he asked.
“No, no, I’m fine. Just zoned out for a bit, but I’m good, man. I promise. Besides, it looks like we are pulling into our stop now.”
As the train came to a stop, the marshals rose from their seats and made their way to the door at the center of the car. Up the large rusty staircase leading out of the station they went, emerging in a much different looking dome than the one they had left. This crater was smaller and had a more aged feel than the main dome. Many of the outer craters were dedicated to farming, and this crater was the center of a cluster of farming domes. Fruits, vegetables, grains, and even meat were all farmed to sustain life on the moon.
Across from the subway station exit, at the center of the crater, was a large open air market. It took up the majority of the ground level of the crater. At the crater’s edge above, a boardwalk wrapped all the way around with store fronts facing inward. It had the appearance of a small town main street, only circular as opposed to the usual linear.
Todd and Simon walked through the market and all its familiar, unfamiliar, and downright exotic-looking produce, meats, and baked goods for sale. It always reminded Todd of passing through the food vendors at one of Milwaukee’s many summer festivals when he was growing up. On the other side, they took an open stairwell up to the boardwalk. Once at the top, the four domes surrounding this dome became visible. All four had multiple buildings inside. Some of the buildings were filled with apartments and condos. They made their way around the boardwalk to the mouth of a passageway leading to the dome indicated on Todd’s link.
On the other end of the passage, they entered a dome with about four city blocks of space inside. On the far end of the dome was a small park. They followed the central walking path to the park and hung a right. The third building overlooking the park was blinking on Todd’s link. Todd pointed at it and said, “That’s the one.”
They entered the outer doors, and Simon stopped in front of a stainless steel board mounted on the cream-colored tile wall. On it were unit numbers for all of the tenants. Todd looked at his link. “Apartment three-seventeen,” he said. Simon pressed the corresponding button marked 317 on the board and they waited.
The screen next to the board came to life. A long face with a pronounced chin, a rather large nose, and long curly hair, so blond it was nearly white, appeared. “’Sup?”
“Um…” Simon seemed slightly thrown off by the man’s appearance and demeanor.
“Sasha Cain said you would be expecting us,” said Todd over Simon’s shoulder.
“Oh! Yeah, for sure. Come on up, fellas.” The door to Simon’s right buzzed, he pulled it open, and they went inside.
The stairs were just inside the door to the left. As Simon began his way up, he chuckled and asked, “Did you see that guy’s hair?”
“Are you kidding?” replied Todd. “Did I see it? How could you miss it? Is that a perm?”
Simon laughed. “I am definitely going to have to ask Sasha where she found this guy.”
The two marshals exited the stairwell at the third floor. A sign told them unit 317 was down the hall to their left. As they approached, they heard a door ahead unlock. A gangly man with the face from the screen in the lobby stepped out into the hall. Standing at over six and a half feet tall, the man waved them in and said, “Over here, guys.” He stepped back inside as they came to the threshold and asked, “Can I get either of you something to drink? I just made a pot of coffee.”
“I’m good,” replied Todd as he looked around the small apartment.
“Actually, I’ll take a cup of coffee, if you don’t mind,” said Simon.
“Don’t mind at all, Broseph.” Jack nodded his head toward the living room area. “You guys grab a seat over there, and I’ll be right in with the coffee.”
Todd and Simon squeezed past the tall man and into the main living room. Jack stepped across the area they had just vacated and into the tiny kitchen. Simon looked at the couch that appeared to be pulling double duty as Jack’s bed, chose the armchair at the side of it, and sat down. Todd slowly walked around, looking at the pictures of redwood forests and black and whites of what he guessed was the Pacific Ocean coastline that decorated what little wall and shelf space the apartment had.
Jack made small talk through the opening in the wall between the living room and kitchen. “You guys find the place okay?”
“Yeah,” replied Todd as he held up his right arm with his link on it. “These things make it pretty easy, though.”
“Ha…right, right,” said Jack.
“So, where you from, big man?” asked Todd, pointing at one of the redwood forest photos. “I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess somewhere in the Pacific Northwest?”
Jack laughed as he came around from the kitchen and handed Simon his coffee. He leaned up against the opening between the living room and kitchen and placed his own cup of coffee on the ledge. “You marshals are always on duty, aren’t you? You are correct on general location, and I will gladly tell you more, but first you have to answer me a question.”
“What’s that?” asked Todd.
“What are your names?”
Simon stood immediately and shook Jack’s enormous hand. “Sorry about that. I’m Simon, and mister manners over there is Todd.”
“Nice to meet you both,” said Jack.
Todd walked around the couch to shake Jack’s hand as well and asked, “So how’d you end up out here, Stretch?”
Jack took a sip of his coffee before continuing. “As you guessed, I am from the Pacific Northwest. A little town you’ve never heard of by the northern California border. As you can see,” Jack gestured around the apartment at his pictures, “I love the redwood forests that I grew up around. As a teenager, I got involved with organizations that protected the forests. Eventually, I found my way into a particular organization that took a more…how should I put this… militaristic approach to how they should be protected.”
“You were an eco-terrorist,” interrupted Todd.
Jack took another sip of his coffee before responding. “That is how the U.S. government classified the group, yes. I prefer to think of it as a last line of defense for one of the most amazing living things on planet Earth. ”
“So you killed people to protect a tree,” said Todd.
“No! We protected the innocent trees at all costs, and occasionally when the real eco-terrorists refused to let them live in peace, got—”
“Hey! Hey! Hey!” said Simon as he put his coffee down and stood up. “Look, we are not here to get into a debate about where the line is in protecting nature. Todd is sorry if he offended you. Isn’t he?” He looked at Todd now.
“Yes. Absolutely. I meant no offense. I love trees! Let’s start over.”
Todd walked over to the couch and sat down. “Tell you what. Why don’t you get me a cup of that delicious-smelling coffee and you can continue to the part about how you ended up on this rock orbiting Jupiter.” Jack looked at Todd for a few seconds as if he was deciding between getting him the cup of coffee he asked for, or tossing him out the window. Finally, he smiled a little and continued
his story as he made his way back to the kitchen.
“As I was saying before…I ended up in an organization with an aggressive approach to conservation. Illegal logging of redwoods is extremely profitable. The government does a decent job of policing it, but they miss a lot. One of the ways we help to preserve the forests is to hunt for illegal loggers and drive them out.” Jack handed a cup of coffee to Todd and looked dead at him. “Always by non-violent means. Unless they attack us. Then we, of course, reserve the right to protect ourselves.”
Todd sipped his coffee and returned Jack’s stare before repeating. “Of course.”
Jack walked back to the ledge where his cup of coffee sat. “One day, about three years ago now, we heard a rumor of an illegal logging camp not far from where that picture was taken.” Jack pointed at an eight by ten, black and white in a frame sitting on a shelf of the bookcase next to the window. “After a couple days of searching, we found the camp. All their equipment and supplies were still there, but the loggers were nowhere to be found. We assumed they had taken off for a few days to re-stock supplies or sell some of the lumber or something. In those situations, we tended to use explosives to not only destroy the equipment and campground but send a message as well.” Todd made a face, started to speak, stopped himself, and then sat back and folded his arms across his chest. Jack calmly picked up his coffee and said, “Go ahead and say what you want to say.”
Todd unfolded his arms and leaned forward. “I’m sorry, it’s just groups like that are so hypocritical! You’re saving the environment by blowing up part of a forest? How the hell does that make sense?”
Jack remained calm this time and responded, “Look I get it. I had the same argument with the leaders of the group when I first learned of the tactic. However, in certain situations, it does make sense. Some of these camps are a few days’ hike just to get to. We couldn’t hike out with all of the stuff we’d find. Even when we would report them to the proper authorities, they would take so long to do anything about it, and by the time they got there the loggers had packed up and left already. When we blow it up, at least we hit ‘em in the only place they care about. The wallet. They lost money replacing all the equipment, and starting over in a new location took time. So in the end, I did think it made sense.”
“Okay,” Todd replied. “Tactically speaking, I can see your side of the argument. Go on with the story.”
“So, I was a double major in college,” continued Jack. “Environmental sciences and chemistry. Once I came around to accepting explosives as a necessary and useful tool in certain situations, I began using my chemical knowledge to lend a hand in constructing them. It turned out I had a certain knack for it, and I became the sort of de-facto explosives expert for the group. So, as I said earlier, we had come upon a campsite, and it appeared the loggers were away at the time. I set my explosives throughout the camp and started the timers. Then we retreated to a safe distance to watch from a bluff about a half mile away. We got into position with a nice, clear view of the camp, and then we saw them. Two of the loggers had stayed behind at the camp. They had been fishing in a creek a mile or so down from the camp when we were there. We didn’t hear them walking back up because the noise we made trekking through the leaves on our way to the bluff must have covered up their sound. I immediately started shouting to them as I jumped up and started running back to the camp. The chain of explosions began within seconds. By the time I got to the camp, one of them was already dead. The other was badly wounded and unconscious, but he had a pulse. The other two guys with me arrived a few minutes later, pale as ghosts. We constructed a crude gurney and dragged the still-living logger to the nearest ranger station. I walked him up to the station door myself, knowing I’d be on camera there. I dropped him at the doorstep, rang the buzzer, and ran off.”
Jack looked into his mug for a few seconds. He took a big swig and then leaned through the opening to put it down on the counter in the kitchen.
“After that, you went on the run, I take it,” said Todd.
Jack nodded. “The group has some very wealthy backers. When they heard about what happened, they offered to help me flee. One thing led to another, and I ended up here on Callisto. About a year and a half ago, a couple of marshals caught up to me. Instead of stunning me and hauling me off, they brought me back to their hotel room. They had a relay set up to your headquarters and said somebody had an offer for me. A marshal named Sasha Cain explained that they could use someone like me on Callisto. A kind of informant slash explosives expert, if need be. If I cooperated, after three years of service they would clear my name and bring me home. No way I could pass that up, so here we are.”
Simon looked over at Todd. “The more he told, the more I had a feeling my wife was somehow involved.”
Jack’s eyes widened suddenly. “Sasha is your wife?”
Simon nodded and smiled.
“Nice work, man,” said Jack. “Two thumbs way up for that one.”
“Thanks,” replied Simon. “I tell myself people react the same way to her when they hear I’m her husband.”
“Bwaaaa hawww hawww hawww.” Jack had a laugh almost as unique as his look. “Right on, brother, totally.”
“So now that we’re fully acquainted,” piped up Todd, “we need a plan.”
Simon leaned forward toward Jack. “First things first. How are we getting over there?”
Jack walked to the window as he responded. “Just outside the dome over there”—Jack pointed towards what looked like a smaller version of the upper doors of the garage Todd and Simon had parked the cruiser in—“is a private garage. I have a mobile workshop parked there. I fly it to the moons around here and fix things for money or whatever else I can get for my services. It’s just large enough that we can fit your cruiser in the back.”
“Perfect,” replied Simon. “I’m guessing my wife also told you we’re going to need explosives. Lots of them.”
Jack smiled and walked over to the door next to the bathroom. “She did,” he said as he took out a key and unlocked the door. “So this, gentlemen, is why I sleep on the couch.” Jack swung the door open, revealing the bomb lab that had taken the place of what used to be the bedroom.
“Good lord!” exclaimed Todd as he shot off the couch and passed Jack into the room. He looked up and down shelving units lining the walls, studied the contents of the workbench, and then poked his head in a closet. He turned back toward the door where Jack still stood. “You could blow up half a moon with the contents of this room.”
“No way,” replied Jack. “Not a big moon, anyway. Maybe a smaller one. But like I said before…I’m a conservationist.”
“Well,” said Simon from the other side of the doorway, “we’re going to need you to put that aside and make enough timed charges that we can blow up half of Io if need be.”
“Can they be remote?” asked Jack. “I’m really not a fan of timed after what happened at that logging camp.”
“Sorry, big man,” said Todd. “Gotta be timed. We can’t risk something happening, leaving us unable to set off the charges. This facility absolutely must be taken out. That being said, I’d like to be well on our way back here when they go off.”
“I ain’t crazy, man,” said Jack. “They’ll have a nice delay on ’em. I want to put in the rest of my three years, and then I want to go home.”
“Okay,” said Todd as he exited the lab and sat back down on the couch. “When and where are we leaving from?”
“I assume you guys are parked in the main lot?” asked Jack.
“Correct,” replied Todd.
“Why don’t you come to the garage out here then. Far fewer eyes around just in case. As far as when, that’s up to you. I’ll only need a few hours to have everything ready and loaded into my ship.”
“Why don’t we say twenty-four Earth hours from now,” said Todd. “We’ll call you when we leave the main garage, and you can meet us down by yours to open the doors.”
“That’ll wo
rk,” said Jack. “What’s the plan once we get there?”
Todd stood up and reached up to pat Jack on the arm. “You leave that to us, big guy. Just have the explosives ready and get us over there. We’ll take care of the rest.”
Todd and Simon made their way to the door and let themselves out as Simon said over his shoulder, “Get to work. We’ll see you in twenty-four hours.” Jack nodded as the door closed behind the two marshals.
Chapter 16
The train back to the main dome hummed along the track. Simon looked across the car at Todd and asked, “So what the hell was that back there?”
Todd looked up from his link, “What?” he asked.
“The pissing match you got into with Jack,” said Simon.
“I hate those hippie hypocrites!” replied Todd. “It’s absurd!” Todd continued in an exaggerated version of Jack’s northern California hippie accent. “I love all living things, man. Mother Earth, man. So I gotta blow up anyone who disagrees with me to protect it.”
Simon chuckled a little and said, “I know, I know. I’m not a big ends justify the means believer, either, but there’s a little grey for me on that issue. I have a friend or two from back home who have found their way into organizations like the one Jack was in. They really don’t ever want to hurt anyone while fighting for their cause. Jack didn’t, either. I believe his story. It definitely sounds like an accident. An avoidable one and tragic, but still an accident.”
Todd listened to Simon attentively, sat back, and then stared out the window for a couple of minutes. The train stopped at the third station along the route back to the main crater. The other three people sharing the car with Todd and Simon got off, leaving the two marshals alone. The doors closed and the train pulled out of the station .
“As you know,” began Todd, still staring out the window as he broke the silence. “When the need for Star Marshal Base was accepted to be real and immediate, a stretch of land along Lake Michigan north of Milwaukee was chosen. What you may not know is that stretch of land was a state park.”
