The Phoenix Conspiracy

by Richard Sanders

Chapter 8

  Calvin stepped through the jetbridge and into Terminal B of the Tau outpost. He staved off thoughts of the connection breaking free and blowing him into space, but he didn’t feel safe again until his feet were firmly planted on the spaceport’s ground with the airlock sealed behind him.

  “Welcome aboard, sir,” a worker said. Two guards saluted.

  Calvin wasn’t in uniform, but they knew a military ship had docked. “Thank you.” Calvin saluted back. He read the name on the worker’s lapel. “Eric, what is the fastest way to the main concourse?”

  “It’s all around you, but most everything is down that corridor and to the right.” He pointed. “Can’t miss the big room.”

  “Thanks.” Calvin started walking away but turned back for a second. “Say, have you had any VIPs on the station in the last day or two?”

  “Well, there’s the command staff and some execs from a few corporations. But nothing too special. Why? Should we be expecting someone?”

  “No.” Calvin paused. “I was just wondering what kind of traffic you get out here in the Hyperion Cluster.” With a polite nod, Calvin walked away, not surprised the princess had kept her presence a secret. But again wondered why she was here.

  The security checkpoint was much simpler than most starports. A mining colony this far out of the way didn’t see much traffic, and rarely saw anyone outside of routine visits from commercial freighters and the occasional transport. The officers on duty were understandably chatty and curious. Calvin made up a story about how he was “in the neighborhood” and wanted to get a look at the place since his nephew was planning to move here for a business venture. A lame story that could be easily falsified, but it was the best he could invent on the spot. And the officers seemed to believe it. Had he worn his black-and-silver uniform, they would’ve certainly had more questions.

  The station’s main corridor was narrower than most, and it felt more like a starship than an outpost. When he reached the plaza, which had maybe a dozen people in it, he took a seat in the center and waited, thinking that was all he could do. He’d give it about ten minutes, and, if the princess didn’t contact him, he’d leave. Sitting around and waiting to be surprised made him feel vulnerable. Especially since he was exposed to the whole room.

  Not more than two minutes later, he felt something metal press against his back and a gravelly voice whisper, “Stand up and don’t make any sudden movements.”

  “Okay …” said Calvin, feeling his heart quicken. He rose slowly.

  “And don’t say anything,” the stranger said. “Just walk down the corridor to your left and turn right at the first door. It will be locked. Knock four times. You will be asked to give a password. The password is your name.”

  “The phrase ‘your name’ or my actual name?”

  The pressure against his back disappeared. Calvin whirled to face the perpetrator, but no one was there, and no one was seen running away. No one was within fifty feet of him. The plaza looked normal. If not for a fresh scuff on the polished floor, he would have thought he’d imagined the whole thing. Either the stranger was inhumanly fleet of foot or else he was an expert at hiding. Either way Calvin thought it best to do as the stranger had advised.

  Okay … down the corridor and to the right. He cautiously made his way, checking only briefly to see if anyone was watching him. A few people looked at him, but they seemed disinterested. Most everyone in the plaza was engaged in conversation, going somewhere, or else waiting around quietly. None of them gave him more than a second glance, and no one seemed to have noticed, or taken any interest in, the mysterious stranger who’d spoken with Calvin a moment before.

  Once Calvin got to the door the stranger had mentioned, he knocked on it four times.

  A small panel within the door slid aside. “What do you want?”

  Calvin wondered if that was some cryptic way of asking for a password. He decided it wouldn’t hurt to try. “Calvin Cross.”

  “You want Calvin Cross.”

  “Well, who doesn’t?” he asked, not sure what to do next.

  The door opened, and he was hustled inside. He resisted, out of instinct, but at least two pairs of arms grabbed his biceps and pulled him in. The door closed behind him. They patted him down for weapons, then let go, and the lights snapped on, forcing him to squint.

  “Sorry to put you through all of this, Calvin,” said Princess Kalila.

  He looked at her, feeling overwhelmed by her presence. She was half-a-head shorter than him, but her aura of authority made him feel like an ant before her. He knew that, on a whim, she could do anything from grant him titles and estates to have him secretly executed.

  “I’m sure you understand, though, that it was necessary,” she continued. “We have a delicate situation here. And one I expect your help with. The Empire needs you … and so do I.”

  “I’m flattered, Your Majesty. But I’m also confused.”

  She flashed him a smile of pearly white teeth. “I do not want to get into all the details of why I am here and why I ordered such extreme measures for you to speak with me. But understand I went through all this effort for good cause.”

  He didn’t interrupt her and instead let his mind try to process this new information. Wondering most of all, why him? They’d never met before. And, aside from his medals, he was just another pawn in the Imperial war-machine. She had commodores and admirals in her delicate hands; what made him so interesting?

  “This is a matter of internal security, and the threat we’re dealing with is, potentially, the deadliest in our history.”

  Calvin raised his eyebrows. “Well, that sounds wonderful …”

  “You tracked down Asari Raidan the first time, when he and the Phoenix disappeared. And now they are sending you to find him again. What you don’t know is that, when Asari Raidan attacked the Rotham convoy, his motives went deeper than the findings of the tribunal on Praxis One.”

  Calvin knew that already. But he wasn’t going to contradict her.

  “Fleet Command is giving an unusual amount of attention to this case, and they want Asari Raidan caught and executed as soon as possible. They want him out of the way badly, enough that tomorrow you’ll be given the order to shoot him on sight.”

  “What?” He couldn’t help himself. “How could you possibly know that?” He searched her eyes, but she seemed used to such probing and revealed nothing.

  “The admiralty is already discussing that option,” the princess said. “I’m certain they will approve it when they meet again in twelve hours.”

  “A shoot-on-sight edict would be suicide. The Nighthawk might be able to disable the Harbinger, but that’s a best-case scenario. There’s no way we could take it on directly. Even if we had the element of surprise and never missed a shot, we’d be shredded to dust!”

  “But if you did manage to cripple the Harbinger’s engines, Raidan would be a sitting duck. And if the Harbinger destroyed an Imperial vessel, say yours, that would be good-enough justification to get other fleets involved and take it out, no questions asked.”

  “I get the picture. And for some reason you don’t want that. You want Raidan to live.”

  “Maybe, maybe not. We want you to find him, track him down, and figure out what his next move is. He’s part of something big, and we need to know more about it. Finding him is the key.”

  “I’m already trying to find him.”

  “And when you do, don’t shoot him. Not right away. Also please delay reporting his whereabouts to the fleet. We’d consider it a personal favor.”

  “And, if you don’t mind me asking, just who is we?”

  “I’m not at liberty to say.”

  “So,” said Calvin, trying to be polite. “Why don’t you just direct Intel Wing? Or give an executive order to Fleet Command?”

  “I can’t get into that, Calvin. But the threat I’m talking about goes deep inside the Empire, and we’re still sorting out who can and can’t be trusted.”

&nb
sp; “And apparently I’m on the can-be-trusted list.”

  “Mostly because we have to trust someone. You’re in a unique position. You can act where we cannot. You’re not being watched as closely, and you won’t draw any suspicion. You’re supposed to be hunting down former captain Asari Raidan, so pursuing him won’t seem unusual. And your ship has the kind of capabilities we may need. All we’re really asking is that, when you find him, let us know and delay engaging him. Find out what you can. Who he’s working for, what his goals are, anything, everything. Then we’ll give you further instructions.”

  Calvin let out a slow breath. “You know other ships can do everything my ship can.”

  “But those ships don’t have you,” she said softly, stepping closer, touching his hand very briefly.

  It was enough to put him in shock, and he felt his innards melt. Did Princess Kalila really just touch his hand? Wait a minute … she was manipulating him.… She was using her beauty and status to throw him off guard. Unfortunately, even though he was aware of it, she had such an effect on him that he was helpless to avoid being psychologically reeled in.

  “Calvin, you’ve spent your whole life out of sight and out of reach of these threatening interests. And …” She came closer, catching him by the wrist as he took an involuntary step backward. He looked at the floor but she lifted his chin so she could stare into him with her dark eyes. “I think you are a loyal subject of the Empire. Am I wrong about that?” She let him go.

  “No, you’re right about that.”

  “Is there any reason why I shouldn’t trust you?”

  “No,” said Calvin. “Is there any reason why I shouldn’t trust you?”

  She smirked. “I like you. But I’m not naive enough to think that’s reason enough for you to do what I want. I’ll tell you what. Track down Mr. Raidan, find out what he’s up to, and there just might be full citizenship in it for you.”

  “Is that a bribe?”

  “Consider it a reward. Your mother is healthy with a good forty more years of life in her. Why wait for her to die to inherit your own citizenship, when I can give it to you with a pen stroke?”

  “You know a lot about me, Princess. I had no idea I was so interesting.”

  “Anyone who is in a position to help the Empire is interesting,” she said. “And valuable.”

  “Valuable enough to ask for full citizenship before hunting down Raidan?”

  The princess raised an eyebrow. “Don’t push your luck. I’m not going to give you something for nothing. As much as I like you.”

  “Well, you can’t blame a guy for trying.” He tore his gaze away from her and looked at her guards. Something was odd about one of them. He was taller than the others, and his face was concealed by his hood. Calvin couldn’t get a good look at him, but he could’ve sworn he saw a trace of blue-hued skin. Was a Polarian in the princess’s escort?

  The rest of the guards were less unique and wore common clothes like the princess, though Calvin spotted bullet-resistant armor behind a tear in one of their shirts. “You should patch that up if you don’t want to give yourself away,” he pointed out.

  “Good eye,” Kalila said. “Now, Calvin, you must get started immediately.”

  He hadn’t yet decided how he wanted to handle this situation; he wanted to distance himself from her before evaluating how far he could trust her. But he knew better than to show hesitation in front of the princess.

  “Yes, I will,” he said. “But my superiors are going to need reports. It’ll be hard to explain, when I find Asari Raidan, why I’m not acting against him right away. Or why I don’t report his whereabouts immediately. Especially since I now have this navy commander on my ship …”

  The princess interrupted him. “Calvin … you’re much more likable when you’re not making excuses.”

  She was irresistible.

  “You’re very intelligent, I can tell. And clever. Don’t doubt yourself. We can figure this out if we work together. You’ll find a way. The Empire needs you, and so do I.”

  It was the second time she’d said she needed him. And it made him melt. She was so good at slipping past his armor, and, seeing her face-to-face, it was impossible to say no. Even if she’d been a commoner instead of a royal Akira, he still would have folded to her wishes. She just had that gift. Something about her presence and voice and rich dark eyes …

  “I want to get to the bottom of this too,” he said, mostly to remind himself that he wasn’t in this for her. “I will do everything I can for the Empire”—he bowed—”but I don’t have a way of contacting you.”

  “And you won’t.” She paused. “In time, we will contact you. Like we did today. Hopefully, when next we meet, you will have some meaningful information.”

  “And if I don’t?”

  “I’m sure you will. You’re ingenious.” She smiled at him. “And I’ll give you enough time. Just … don’t let me down.”

  He nodded.

  “Thank you.” Her smile faded, and her voice shifted from sweet to sober. “And, Calvin, do not tell anyone about anything we’ve discussed here. Or that we met. Don’t record it in your log, don’t call your friends and brag to them, don’t even tell your officers.”

  “I understand,” he said, realizing this conversation was wrapping up. “But for the sake of my investigation, can you give me more details about the threat you mentioned? I’ll need your latest intelligence.”

  She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I’ve already said more than I probably should have. Not because I don’t want you to know, but because I cannot be certain yet which of my information is credible. That and some information is deadly to know.”

  “Well, if you’ve already said more than you should have, then where’s the harm in saying a little more?”

  “Nice try, but no. All you need to know is that Asari Raidan is not to be intercepted, interrupted, or interfered with. Find him, find out what he’s doing, and report everything to me. I promise you it is both for the good of the Empire and continued human dominance in the galaxy.” There was a dead-seriousness in her voice that was chilling.

  Good of the Empire … I seem to be hearing that a lot lately.

  “All right, I’ll do what I can.”