Torture, food deprivation… none of it had worked. She’d even tried to be his friend at one point. Jish told herself that they were more afraid of humans than humans were of them. Some nights, it was the only way she could fall asleep. She couldn’t believe her own lies, even after telling them to herself for thirty years.
Only a handful of Earth Fleet admirals and the Council knew of the Rift. She didn’t dare tell anyone else yet. They would only know if things went south, but they’d know quickly.
Her earpiece chimed softly, and a voice spoke to her. “They’re ready for you, Grand Admiral.”
“Very well,” she replied and headed for the boardroom. The doors slid apart as she neared. Two armed soldiers stood at the entry, and she addressed them. “No one in or out.”
“Yes, ma’am,” one said in reply.
Jish entered the sparsely-populated room and took a deep breath. She pulled a device from her breast pocket and activated the room shield. No signals would leave this room while it was on, and no prying ears could hear what was spoken within the walls.
The few guests gathered around the table stood as she walked to the head of it. Jish stayed standing and took in their faces. Admiral Helina Trone, one of her oldest friends, sat down to her right, giving a tight-lipped smile. Helina had tragically lost her husband and son a few years before.
To her left, a large barrel of a man wheezed as he sat in his chair, which appeared comically small compared to his huge frame. Admiral Cash Tye frowned up at her.
Last of the admirals was Dennis Sul, the good-looking son of the previous Grand Admiral. Jish thought he might resent her, and he’d always wanted her seat, but he could have it when she died. Thinking about it almost made her laugh, but she composed herself.
“Grand Admiral, what news?” Sul asked with a sparkle in his eye.
Jish sat. “You all know about the threat against humanity. I won’t sugar-coat it. I fully expect an altercation on August second.”
“Why would there be? I thought we were going to stay put and not aggravate the Invaders.” Tye said their name as if it were their title. Invaders. They didn’t know what else to call them and had settled on the simplest answer.
Jish wondered if they should have changed that back at the first sighting. If they’d called them the Visitors, maybe the Fleet’s mindset would have been different. No. After watching the alien in the bowels of her ship identify Earth as his target, she knew they were right in calling them Invaders. It was only a matter of time.
Fairbanks had never bought into it. He’d always called them Watchers. Maybe he’d had the right idea.
“We did say that, but I’ve changed my mind. It’s been a long time, Tye. Thirty years changes things. We’re stronger than ever. Our Fleet has grown.”
Helina spoke for the first time. “That may be, but our people grow weaker. We’re spread so thin, with half of our colonies suffering. Have you seen the stats on Mars lately? The world that was once our dream is now a dome of refuse.”
Jish clenched her jaw. “Bite your tongue, Admiral. You’re close to treason there.”
“I am not! You know I care more about the people than any other admiral, present company included.” Helina glanced to each of them. “Just tell us the plan. We’ll have to get behind it. If they’re going to attack, we have no choice.”
Jish smiled inwardly while keeping her face composed. If she could get Helina on her side, the others would follow suit. “We send a drone there, using the Shift drive technology.”
“Are you ready to divulge where that particular tech came from yet?” This from Tye, who let out a series of coughs after speaking.
“Top secret.” Jish didn’t elaborate. She didn’t tell them the tech came from the lone fighter ship left behind, or that she held the alien inside her own ship. As they sat there, an eight-foot-tall alien huddled inside his cage, likely plotting revenge. The only one who knew about the alien was Fairbanks, and he was MIA.
“Right. Top secret. Your top admirals shouldn’t know these things, but you want us to put our crews in harm’s way. Damn it, Jish!” Sul stood, a vein throbbing on his forehead.
“Sit down!” Jish stood as well, the command coming out louder than intended. It was worth the look of surprise over her subordinate’s face. “May I finish?”
Sul sat down, cowed. “Yes, ma’am.”
“The drone goes in, we survey the situation. If they’re indeed attacking, we can have part of our Fleet there in minutes. Two of the carriers are fitted with the Shift drive, and we’ll bring a full regiment of fighters.” This caused a series of questions from the three admirals, and Jish sat back. She didn’t tell them most of the fighters would be full of new recruits from around the system. They wouldn’t want her to throw their lives away like that, especially Helina. Truth was, Jish couldn’t afford to lose her best right off the bat, especially if it became a full-fledged war.
If the aliens came to stay, they’d be here for at least thirty years. The war was going to be a long one.
“One at a time,” Jish said, feeling a headache form behind her eyes. She set to answering their queries with as little truth as she could give them.
Flint
“Do you seriously believe they’re still there? What do you know about the colony?” Flint asked.
Benson didn’t even need to answer. The look on his face said it all. “Nothing. We know nothing. Two thousand left in the colony vessel, and they had enough supplies to survive and thrive, as long as our readings of the world were accurate.”
“I’m struggling to believe any of this. You’re saying one probe gave you readouts of a world on the other side of this Rift, and you sent a colony ship there. Just what was the world like, and what makes you think it’s not next door to the Watchers’ world? Or that they’re one and the same?” Flint asked.
“Yes. You’re correct about that. We’re guessing they’re still over there. For all we know, they’re dead.” Benson’s honesty surprised Flint.
“But you still want to risk a crew’s life to check?” Kat asked, stealing the line from the tip of Flint’s tongue.
“We have to. That’s two thousand lives, from sixty years ago,” Benson said.
“What are you? You don’t seem like Fleet,” Flint said. He’d seen a lot of Fleet over the year, and this man had an air of authority, but different from an officer.
Benson grinned. “I’m not Fleet, per se.”
Flint was getting tired of the runaround. “And just who is the benefactor?”
“Are you going to accept the job?” Benson asked.
Flint considered the small amount of information he’d been given, mixed with the openness of this Benson character and the armed guards outside, and he didn’t feel like he had a choice. Kat was looking at Benson fearfully, not hiding her emotions well.
“Do I have a choice?” Flint asked, arms crossed over his chest in false bravado.
“I like to say that as humans, we always have a choice. Flint, you served your Earth. Why did you join?” Benson asked.
Flint was annoyed at the man’s inability to answer a question simply. “It wasn’t for the food, I’ll tell you that much.” When his joke didn’t strike Benson, he continued. “I saw a need, and an out for myself. My parents worked their asses off their whole lives and ended up on the tail end of a terrorist attack in Old Boston. I was twenty, working two jobs and trying to get by, and was giving a portion of my meager earnings to them every week.
“When they were gone, I was so angry, but what was a kid cutting down boxes at a factory going to do? I did the jobs robots were too valuable for. If that isn’t glamorous, I don’t know what is. I got drunk with some older coworkers one day after work and saw an enlistment poster. You know, the ones that were everywhere… I guess, after the last time the Watchers came through. Now it makes sense. It was ten years after that, but the recruiting was still in full flow.” Flint noticed Benson didn’t say anything or even blink; he was just sit
ting there like a stone, listening.
Flint glanced over at Kat, who didn’t even know all of this. Her parents had been killed in the same attack, only she was much younger. Flint had found her after he’d deserted the Fleet at a ground zero monument in Old Boston. She was listening with rapt attention. “I applied, got right in without so much as a physical, and the rest is history. Served for ten years.”
“Did you ever seek revenge against those that killed your parents?” Benson asked, and Flint was sure he already knew the answer.
“No. I never did learn who was behind it, and even if I had, I was out in space for most of my tenure. It’s amazing how that anger led to something that would change my life, yet the original reason for joining slipped between my fingers so quickly.” Flint didn’t want this to be a trip down memory lane, and he didn’t know why he was being so open about the past he liked to keep close to his chest.
Benson’s face held a grimace, like he’d just swallowed a lemon. “I know who did it. The group was left alone by the Fleet, because in order to demand so much tax money from Earth and the colonies, they need rivalries. If there was no conflict, how could they justify these huge fleets? Once or twice a year, they fabricate attacks, just so everyone remembers the Earth Fleet’s value.”
Flint fought the urge to stand up in shock. Instead, he stayed as calm as his flushed body would allow. He’d always hated the Earth Fleet, but hearing this just reiterated his gut feelings. “Who are they?” The words came out in a hardly-audible groan.
“Some small militant group from overseas. They’re responsible for at least five such attacks, each funded and planned by the Fleet,” Benson said.
Flint felt like his chair was slipping out from under him. The walls began to close in on him, the ceiling was falling. He blinked, cleared his throat, and opened his eyes to see the room back to normal. His head was pounding now, harder with each fast pulse of his heart. “What are you offering?”
“Pilot our ship. I’ll tell you who the benefactor is, and he’s promised me he can destroy the militant group with a snap of his fingers. For you, Mr. Lancaster.” Benson made the offer, and Flint didn’t hesitate.
“We’ll do it.”
“We will?” Kat asked, and Flint nodded curtly.
“We will. Make the call. Kill them,” Flint said, and Benson nodded. “Don’t you see, Kat? We can have our revenge after all.” They both knew the attackers were still out there, and had only spoken of it one long night on Mars, each of them too far into their cups to remember what they said the next day.
“Very well. The man we all now work for is Councilman Jarden Fairbanks,” Benson said, standing up and ushering them from the room. “We’ll reconvene in a couple hours. If you don’t mind, I’d like you to stay with us here at the dome until it’s time to leave.”
Flint shouldn’t have been surprised at the name thrown at him. Fairbanks had been in the video from sixty years ago. He’d be very old, but a man with this much wealth wouldn’t have a problem affording the life extenders becoming so popular among the well-off.
“No problem. We’ll be safer here. We’ll just need our things,” Flint said.
Blinky appeared behind them. “Sir, we’ve already picked up your things. They are in your rooms. I’ll show you the way.”
Benson was already down the hall, leaving Kat and Flint alone with Blinky. Kat looked worried. “Flint, did you hear that? Fairbanks? I don’t think it was a fluke that we found those videos, do you?”
Flint shook his head. “No, I don’t. I also don’t think Clark being taken away, or the Fleet finding us, was just happenstance either. We’ve been played. I’m sorry you got dragged into this.”
Kat’s eyes shone brightly. “You know I have nowhere else to be. We’ve been getting tired of the smuggling game anyway.”
Flint smiled at her. “You have a nice outlook on life, kid. Glad to have you with me. If we’re going to be invaded, I’d rather risk it and see what’s on the other side.”
“So would I.” Kat stayed at his side as they walked down the hall, following Blinky to their rooms.
19
Ace
Ace woke from a deep sleep. Every day had been the same for the last week. Up at five in the morning, four hours in the simulator, then eight in the actual cockpit, training in real space. He was getting accustomed to his EFF-17 vessel, and using the same model every day helped. He could see how a pilot would get attached to his own ship. After only a hundred hours in his own, he was already beginning to form that bond with the inanimate object.
He’d only seen Serina twice in the last week, but other than a series of meals sprinkled into the day, they were both training. Ace rolled onto his back, staring at the ceiling, and considered how far he’d come in such a short time. He’d done it. He’d actually made the Earth Fleet. If only he could show himself, at his lowest, what he’d become, his nights in the cold outdoors would have felt a little less desperate. A little.
Today was the day they left the moon base to head out to some classified location. The new recruits weren’t being told anything but a time and place to be ready. Ace would be traveling with the other pilot recruits and their ships on an EFC-02.
The whole thing felt off, and even the lieutenants and the rest of the local officers were acting like it was bizarre protocol. Ace wasn’t going to argue with anyone. No one had called him out on faking Edgar Smith, and for that, he was grateful. The farther from Earth and Old Chicago he could get, the more he felt he could rest easy.
Packing up his meager belongings, Ace checked his uniform’s breast pocket to find the ace of clubs where he always left it. He patted it and grabbed his bag before heading to the hangar. From there, they’d fly to the carrier in orbit and be off.
“Ace, am I ever glad to see you,” a familiar voice said in the hall behind him. The base was in a sort of organized chaos at the moment, and he spotted Buck weaving through a few groups of full-time workers. Most of the Fleet boot camp operators were staying put, and Ace heard a rumor that another batch of recruits was scheduled to arrive the next day. They were churning through them quickly. Something big must be going on.
“Buck, likewise.” Ace slowed and stepped to the side, letting his friend catch up. “Where do you think we’re going? Have you heard anything?”
“Nope. I’ve asked a few people, but it’s a surprise to everyone. I’m excited but nervous, if that makes sense,” Buck said.
“That’s exactly how I feel.” Ace kept moving, amazed at how many people were heading toward the hangar.
They entered the large, noisy room. “I’m heading up in a transport ship. See you on the carrier?”
Ace shook his hand, and they ended it in a quick hug. “You got it. Thanks for everything, Buck.”
“We’ll see each other in a few hours,” Buck said with a shrug.
“I know. It’ll just be different than at camp. Just… thanks.”
“I didn’t do anything. See you on the other side, Ace.” And Buck was off, heading for the large transport ship with his pack slung over his shoulder. Ace moved toward his fighter and saw the other squadron members already there. Onion was noticeably missing.
As Ace marched toward them, he raised a hand in greeting and was nearly knocked down as a large body stepped in front of his path. It was Ceda, the tall goon he kept seeing around. “What’s your problem?”
Ceda and his wide friend had infantry patches on their uniforms, and Ace noticed Buck stopping across the room to watch the emerging conflict. “We don’t have a problem, Edgar.” Ceda said the name with a stupid grin and nudged his buddy with an elbow.
“Then do you mind? I have somewhere to be.” Ace tried to move around him, but the thug put a thick hand on his chest.
“Not so quick,” he whispered in Ace’s ear. “I looked you up, you know… to see how a sniveling turd like you made it into the Fleet. I did a search on your name, and found a few Edgar Smiths from Old Chicago. None of them were y
ou. What I did find was one who was bragging to his friends about joining the Fleet just before we came. That Edgar Smith wasn’t you. You almost had them fooled, didn’t you?”
Ace’s throat tightened, and his brain quickly juggled between his fight or flight responses. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He shoved the thug and kept moving, but the guys started to follow him. Ace’s heart was bashing around inside his ribcage, threatening to jump out, when an announcement came over the hangar’s speakers: All infantry to their transport now. Ship leaves in T-minus two minutes.
“This isn’t over, pipsqueak,” Ceda said, shouting over the voices around them.
Ace didn’t look back as he picked up speed and arrived at his fighter.
Wren
Wren stared out at the impressive view from her hotel’s rooftop lounge. From here, she could see hundreds of liquid methane lakes among the craters and hills. It truly was beautiful, even though it was so deadly. This was why humans risked so much to build out here. Saturn hung large in the sky at the moment, over the dome. It was glorious and ominous at the same time.
They were almost alone in the dining room, and Wren felt out of place with her android sitting across from her at the table while the few other guests kept theirs standing in a group in the corner of the room.
“Should I go join them?” Charles asked softly.
She shook her head. Charles wasn’t like those other androids, and she wouldn’t treat him like a piece of metal. Clearly something revolutionary had happened in his production, because he was different.
Rift Page 17
