A Deadly Game
#14 of The Odds Against
Alrighty, the first of the next two chapters of The Odds against is finally ready for submission. I hope you enjoy it.
As always, comments are apprecaited and requested.
continued from 'Vacation on Corallis...
11-11-3015
Time Index; 0800 hours GST
Corallis 2, Planetary grid N17
Corallis system, Terran border space
Staring up at the smooth cloth surface of the tent above my head, I smiled, listening to the rain that was starting to fall as it pattered on our roof. The last two days had been unforgettable. In all honesty, we should have started looking at the data we had gathered yesterday, and we had given it an honest shot, even going so far as to fetch the computers we had brought, setting them up in a corner of the tent around a holographic projector. But that had been about twenty hours ago and the computers remained off, unused. Every time either of us had edged into the subject, we had found some excuse not to get to it. We weren't trying to be lazy, not really, but it felt almost like if we acknowledged that we had work to do, it would signal the beginning of the end for our vacation, and that was something we were trying very hard to avoid. If it had been remotely possible, I would have chosen to remain here with Katy, and let the galaxy fall apart around us as it would. Every moment I was with her, I could forget the war, forget the bad memories, even forget the Conclave and all it had done. But it was more than that too.
It was the ultimate joy to psychics to be able to be so free, to have no barriers between us. With no need to protect our minds from others around us, we shared thoughts and memories at a pace that was almost dizzying, thoughts that had nothing to do with the problems we faced out in the galaxy. There had been no need for speech, the wordless communication of psychic thought more than enough. We had explored each other's recollections of our home world in our childhoods, and the fond memories of our days at our respective military academies. As it turned out, there had been times when we had literally been within a few dozen meters of each other on Arc, though we had never known it. But most importantly, we had shared our thoughts on the future, not the immediate future, but further off, when peace reigned once more. We were both so tired of fighting that it went without saying that we would call it a career when the war ended. What was more, though we were sure that neither nation would be particularly accepting of our relationship, especially since it had begun in the height of the conflict between them, we promised each other that we would find a way to make a life together. We had even shared a laugh over something that had slipped my mind entirely, though it did bear consideration when Katy brought it up.
That subject, of course, was marriage. Among the Merxians, the concept didn't even exist, the bio-bond that formed between mates making it redundant. And truthfully, since we already shared the mate bond, it had seemed to me that we were long past the point where words and vows would mean anything. We shared a bond that was deeper and far more meaningful than that would ever be. Still, as funny as it was, Katy was the one who thought it would be a good idea, the attractiveness of a grand ceremony impossible to hide in our joined state. And knowing that it would make her happy was more than enough reason for me to want the same thing, feeble though the wedding vows seemed.
But no matter the subject we had discussed, there was this overall feeling of warmth, of love and affection that filled the background of our minds, which seemed almost to make the world glow around us. Everything seemed pleasant now. And when the nights had fallen, we had slept curled up together, holding each other close, our linked minds sharing each other's dreams. When we had first become mates, on that far off moon orbiting our home planet, I hadn't appreciated just what it had meant to me to wake up to her, not as I should have at any rate, but I was making up for it now. Opening my eyes to find her in my arms, to feel the touch of her thoughts even while asleep, was beyond description, something that brought almost physical pain when I considered that it would be gone when we left here. But I didn't think on that much. Here, now, was all that mattered, the rest of my life seeming to be on hold.
But as I lay there this evening (for evening it was on this part of the planet), my mate fast asleep with her head on my chest, I found my wandering thoughts settling on a subject that had been lurking in the back of my mind for a while, a series of questions that I couldn't seem to answer, no matter how hard I had tried. Thinking about my childhood on Arc had made the subject come back, and since I didn't have anything else to do, I thought about it. The first question, one that I knew I would never get an answer to, no matter how long I had thought about it, was whether we even would have met if the war hadn't started. I liked to imagine that we would have, seeing how close we had dwelled to one another on Arc, but to what end? Before the war, most, if not all, Terrans wouldn't have accepted a relationship like ours, not that there was much chance that they would now either. So, in a way, the war had given us a chance that we would never have had before and for that I felt immensely grateful.
After musing over that subject for a little while, I had considered how losing my home and my family had affected me. True, I had been living on Silvermoon for eight years before the colony was destroyed, but it was still my home, I was still a proud son of Arc. I had read stories of old Terra, before we had colonized other planets, how many people hadn't cared where they were from, and had moved around a lot, trying to find a place they liked, forgetting about where they had come from. The only people now who were like that were the ones who were born in space, not on a planet, since they had no home to identify with. But planetary pride was engrained in every other Terran, a pride that gave us something to identify with, a people to whom we belonged. From Terra to Ardus, the farthest flung colony in the Federation, everyone had a people. And losing my home the way I did had made me, and practically every other Archen, so angry that we had gladly marched to war, enlisting in droves. Our pride had only gotten stronger with the loss of our home, setting us apart from every other Terran. No soldier fought harder or fiercer than us, though some, like me, who had lost all of our kin as well as our world, had become so cold that we showed almost no emotion, becoming so ruthless that we killed without question. It had taken falling in love with Katy for me to warm up again, to lose that ruthless nature. And being snapped out of the deep-seated pain had made me realize something else, something I had never really considered before, and that was the subject that was occupying my mind at the moment.
The question had sort of gotten overlooked in our search for information about the Conclave, and really, in the grand scheme of things, it probably wasn't important, but now that I had put most of the details of my life on hold, it had at last occurred to me. Setting aside the question of how it had been done, the question I wanted answered most right then, was why. Why had the Conclave targeted Arc of all places? Even though Arc had little strategic value, it had had a good sized garrison of Marines, supplemented by a Colonial Defense Corps that was larger than most colony worlds of its size. There had to have been easier targets, and if the Conclave's only goal had been to start a war, then destroying any colony world would have done the job.
"What are you thinking about?" Katy asked quietly, speaking the first words we had shared in days and I looked down, startled. She had obviously awoken, her beautiful eyes open, though she hadn't moved from her position. "Your mind is closed to me again."
"Sorry." I said, smiling again and dissolving the barrier that my mind had unconsciously put in place between us. When our minds were in contact once more, I allowed her to see what had bothered me so much. Speaking with my mind, I continued my thought process. 'I mean, there had to have been a reason why they picked Arc over other planets. Our home world was only barely in the border region between the Alliance and the Federation.'
'You're right.' Katy replied, idly tracing the outline of one my dog tags with a claw tip, making me shiver. 'Well, maybe it is just because there were so many Merxians living there at the time. I mean, if I understand the political climate of the time, neither my people, nor yours, would have been too happy with the idea.'
'It can't be just because of that.' I answered, stroking a hand along her spine in reply to her gentle caress. 'Every border world in both nations had people from the other living on it before the war. Maybe not to the extent of Arc, but still.'
'Maybe so.' Katy said, nuzzling under my chin. 'The question I wonder about is how they pulled off the attack in the first place, without anyone knowing about it.'
'Mercenaries would be my guess.' I answered, 'The galaxy is full of them. With all the financial resources that the Conclave has, they could easily have hired enough to wipe out our world. Then, all they would have to have is a few people in the right places.'
'Members of the media, to hype up the issues and inflame public opinion, make people forget the inconsistencies,' Katy said, continuing my thought, 'A few high ranking officers to hide any evidence from the rest of the military...'
'And really, all it would take is one member of the Executive Council to propose war. In that sort of climate, it would have been easy.' I finished for her and she nodded. And then, a thought suddenly flitted across the gap between us from somewhere in her mind, a thought that hadn't occurred to either of us before.
'To what end, though? Why did they want a war in the first place?' Katy asked and I shook my head, realizing that that was a good question.
'Money maybe?' I proposed, thinking about the businessmen among the Conclave, like Jack MacArthur, my father's business partner. 'War is big business for a lot of companies.'
"I guess.' My mate replied, the impressions from her mind doubtful, 'Though soldiers, even flag officers, don't see much more money, even on combat duty.'
'True.' I replied, then a thought occurred to me, a detail that wasn't mentioned much anymore, it having been forgotten in the grind of war. 'Maybe it is simpler than that for the members of the military. I don't know how it is in the Alliance military, but when the Federation is at peace, Terran officers who don't get promoted are forced out of the service, and promotion is pretty rare in peacetime. But in war, we need everyone we can get, and promotions tend to be quick.'
'Fair point.' Katy acknowledged and we both shared images of vainglorious officers we had known, to whom promotion was everything and glory was all they desired, often getting themselves and many others killed in its pursuit. But then, I saw the image of what looked like a financial balance sheet flit through her mind and she frowned. At my questioning thought, she explained the presence of the image in her mind. 'I found something in the military archives that puzzles me a bit.' Then, even as she explained it, I saw the crest of the Merxian Internal Security Service in her mind, followed by the names of a half dozen corporations, none of which answered my question. 'I found a trail of money from a number of corporations within the Alliance that have ties to the Conclave, or so I suspect.' As she said that, she pushed herself up on her side, resting her head on one hand. 'They were all funneling money into an anti-Terran organization within the Alliance, an organization that is led by the governor of Koraius 3, one of our border colonies. I am sure I don't have to tell you that such organizations are common, but what struck me as odd is that if the Conclave is supporting it, then why are they working with Terrans? And more, why attack Arc when there were so many Merxians there?'
'Good question.' I said, then a possible solution came to me and I felt agreement pour across our link. 'It doesn't make any sense, unless the Conclave is set up in a compartmentalized way. Like a resistance cell network.'
'The members of each cell don't know the members of any other.' Katy continued. 'Only the highest ranks of leadership know everyone.'
'And they might have used Koraius as a staging point for the attack.' I proposed, admiring my mate as she lounged beside me. 'How widespread was the knowledge that Merxian refugees were settling on Arc?'
'Not very.' She answered, nodding as my train of thought passed before her mind's eye. 'The governor probably didn't know that the attack was going to kill Merxians too. He might just have thought that it was a wholly Terran colony that would be destroyed.'
'Hmmm...' I said, nodding in turn. 'You know, if the Conclave is set up the way we think it is, all we would have to do is locate the leaders, and the network shatters.'
'Perhaps.' She agreed, a wan smile coming to her lips. 'I guess we will have to get to work today after all...'
***
11-11-3015
Time Index; 1340 hours GST
TFV Battleship Endeavor
Asgard system, Terran space
Dr. Taggart walked through the door to her office just off the sprawling infirmary of the battleship and froze, one eyebrow raising when she saw Dr. Lochland sitting behind her desk, holographic DNA displayed before him on one display, what looked like research notes on another. She had invited the geneticist to come aboard the battleship during its refit so that he could have access to General Cramer's med scan history almost fifteen hours ago and it seemed like he hadn't left her office since he got aboard. But, though the data was backwards, she recognized the image he was looking at immediately.
"I seem to recall you saying that you had gone as far as you could with that scan." She said, walking around the desk to stand beside the scientist.
"So did I." He replied, leaning back in the chair, stroking his chin, his gaze narrowed. "I can't seem to put it away."
"Why not?" Taggart asked, looking at him in surprise. He seemed driven, almost obsessed with the recent scan of the General's DNA, where they had noticed the alterations that had been made.
"There is something about this that is intriguing." He replied, closing his eyes and rubbing them. "The more I look at it, the more I am sure that someone had a definite purpose for doing all this, but I cannot for the life of me figure out what it might have been. I mean, this is a masterful job of genetic engineering."
"What makes you say that?" Taggart asked, the statement catching her interest.
"Well its actually pretty simple to do genetic engineering, at least on a small scale." He said, "I mean, we do it all the time to correct errors or harmful mutations. But those are single genes. Something on this scale requires years and years of dedicated effort just to identify the genes that do what you are trying to do, much less genes that won't interfere with the host's functions. But this... this is more than just trying to combine traits from two species into a single individual. Its almost like whoever was doing this was trying to create something entirely new. And judging from the effects that these traits are showing, I think they succeeded."
"Go back a second, you lost me." Taggart said, not understanding what he meant. "What are you talking about?"
"Way back in our history, when humankind was just spreading beyond the confines of the Sol system, there were experiments conducted with genetic alterations for colonists, to allow them to adapt to new environments more quickly." Lochland explained, "But it was far more problematic than we thought it would be. Our bodies work the way they do because it evolved that way over millions of years, new genes taking generations to develop. Trying to speed up the process through artificial means resulted in numerous unfortunate deaths because the altered genes had other effects that ended up killing the host. And, because of the phenomenon of epigenetic shift, it turned out to be unnecessary anyway, and the research was abandoned. No one ever came back to it, at least, until now..."
Taggart nodded at that. Epigenetic shift was an odd occurrence that happened when a population was suddenly placed under extreme stresses, such as being suddenly placed on a wholly new planet. Instead of evolution taking centuries to occur, beneficial genes were selected for within a single generation, with new traits mutating much more rapidly to help each successive generation adapt. It therefore made pre-colonization engineering useless.
"This is a huge jump forward in the field." The Celdanian scientist continued, "If I had to guess, I would say that this was someone's life's work. The level of sophistication is staggering."
"So, someone is trying to get around evolution?" Taggart asked, but the response to her question was not what she expected. Instead of nodding absently, which was what he had done before when this deep in thought, the geneticist's eyes went suddenly wide and he straightened up in the chair, his fingers tapping the desktop in a quick rhythm. "What? What did I say?"
"I think..." he said, trailing off as he stood up, his eyes flicking back and forth as if seeing something she didn't. "I have to..." "Doctor, are you alright?" She asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. The scientist looked over at her without recognition, as if his mind were on autopilot.
"I have something to check on." He finally said, wandering out of her office as if he were in daze. For a few moments, Dr. Taggart stared after him in surprise, wondering what had gotten into him. Finally, she shut down the computer in her desk and hurried to follow after him. Whatever was happening, it was obviously important...
***
11-11-3015
Time Index; 2347 hours GST
MAS Medium troop transport Adaron
Colyon system, Merxian space
"Thank you captain. That will be all." Tyr said, returning the salute of one of his staff officers. When the officer had left his office, the coyote flopped down in his chair and let out sigh. As fulfilling as it was to hunt down the black marketeers who had hurt Katy, he would be glad when the job was done and his ship and troops could finally depart. Of course, that wasn't going to be exactly easy either, not like it would have been if all this hadn't happened. The bombshell that Katy had dropped on him still staggered him in its complexity. A conspiracy spanning the known galaxy that had manipulated the Alliance and the Federation into war sounded absolutely absurd, at least at first glance. He had been about to ask the medics to run a full psych work up on her when she had first told him about it. But then, as she had laid out her evidence, he had started to give the idea some serious thought. Of course, it was still a tough concept to swallow but he no longer doubted it. It all made a frightening kind of sense when you really thought about it.
Far tougher to accept was that Katy, one of his best friends, had taken it upon herself to start working with the enemy to root out the Conclave. And worse, he had agreed to help. He still couldn't believe that he had agreed to do that. He had been born on Horelon, one of the first colonies of the Alliance, and before the war had started, he hadn't even seen a Terran, and truth be told, he had never quite been comfortable with the idea that there were other races out there that were not part of the Alliance. Most of the Terrans would probably have said the same thing about him, but it went deeper than that. For the last two thousand years, the races of the Alliance had been united in purpose, living together in peace, no prejudice existing between their species. Since leaving Merxia to colonize the stars, there had been conflicts of course, as independently-minded colonists had striven to be free from the rule of other worlds, but the important thing, the thing that had preserved the Alliance through all the strife was that races had always worked together. Merxian society only worked because all the species were united and equal. There was therefore something fundamentally wrong about a single species thinking it was better than others, as the Terran Federation had seemed to believe in pursuing the war as long as they had.
And yet, Tyr had grown to respect the Terrans over the years. Despite lacking the heightened senses of the Merxians, they were remarkably resourceful. And their soldiers were universally ferocious and tough, rarely surrendering and only grudgingly giving ground. So, when Katy had told him about her Terran co-conspirator, he had been able to accept the idea. It didn't mean he had to like it. But there was something else as well, something that he was almost sure he had imagined. He was one of the few people who knew that Katy had been born outside the Alliance, on a Terran colony world. Since, by Merxian law, any member of the species' that made up the Alliance was a citizen, no one really had reason to suspect anything untoward about her world of origin, but Tyr had always felt that having grown up around Terrans made such Merxians different. It was just something in the way that they dealt with their enemy, more often showing mercy than 'true' Merxians did, for example. So perhaps that was all it had been, but he could have sworn that, just for a moment, when Katy was talking about her contact, there had been a fondness in her tone, something more than just respect...
"Colonel?" A voice asked and Tyr looked up, surprised. His orderly, a young Fox sergeant, was standing before his desk, a data pad in his hands.
"Yes?" Tyr said, straightening up in his chair. The sergeant held out the pad and Tyr took it with a nod. "What is this?"
"The report that you asked for about the black market material found on the station." The sergeant replied, standing with his hands folded at the small of his back. "Major Tor'sek just finished inventorying the stockpiles we have located so far. Lieutenant Karsk reports that the station is almost secure."
"Good, good." Tyr replied, scanning the list of materials. It was quite a haul, more than he had expected, and to judge from all the Terran merchandise, it was probably a black market hub, a place where goods were stored before being sent off to other locations. But, one item near the bottom of the list caught his eye and he cocked his head to the side in confusion. "Send for Major Tor'sek, I need to speak with him."
"Yes sir." The orderly replied, but he didn't leave right away. When Tyr saw that he was still standing there, he frowned.
"Was there something else, sergeant?" he asked and the fox hesitated, seeming almost nervous.
"Are you alright sir?" He asked, and Tyr managed a smile. "You have seemed distracted all day."
"I'm alright." Tyr replied, waving off his concerns. "I just have a lot on my mind is all. There seems to be no end to new problems these days. It can't be helped I suppose. Anyway, send for the major."
"Yes sir." The sergeant said, saluting before walking out of the room to look for Tyr's executive officer. When the enlisted man was gone, Tyr looked back at the list once more. The item that had disturbed him was marked as 'RD-86A, 1 case'. RD-86A was a very rare chemical, a chemical that had been created two decades ago in a Terran research lab. Soon after its creation, it had been banned by both the Terrans and the Merxians, and all stockpiles had been ordered destroyed. RD-86A was originally intended to be an artificial neurotransmitter that, if it had worked as it was supposed to, would have completely cured half a dozen neurological disorders. But it hadn't done what it was supposed to. Instead, it acted almost like a neurolytic pathogen, binding to neurons and preventing them from functioning, eventually killing them off. But the odd thing about it, the reason why it had been destroyed and the formula classified, was which nerves it targeted. For a reason that was still unclear, it seemed to target pain receptors first, and only then moved on to the rest of the brain. In even very small doses, it was capable of permanently removing a person's ability to feel pain within seconds.
While that might have seemed like a useful effect to some people, a matter of hours after injection, even the tiniest effective dose migrates into the reasoning part of the brain and begins to kill off the neurons there as well, essentially making the subject lose their mind before finally dying. There had been talk that, with the outbreak of war, the Federation had considered manufacturing it once more to be used as a chemical weapon. In an enclosed space, like a ship or a space station for example, even a single vial could be devastating. If the case was full, then the black market had been in the process of trading a hundred times that amount. Hearing foot steps outside his office, the coyote set the pad on his desk and sat back in thought. Moments later, the door slid open once again and the huge form of Tyr's XO filled the doorway.
Major Larn Tor'sek was one of the largest people that Tyr had ever met. He was a wolf, with jet black fur and bright, almost glowing orange eyes. Standing at almost seven feet tall, he towered over the entire battalion. What was more, he was hugely strong, his muscle mass exceeding most soldiers' entire weight. When they had first met, when Tyr transferred to the Rangers, Tor'sek had been a Senior Sergeant who had just earned a battlefield commission and the Order of Merxia, the highest award for valor in the Alliance, for saving his entire platoon. He had done it by performing an insane, one man charge on an enemy infantry support vehicle and flipped it over onto its side with only his powerful arms while its crew, too stunned to react, had still been inside it. But perhaps the oddest thing about him was that, while he was a ferocious fighter almost completely lacking in fear, he was also one of the nicest individuals when not in battle, someone to whom anyone could take their problems to for help. Tyr was happy to have him as his second in command for both traits, and he was seriously considering bringing him into the fight against the Conclave, but they had more immediate concerns at the moment.
"You wanted to see me Colonel?" Tor'sek asked, his deep bass voice shaking the table top.
"Did you really find an entire case of RD-86A on the station?" Tyr asked, startling the orderly, though the sergeant was too professional to do much more than raise his eyebrows.
"Yes sir." the huge Major replied, nodding as he adjusted the strap of his personal weapon across his chest. Most officers carried an assault rifle, or a carbine into battle, their light weight preferable to heavier weapons. Larn carried a heavy squad support machine gun, a weapon that most people had to kneel down to use at all; most only used it when resting it on a piece of cover. Tyr had seen his XO empty whole magazines while holding it one handed, standing up, like it weighed nothing at all. "One hundred vials, all sealed in a shock mounted case."
"Damn." Tyr said, getting to his feet and snatching up his assault rifle from the stand next to his chair. "They actually went ahead with it. Come on, we have to track down the source, and fast."
"Right behind you sir." The huge wolf stated, following behind his CO as he led the way off the ship, a squad of Rangers falling in behind them as they walked...