Far From Home, page 22
Crondak wondered how things might have been different if he hadn’t betrayed Erva. Turning the people on him hadn’t been all that hard. They were desperate for change of any type. Most of them weren’t smart enough to consider the future beyond the next day. Sowing chaos amongst them proved a simple matter.
A few words here about shortened rations, a little fabricated evidence showing Erva took more, and the inmates snapped. Though it shouldn’t have been a surprise. Criminals didn’t live by a code of honor. Many of those who didn’t belong there hadn’t lasted more than a few months.
Disease, animals, and despair took them. The latter manifested through suicide. Harder criminals looked at that as a boon. Meant more food for them. Of course, those who killed themselves tended to be the smarter people. The ones that could’ve helped the settlement the most.
Crondak believed himself capable of taking his fair share, but he grew tired of the regimented lifestyle Erva created for them. The consistency bored him. All the rules felt stifling, like a real prison. If there weren’t guards, there should have been chaos. Violence, abuse… an environment where only the strong prevailed.
Though sitting on the shuttle, he saw the error in his judgment. His desperation for change didn’t have a chance of succeeding. Even if the Olarins hadn’t come to kill them all, the inmates would’ve done the work for them. Everything they had became fair game for outcast scavengers.
Not that there’s anything left down there.
When they arrived at the ship, two soldiers dragged Crondak to a room. He was sedated, forcibly bathed, and garbed in a new prisoner’s tunic and pants. When he came out of his drug addled daze, he found himself bound up in an interrogation room. Hands clasped in front of him, secured to a hoop on the surface.
At least the gag was gone though. His jaw ached from having it in so long.
A man entered wearing a Primus insignia. He was tall, pale, with brown hair and brown eyes. The look of disdain on his face made Crondak try to sit up straight, to show some dignity under that gaze. His bindings made such an act of defiance impossible, so he continued to slouch, looking miserable.
“I am Primus Kayra Zaal.” The man sat. “We know who you are. Your identity has been confirmed. The last ship to come to this pathetic planet put you down as the second administrator of the prisoner’s settlement. As if you rabble could have anything resembling honest structure.”
“Say what you want,” Crondak replied, “but it worked.”
“Do you know why you’re still alive?”
“Because Erva escaped?” Crondak asked. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t have any value.”
“You don’t have any value regardless, creature.” Kayra sneered. “You need to tell me everything you know about those people. Your leader fled with others. One of them managed to breach the security of the sentinel. I want to know how. Furthermore, I need to know where they might be going.”
“Mezani,” Crondak said. “He’s like me though with bigger ears. One of your fleets employed him as a technical engineer. I don’t know how he ended up on Lakon, but he’s the one who managed to breach your security. You’ll have to check your database for any other information about him.”
“That’s one,” Kayra said, “what about the flippant person?”
“Could be anyone,” Crondak said, “but there were two newcomers we put through the arena. Nitha was the girl’s name, though I didn’t get her family. She had a bounty on her head from what I heard. Something the Guild wanted to collect. They were taking her back to you people from what I understand.”
“I’ll look into it,” Kayra replied. “Before you go on, what Guild crashed on the surface? Do you know? Did you find evidence?”
“Dalona,” Crondak said.
“How are you so sure?”
“The markings on the ship. I saw them when we went to salvage the operation.”
“I see.” Kayra frowned. “Galti Dalona should’ve known better… well. Okay, that’s the important part. Now, give me the rest. Who was the male. The one with so much attitude. I’d like his name.”
“Seth Levy,” Crondak said. “Some kind of other species. I don’t remember which. Not an Olarin, that’s for sure. I think he’s from one of the less advanced planets. They might not even know about us, kind of oblivious.”
“And he was on the Guild ship?”
Crondak nodded. “It was a zoo run.”
Kayra pinched the bridge of his nose. “Of course it was.”
“He’s tough. Fought well. I don’t know how they train the people where he comes from, but he definitely gave as good as he got.”
“I don’t need your assessment, creature,” Kayra snapped. “Speak when I ask you a question. Where would they go?”
“I’m afraid I have no idea.”
“Don’t trifle with me.”
“I swear!” Crondak shouted. “Seriously, no one bothered to talk about where they might go because escape was supposed to be impossible! The fact he broke through the codes on the sentinel is a total fluke! Then had the means to get up there? I doubt they have a clue, to be honest! I’m sure they just fled to somewhere that wasn’t here.”
Kayra nodded. “I believe I have everything I need from you.”
“What’re you going to do? Will I be sent back to Lakon?” Crondak pulled at the bonds holding him to the table. “Will you let me go?”
“In a manner of speaking.” Kayra stood. He stepped over to the guard then rested his hand on the man’s shoulder. “Go ahead.”
“What?” Crondak began to struggle, yanking at his chains. “But I’ve got more! I can tell you many more things! I could probably track Erva if you give me half a chance! You need someone like me that can get into places you can’t… one of those people was with the rebellion!”
“Hold on,” Kayra said. “Which one?”
“Nitha!” Crondak shouted. “And another guy, but he got killed in the arena. He came to us with a box. Something he got off an Olarin station recently. Maybe look at what was stolen! I can help you get it back! I swear, just please don’t kill me! I can be of value to you. Just give me a chance.”
“We’ll check your information,” Kayra said, “and have another conversation. Or not. It depends on what I find.” He nodded to the guard. “You will remain here until your fate has been decided. Congratulations, creature. You’ve bought yourself a few more hours of breathing. I commend your self-preservation.”
Kayra and the guard left him alone. Crondak slumped in the chair, struggling to breathe. That was so close! He prayed they listened to him, that they believed he would be their only chance to find the others. I hope Albon wasn’t lying or they’ll just come in here and shoot me! The thought filled him with dread.
Please find some good information. Crondak closed his eyes and did something he hadn’t even considered in several years. He prayed.
***
Kayra left the room then headed toward the bridge. He hadn’t dealt with the rebellion personally in a while. Rumors bounced around the military, stories about how some of his peers hounded the soldiers to the ends of the galaxy. Some even went so far as to suggest they had defeated the resistance.
The truth probably lived somewhere in the middle.
Olarins had a hard time admitting defeat. They hid it behind falsehoods and bravado, telling the public one thing while pretending the real event never took place. The administration’s publicity network controlled all the narratives. They might have lied all the time. There was no way to be sure.
Not without having been at the site when the event happened. Other members of the Primus community refused to talk about some of their missions. After so much bragging and bluster, those were the ones that came into question. Calling something classified only went so far before it became lies.
If the rebellion managed to steal something from one of our stations, then they are clearly not the minimal threat I’ve been led to believe. Stealing the sentinel might’ve been part of their plan. How would they know about the technical genius on Lokan? No one would risk their lives being shot down by that thing.
Kayra fended off a spiral of paranoia. Too many questions. I don’t know who to turn to for answers either. Maybe capturing the sentinel would remedy the situation. I can bring them to justice, then discover what they know about the rebellion. But he needed to be cautious. Too much knowledge might land him in trouble with his superiors.
If Hendo even knows about this. He may not have anything to do with operational command against the rebels. Otherwise, why not assign Kayra to fight in some of those battles? He represented a senior primus amongst the others. Maybe Reilin’s father spoke on my behalf. Convinced him not to.
Kayra entered the bridge. Hazh and Vihda both stood. They seemed nervous. “At ease. I need information. The creature stated a rebel was shot down in the first ship. They had some kind of data box stolen from a space station. It must’ve been near to this planet. Hopefully, they won’t have been able to cover this up yet.”
“I’ll look, sir,” Vihda replied. He took a seat.
“I’ve let the thing live long enough to corroborate its story. It may have some value, though I’m not entirely convinced. I’d like to know what shady behavior landed it on the planet and why it wasn’t executed.” Kayra sighed. I need to reach out to Reilin. I’m going to be late getting home.
“Confirmation,” Vihda said. “A distress call went out from one of our stations housing a survey crew. They claim they had some kind of catastrophic failure in one of the modules. A storage container. According to the manifest, they weren’t keeping anything there that could’ve caused this much damage so… I’m doubtful.”
Kayra nodded. “They’re a survey crew. What were they working on?”
“Sir?” Hazh turned in his seat. “That’s generally a code for a black operation. Military intelligence, I believe.”
“Really.” Kayra frowned. Why didn’t I know that? Hazh had his ear to the ground when it came to nuances of military operation. There was a reason he claimed his position. “So the rebels stole something from military intelligence.” He clicked his tongue. “Can we reach them via comm?”
“Yes, sir.” Vihda nodded. “Solid comm buoy at both locations.”
“Get me in touch with them. I’ll take it in my office to save them any real embarrassment.” Kayra left the bridge, hurrying down to his personal space. He locked the door behind him before taking a seat at the desk. The computer came to life as soon as it detected his presence.
An older man appeared on the screen, crags on his forehead and under his eyes. What little hair he had left stuck up on top of his head. Steely gray eyes narrowed when he saw Kayra. They’d never met before, which meant a good amount of suspicion lived between them. And it wouldn’t be dispelled after a brief conversation.
“My name is Primus Kayra Zaal. I’m contacting you about the complication with your storage module.”
“I’m Centuri Gaul Mesch. This seems somewhat beneath your station to contact us about such a trivial matter.”
“I don’t think it is,” Kayra replied, “pretty sure you’re a black ops site and you’ve been compromised.” He held up his hand when the man scowled. “Don’t act like that. I have good reason to keep my suspicion quiet. I believe I have a lead on what you lost. If you don’t mind telling me what it is, I’ll prioritize its return.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Then I guess it’ll be lost.” Kayra lifted his shoulders. “The choice is yours.”
“What’s your good reason?”
“I can’t tell you or I would no longer have a reason to do what I’m doing.” Kayra sighed. “I know why you might be cagey. The embarrassment of a rebel unit coming into your station—”
“Two men,” Gaul interrupted. “Just two.”
“What?”
“Two men came into the station. They broke through our security, stole a data box, and one of them got out. The other is dead. My men were overzealous, which cost me an interrogation. I had no idea where that box was, nor did I have a clue how to find it. If you can do so, then I may be willing to trust you.”
“I’ll be honest,” Kayra said, “you don’t have a choice. I’m going to find the box and return it to you. I’ll clean up multiple messes then we can both go on with whatever we have to do. Just tell me what was on it. You know they may have stolen other versions, and I’m sure you’re only concerned about yours.”
“Information suppression,” Gaul replied. He looked away as he spoke. “Concerning genocide on one of the outer worlds. A primus received orders to end everyone on the planet. They complied with the order. Satellites recorded the event. That information was sent to us to determine propaganda value.”
“Are you serious? Of destroying the population of an entire world? What was the charge?”
“Sedition,” Gaul said. “They’d been accused of harboring and aiding the rebels.”
“So we killed them all?” Kayra shook his head. “I’m not sure what bothers me more about this. The fact we did it or that someone thought there might be value in reporting it. What direction did the publicity administration lean?”
“The information was to be excised.”
“And why hadn’t it been? This is highly volatile data.”
Gaul scowled. “We have a considerable backlog, sir! We do our best with the time we’re given and if—”
“Don’t. Just don’t. I’m not interested in some ill-advised complaint about staffing when you’re looking at a piece of information leaking that could rally more worlds to the rebel cause.” Kayra fumed for a moment before continuing. “What’re they doing with the world now that the population has been erased?”
“The Guild is bidding on it.”
“Of course they are.” Kayra saw a possible plot. One of the Guilds may have gotten together with a military contact to wipe out the population, whether they were guilty or not. Then, they put in a top bid for the resources and swept in, stripping the place for everything of value. Meaning we’re complicit in a scheme that cost millions of lives.
“Will you take back the box?”
“If at all possible,” Kayra said, “yes. I’ll do everything in my power to retrieve this. I must say, Centuri Gaul, I would expect such a piece of information to be destroyed by you personally upon receiving word to do so. The fact you didn’t calls serious question to your judgment in the first place.”
“I’ve already told you—”
“Yes, yes. You’re just too busy. How would you feel if that got out? Who do you think would take the blame for the revelations on that device?” Kayra smirked. “Yes, I see by your blank look you’re well aware.”
“What was I supposed to do?” Gaul asked. “Who could I turn to without revealing what happened?”
“Make more friends, Centuri. You’re going to need them. Now, and in the future. If you have one.” Kayra killed the connection. He leaned back in his chair, turning to stare out the window. Reveal yourselves, you rebel scum. He had a lot to think about in the next few hours while they waited.
The restoration of some order on Lakon. The fate of Crondak, the miserable beast locked up in a cell. How he might save face in light of what happened while still providing Hendo with what he wanted. Tracking down the sentinel before it became a problem for other Olarin ships.
And the capture of the man named Seth Levy. I want to look him in the eye before he dies. He looked forward to their next and final meeting. It would come soon.
Epilogue
Seth sat stiff in his chair as the viewscreen faded to black. He heard Erva scream and clap his hands, really carrying on somewhere else in the ship. Nitha joined him. Mezani clapped him on the shoulder, making a strange ticking sound with his mouth the whole time. His furry paw felt strange on Seth’s bare skin.
“So… we made it?” Seth asked. “Is that it then? We’re… in warp?”
“Yes!” Mezani cried. “We made it! We’re free!” He turned, shouting down the hall, “See that? I told you, Erva! I told you and you wouldn’t believe me but look at this! You’re on a starship, flying well away from that prison! You thought I couldn’t do it and I did it! So you owe me an apology!”
“You might even get it someday!” Erva came down the hallway. “Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m thrilled we’re away from that place, but we have a number of problems to contend with now. Not the least of which involving our resources. Do we have anything to eat? Any water? I doubt we’ll find such things on the sentinel.”
Mezani said, “We have some for a few days. I put a full crate aboard before we left. I planned to sleep in here until we had to rush out. Thank the spirits I had time to repair the worst of the damage! Anyway, we’re fine in that regard. We should get to the bridge of this vessel. Check the manifest to find out what’s aboard.”
Seth turned to Nitha. “Call me crazy, but this should earn us a major boon with the rebellion, right? I doubt they have any ships like this.”
“They do not,” Nitha replied. “Though if we turn it over, we may lose our chance to strike the Olarins. I feel as if we need to contact them, to find a way for us to work together though without giving up this advantage.”
“It’s a big ship,” Erva said, “and we may not be able to control it on our own. Unless you think the AI can be turned to our cause. Then maybe we’ll have a shot. Maybe we can keep this thing running for a while. But any severe damage… I don’t think we can repair it by ourselves.”
“We have many things to explore,” Mezani said, “but we’ve got time. First, security. I’ll need to double-check everything to ensure we have full control. I don’t want to leave this small vessel until we know for sure we’re safe. Second, life support. It may not be tuned for us, so we’ll have to figure that part out.”
“You,” Erva corrected. “I doubt any of us will contribute. I’m going to what passes for a medical bay here. We can take a look at injuries. These AI ships had been occupied at one point, so there are more advanced facilities aboard. However, they may have no resources for us to use.”
