"One Hundred Over Ten" A Last Frontier story By Marina Twelve and Thomas R.
Chapter Six
Leslie had to think
fast. “What were the REPs doing here?” she wondered. “Are they here to take
delivery of the Hermes? Have they “sensed” Captain Galvin’s double cross and
have decided to intervene or are THEY double crossing Galvin himself.?---Or is
it something else entirely?—-and what do they think about the presence of the
other ships?”
Whatever was going
on, it didn’t look good. The Rep battle cruiser could destroy them all. Yes,
there was the QUELL, on the Retribution, but Morris couldn’t risk using it.
Neither The Space Command Ship nor the Retribution was capable of jumping just
yet. Given the proximity of the Battle cruiser, the resultant explosion of a
fission reaction with fifty thousand tons of matter would take ALL of the ships
out.
Perhaps they could
run? Leslie could jump while the other two ships could run in opposite
directions and hope that the Rep could only destroy one of them. Leslie
didn’t like that idea either.
Leslie would not
abandon her people to the REPs. SHE would have to lead them away herself. The
REPs want the Hermes, and possibly also Galvin and Enforcer Twelve, more than
the others. If she can get the REP to chase her, it would give the other ships
time to get away---either to get to QUELL use distance or to buy enough time to
recharge the jump capacitors.
“Who is aboard the
Hermes?” Leslie asked the Navigational Officer.
“No One”, the man
replied, “Captain Galvin ordered it abandoned before he was to deliver it to
the REPs.”
“I’ll have to run
it by remote.” Said Leslie, “What’s the unlock code?”
“I don’t know. Ask
the Captain”
“I AM the Captain
of this ship now. GOT THAT? Not only by virtue of my commandeering this ship in
the name of the Terran Confederation Space Command, but by interstellar space
law.” Leslie responded. “I just want to remind you of that fact.”
“Oh, no problem
here, Captain, but Galvin should have the codes”.
Leslie pressed the
communicator button to open a channel between her and Galvin’s escape
pod/prison cell.
“GOD DAMN YOU
WEBBER!” were the first words Leslie heard. Galvin was not at all a “happy
camper”.
“Galvin, I need the
Unlock codes for the Hermes’s computer.”
“Do you actually
THINK that I would tell YOU?” Galvin angrily replied. “You figure it out.”
“I thought that you
would like to know that Your Scaly friends have parked their Battle Cruiser a
few clicks forward of our bow. Something tells me that they want more than the
Hermies”
“What? What are
they doing here? We were supposed to meet in REP space, near the primary
transfer point.”
“I suppose that
they sensed some treachery on your part. They all have strong BT abilities, you
know.”
“BT ability? You’re
kidding right? Damn your mind games! . . . If they. . . Oh Shit!”
“It’s no shit Galvin,
I don’t know how long they will just sit there observing us, but we have to do
something quick, I’m looking down the tubes of at least four LX weapons here.
They’re coming after us, Galvin, we don’t have time to fuck around.”
“Just Leave the
Hermes there and get out of here, Damnit!”
“They want YOU just
as bad as they want the Hermes. There is no way we can out run them. I know. I
had a BT officer on my ship when I went after Konstantin, they will be able to
match us jump for jump until they finally catch up with us. I want to use the
Hermes as a diversion---Now give me the codes damn it!”
“Shit! I don’t have
the codes! Only Admiral Miller knew them—and you killed him---Damn it! NOW we
are all are as good as dead!”
Leslie was shaken
to reality for a moment. Her plan had suddenly evaporated. There was NO way
she was going to get the codes unless she could get a BT on board the Hermies.
She thought about sending Zee, but such activity might trigger the REPs to take
action. No, everyone had to lay low and make no threatening moves. So far,
the Reps had not responded.
But Leslie was a BT
herself, at least sort of. But she too, needed to have been in contact with
the ship though to get any “readings” from it. Leslie had never been aboard
the Hermes. “Wait a minute!” She thought. She suddenly realized that she
didn’t need to have contact with the ship at all. “Admiral Miller!” She had
been in physical contact with Miller and he KNEW the codes---even if he was NOW
dead, the quantum links to the data still existed.
Leslie didn’t want
to leave the bridge. “Computer! Search files for Random Field Screen
software. Put on Captain’s primary bridge com-screen.”
“Software
found.—Loading”
Leslie concentrated
on the pattern of colored dots that churned about on the viewing surface. She
remembered the “trick” to see the numbers as “shapes” rather than digits—so the
organs in her right brain could perceive them. It wasn’t working! The
numbers seemed to change and jump around—she couldn’t get a handle on them.
“Damn!” Leslie
cursed to herself. She had done it before—but then again, she was under
extreme duress at THAT time. She had just lost her wife and son just hours
before, she was on the verge of insanity. Even “normal” people often have BT
moments under those conditions. It wasn’t going to happen. Leslie needed a
TRAINED BT –NOW!
“Melissa, go fetch
KORA! Bring her here.”
“Who will guard the
bridge crew?” Melissa replied.
“I still have my
gun, besides, I don’t think that we have anything to worry about—DO WE,
PEOPLE?”
“No Captain!” several
replied.
“They know I am the
only one here who has half a chance to save their butts.”
A few minutes
later, Melissa pushed the still bound and gagged Kora Horst through the door. Kora’s
face was Red with rage.
She glared at
Leslie and muttered incomprehensible curses behind her gag. Leslie directed Kora
to the Forward Com Screen. The sight of the REP battle cruiser did a lot to
change her attitude.
“We are ALL in deep
shit, Kora, and we need you to co-operate. Quite frankly I don’t think that
you will make a pretty Half Mute---if you survive at all.”
Now Kora looked
frightened. Leslie pulled loose the gag. “What can I do about it! I’m only a
BT.”
“We need to read
the Hermes’s computer unlock codes from Admiral Miller’s body. I can’t do it,
so that leaves YOU!”
“But I never met
the man”, Kora replied, “I would have had to touch him first to establish a
link. . . Oh NO!”
“He’s down in the
sickbay morgue. Let’s go! Melissa, Take over for me on the bridge.”
“I won’t have to
worry about you if I untie your hands, now will I, Kora?”
“No I think we both
have greater concerns at the moment.”
“Just remember, no
funny business. You may be a trained BT, but I am a trained soldier. I KILL
people, that’s my job. Don’t think that having an identical body makes you my
equal in physical strength. I work out. I can easily take you down if I need
to.”
The ship’s Doctor
greeted them at the “sick bay” door.
“I take it you read my
com-screen message?” Leslie asked the man.
“Yes, . . uh. . .
Captain” the doctor replied. “ I have the Admiral here.”
The doctor pressed
a panel and a drawer slid out of the wall. A cold draft wafted over Leslie and
Kora. Kora gasped. She was shocked at the blue-gray color of the dead man’s
skin. His face still bore the wide-eyed look of horror and disbelief that
Leslie remembered when she skewered his heart with her long steel pin.
“What’s the matter, Horst,
you never saw a dead man before?” chided Leslie.
“Well. . . I’ve
been to funerals. . .”
“Not the same is
it? That’s what happens to people who fuck with ME or my friends. You know
what to do. Do it!”
Reluctantly, Kora
placed her hand on the Admiral’s cold forehead. “Write this down, Webber!”
“You don’t need the
Screen?”
“No, I’m in direct
contact, I don’t need an assist device. Five, five, three, six, seven, zed, vee”
Leslie wrote down
the numbers. “This better be right, Horst.”
“That’s what I get
anyway. I have no reason to lie, both our asses are in the same sling.”
Leslie and Kora
returned to the bridge. Melissa looked a bit disturbed to see Kora untied and
Leslie apparently a bit lax in her supervision of her.
“Don’t worry,
Commander”, Said Leslie, “Kora fully realizes the situation and what can happen
to her if she isn’t a good little girl.”
“Helm! What’s
inertial damping set to on this ship?”
“Two point-zero” the
helmsman replied.
“Reset it to zero
point-five---Get ready for a bumpy ride”
Leslie entered the
unlock code into the com link to the Hermes---It worked! “Hermes computer!
You are now under control of Captain Leslie Webber of the Terran Space
Command.” Said Leslie.
“Confirmed” the
computer replied back.
Leslie punched some
numbers and codes into her com screen.
“Morris! I’m going to
draw them off!” Leslie announced into the com-link to the Retribution.
“No, Captain!”
Morris replied “Let me distract them. I . . .”
“Shut UP Morris! This
is no time for chivalry. I have a plan---They want THIS ship and the Hermes.
We’re gonna take off! You and the Janus Run like hell as fast as you can the
other way! Try to get off a shot with the QUELL when you have distance. . .”
“But. . .”
“DO IT! That’s an
ORDER!”
Immediately both the
Enforcer Twelve, and the Hermes shot away from the group on a parallel course.
The Rep cruiser was taken by surprise. Leslie’s ships were three hundred Kiloclicks
away before The Rep ship, as expected,
began chase.
Morris, as directed,
ran in the opposite direction while the Space Command Cruiser, TCS Janus, ran
for all she was worth at 90 degrees.
“An ORDER?” Morris
thought to himself, as he was well under way. Leslie had got to him again.
Leslie continued to
put distance between the Enforcer Twelve and the REP. The Hermes remained
just to the port side of the Enforcer.
Soon the Rep began
to close the gap. It had a lot more acceleration capabilities than either of
the other craft.
“Force Shields up!”
Leslie ordered.
WHAM! The ship was
shaken hard. The Rep was firing its LX weapons at them. Much closer and the
shields would not hold at all.
“OKAY Hermes, drop
back!”
The Hermes slowed
down slightly and fell behind and farther to port of the Enforcer.
Leslie Swung the
Enforcer’s Point-Five Turrets around and began firing volley after volley of
massed photon cannon fire. Against the armor and Shielding of the Battle
Cruiser, she might as well have been firing peashooters. It was hard enough to
score a hit with a One point-five meter cannon. Which the enforcer did not
have.---But at least Leslie got the Rep’s attention.
“They’re closing
in!” Kora screamed in near panic as the Rep ship began to fill the view screen.
“Watch and learn.”
Said Leslie as the Battle cruiser began to pull past the Hermes.
SUDDENLY, with a
burst of acceleration, the Hermes cut directly into the path of the REP ship!
WHAM! The concussion of the explosion could be felt on the Enforcer. Leslie
saw part of a wing structure bearing a LX turret tumble by.
“JUMP!” Leslie
ordered.
ZAP! A blue flash
of light. The view screen now showed only empty space. The Bridge crew
spontaneously cheered! Leslie had earned some new admirers.
Leslie couldn’t be
sure the Rep Battle cruiser had been destroyed. According to Morris, those
ships were quite tough. It was obvious though that the vessel had been
seriously damaged and likely had broken off the pursuit.
About twenty minutes later, the Retribution appeared. Zee
was able to find the cords. The Janus soon joined the other two ships.
“Well, did we get them?” Leslie asked Morris over the com
link.
“I tried to get them with the Quell, but they were gone”,
Morris replied.
“Don’t tell me they jumped!”
“Okay, I won’t tell you that, but the core of the ship must
have remained intact. Judging from what I found in the debris field, you
damaged it quite heavily, though. It will need a lot of repair work before it
is ready to go back into battle again.”
“All right, then first things first”, said Leslie. “Have the
Janus join spiders with The Enforcer Twelve and install a new command crew. I
personally have Kora Horst and Captain Galvin in custody.”
The Space Command officers from the Janus wasted no time
boarding the Enforcer. It would be taken to the nearest Space Command base,
where the ship would be confiscated and crew would be processed.
Only those crewmembers who were wanted on outstanding warrants
and who were thought guilty of specific crimes, however, would be detained, the
rest would be released. Galvin and his officers would certainly be arrested
and charged with several crimes against the Terran Confederation, including
salve running and illegal transfer of technology.
The Retribution would transport the virgin slaves back
to Terra Nova. Leslie herded them into the two spare staterooms, ten to a
room, accommodations would be tight, but with the Retribution’s jump
capability, the ride would only be a couple of hours.
Four armed Terran Confederation Army soldiers, headed
by one Sergeant Jefferies, were brought along also, should there be a need to
protect the Retribution and its cargo upon landing. Leslie seated them in the back
of the bridge area.
“Has the Confederation established an outpost in the
Terra Novan system yet?” asked Leslie.
“No”, Morris replied, “We are going to be the first
Confederation ship to make official contact, and YOU have been designated the
first acting ambassador”
“Why me? I’m certainly no diplomat”.
“I suppose it’s because you are the highest ranking
officer that speaks Remonian. And I also think that we have not seen the last
of the Reps.”
“Who’s going to be in charge?” asked Leslie. While
Terra Nova was to be a part of the Confederation, it still might be considered
“rep territory”. Leslie and Morris’s power sharing arrangement had not allowed
for this contingency.
Morris didn’t want to answer Leslie’s question. “You
handle the people and I’ll fight the Reps.” He finally replied.
Leslie thought about it. Yes, so long as each had
their own job to do, there would be little opportunity for arguments. She could
conceive of no situation where a difference of opinion would cause problems.
There were no Syndicate or Confederation criminal forces there, and Morris WAS
the agreed “Rep fighter”. “Okay”, she replied, “You let me do my job and I’ll
let you do yours.”
Two hours later the Retribution was orbiting Terra Nova.
“Where do you suggest we land? Asked Morris.
“Hell, go for it!” “Let’s set her down right in the
forum, next to the Emperor’s Palace. Let’s impress the shit out of them. And
let’s not forget our dress uniforms.”
“Do you plan to make them think that we are Gods?”
Morris asked.
“By no means. These people are superstitious enough as
it is. We’ll be straight with them from the outset. Greet them as military
officers. They are a warrior people. From our bearing and appearance they will
recognize us as soldiers. Despite two thousand years difference in technology,
some things about us military types are timeless and universal.”
Retribution began its descent. Soon the street pattern
of Remos became visible on the view screen. And the elongate square, near the
center of the city resolved itself.
As the ship descended lower, the people in the forum
became visible. Their milling about soon stopped as they all looked up at the
huge black tabular object that hung in the sky.
Soon a crowd was beginning to gather directly beneath
the ship. The landing struts deployed. As the ship descended lower still, the
crowd became frightened and scattered in all directions. Whatever it was
looked as if it would fall on them.
When Retribution finally touched down, the area seemed
deserted. The pavement was littered with overturned carts, merchandise and the
occasional sandal lost by a fleeing citizen, who did not care to go back to
retrieve it.
The ship remained silently parked for several minutes.
A few brave individuals crept from behind and beneath overturned stalls, and
side alleys and cautiously approached.
With a whir, the loading ramp began to deploy, the sound
startled the people and a few ran off, once again, to the safety of their
hiding places. But most stayed, transfixed by the huge ‘iron monster’ in their
midst.
A few soldiers cautiously approached the ramp. They
practically ran over each other, to get away when the door latch released.
The door slid open. Leslie and Morris stood at the top
of the ramp, resplendent in their dark blue Space command uniforms. Their
chests glistened with medals and red capes hung over their left shoulders.
Leslie was all business, she had her hair in a tight bun and a stern look on
her face.
She surveyed the Remonian “welcoming committee” with a
look hat suggest that they were beneath contempt. When they looked
sufficiently awestruck, she and Morris, walking side by side, proceeded down
the ramp. They were closely followed by the four army soldiers who walked in
perfect step as they carried their automatic rifles across their chests.
In a line, between the soldiers, the virgins walked
out with them. They surveyed their surroundings, both amazed and overjoyed that
they were once again in their home city.
Bainbridge, Doc and Bill stood at ready blocking the
door to the ship. The Remonian soldiers only stood and stared.
Leslie walked up to the nervous Remonian officer who
looked to be in charge. “We are envoys of the Terran Confederation ---
Empire. We demand audience with your Emperor, Kieser Klaudius Maximus,
immediately.” She said in Remonian.
“Si! Si!” the man excitedly responded and managed to
line up his men once again. He sent one man ahead, and after about a minute,
led Leslie, Morris and their party to the doors of the palace courtyard.
If Sergeant Jefferies and his men were nervous they
did not show it. Overwhelming numbers of Remonian soldiers now surrounded them
on all sides. Leslie and Morris both knew that they all had to keep their
cool. If someone on either side panicked or if they were considered to be a
threat, it would be all over, despite superior fire power.
Sure, Leslie’s people would kill a lot of Remonians,
but the hundreds of soldiers would still quickly overwhelm their meager party
of six.
The doors swung open. The group marched across the
courtyard and into a large reception area. A short, dark haired man, wearing a
purple cape trimmed in gold and a small gold olive leaf crown, stood up to
greet them.
“Are. . . Are you gods?” the man managed to stammer.
“No!” Leslie replied. “We are humans like yourselves.
I am Captain Leslie Webber and this is Captain Gideon Morris. We are Envoys of
the Terran Confederation Empire.”
The Emperor looked puzzled. “Why, I have never heard
of such an empire.”
“It is far away from your own realm” Leslie Replied.
“Behold, as a sign of out good faith and also of our power,
we are returning the virgins taken by the Demons on the last full moon.”
Leslie directed the young women to present themselves. Klaudius’s
eyes widened as he recognized a couple of the girls. Indeed, these WERE the
virgins!
“You. . . You took them from the Demons?” Said Klaudius
both in awe and terror. Either these strange people were indeed as powerful as
the gods themselves, or their bold feat might have served as a mere provocation
of the Demon’s wrath which might soon fall upon all of humanity.
Leslie sensed the Emperor’s concern. “The rule of the
Demons is over. Remos and the entire World is now under the protection and
jurisdiction of the Terran Interstellar Confederation.”
Klaudius was taken aback by Leslie’s remark. After all,
HE was “The Ruler of the World”, the part of it that was of any consequence
anyway—The Great Remonian Empire.
“Don’t worry, great Kieser,” Leslie continued, “You
will still retain your throne and your position as Emperor. Only you will
ultimately be responsible to US.”
Klaudius could hardly believe his ears. He was now
being offered the same deal that the Remonion Empire offered its vassal
states. “Loyalty and alliance to Remos and those in power will be permitted to
retain their posts”
Leslie calmly watched the man’s face turn red with rage
and then as purple as his cape. Klaudius fought every instinct within him to
contain his anger at the impertinence of these arrogant strangers.
He wanted to order his personal bodyguards to arrest
them, and possibly execute them on the spot, but the assured confidence
reflected in Leslie’s and Morris’s faces caused him to hesitate. They appeared
as if they KNEW they had the upper hand. Action against them could be unwise.
After all, they arrived in a flying. . . “What ever it was,” and standing
before him, as evidenced by the virgins, was evidence that they were quite
capable of vanquishing even the demons.
Suddenly a man ran up to the Emperor, Two guards rushed
up and stopped him, but a nod from Klaudius indicated that it was all right.
It was Antonius! The guards released them and he was allowed to approach the
emperor. “My Leage!” Take no action against these people. They have the
powers of the gods!”
“You know them Antonius?” asked Klaudius.
“Yes, She alone was responsible for the deaths of eleven
of my men.---It was my fault! I, in my ignorance, forced her to defend
herself. She can control the power of thunder and lightning.”
Kladius looked incredulously at Leslie and then again
at Antonius. “It’s true!” Antonius continued. He pulled up his robe and showed
the healed wound on his leg. “She only wounded me. She spared my life and
later had one of her companion’s heal me.”
“So you ARE gods?” Said the Emperor.
“We told you the truth. As hard as it may be for you
to believe, we are only humans, but from an Empire much more powerful than your
own. Sorry if we might have initially mislead you, Antonius, but you would not
have understood.”
Leslie addressed the emperor. “Antonius’s help was
invaluable in our rescue of the virgins from the Demons. He allowed me to
infiltrate the group and turn the tables on their captors.”
“And she risked her own life to save my neice, Lucia”, Antonius
interrupted.
Now Klaudius looked confused. He did not know what to
make of the situation. As he struggled to figure out what questions to ask
next, Leslie explained.
“This is the way it is. Those “Demons” of yours are no
more GODS than we are. They are intelligent BEASTS. They are keeping and
controlling you and your people just as you raise cattle. It is only fitting
that HUMANS rule humans. We are their enemies. We have power over them, soon
your people will too, but you must remain under the protection of our group,
the Terran Confederation, until you can be assimilated into and are able to
participate into the true human society”.
“The Reps—Demons have kept you away from you brothers for
over two thousand years. Just as the mountains isolate the barbarians from the
glories of Remos, the Reps have isolated you from the glory of your fellow
humans. A new era has dawned in Remos, and you, dear Klaudius, can play a
major role in it if you cooperate.”
Morris whispered to Leslie in English “Don’t make promises
you can keep Webber. You know as well as I do that the Confederation does not
tolerate dictatorial states.”
“He can’t be deposed until our educational and
assimilation programs are well under way. We need the organization, initially
at least. By then it will be perfectly clear, even to Klaudius, that the age
of empires and Emperors is over.”
Leslie Let the Emperor think about her offer. She and
her party took their leave and returned to the Retribution.
Several minutes later they emerged, now dressed in the
more standard dark blue Space Command Jumpsuits, ready for action. They had a
Job to do. They ignored the curious mix of Remonian Soldiers and civilians
that hovered around to gawk at the ship.
The crowd jumped with surprise at the whine as Bill
pressed a button, and the loading wench motors came to life. Seeing that there
seemed to be no danger, the people converged in again as the ATV, suspended in
its chain harness settled to the ground beneath the ship.
Leslie, Bill, Jefferies, and his men climbed into the
ATV. The curious Remonians gathered around. Bill climbed into the driver’s
seat. Several of the people gathered outside jumped and ran off as Bill
started the engine.
BRAPP! Bill blew the horn, scattering the remaining gawkers
that stood in front of the vehicle, and pulled slowly away.
“Which way Captain?”, asked Bill.
Leslie looked at the aerial photograph in her hand
and counted blocks. “Turn left at the next intersection”
The vehicle slowly made its way up the steep hill via
the narrow street. “Stop here” said Leslie when they were at least two blocks
from the Temple of the Demons. “No sense risking damage to the ATV.
Bill guarded the ATV while Leslie led the Sergeant
and his men to the Temple compound. “Listen, we are not going to fuck around,“
said Leslie. ”We’ll just make sure that no innocent Remonians are inside and
get out of here quick. If anyone gives you any trouble, shoot them, use your
best judgement.”
Two sword-carrying guards met them at the door.
“Stand aside” Ordered Leslie in Remonian, “The building must be vacated. Get
out now or die!” The guards looked at each other and went for their swords.
P-P-POW! P-P-POW! Jeferries’s corporal nailed both of them with two three shot
bursts. “Thank you Corporal.” Said Leslie.
The party marched up the steps and into the temple
itself. Over the altar loomed a twenty-foot high statue of a REP with its
mouth agape. Leslie shivered at the sight as she recalled memories of the
fight in the REP ship.
Three Priests approached. “What is the meaning of this
intrusion?” said one of them angrily.
“The rule of the Demons is over. Get out before we
destroy the Temple or die yourselves.” Leslie replied.
The men smirked at Leslie’s impertinence. Leslie
merely nodded her head to the corporal. He raised his twenty-millimeter
automatic rifle and BRAAAAAAP! Raked fire across the upper half REP idol.
Marble chips flew everywhere. The head broke off and-- SMASH!, fell onto the
altar, shattering into thousands of pieces.
The priests stood awestruck with their jaws agape,
unable to move. Leslie drew her gun. “Run!” she ordered in Remonian and
BRAPPP! Fired a burst of automatic fire just over their heads. They cringed as
the marble chips flew off the wall behind them. They ran for all they were
worth, towards the doors.
“Quick, search the place!,” Leslie ordered. “There
are two rooms on the other side.”
Two of Jefferies’s men carefully entered the doorway on
the left of the remains of the altar while Jefferies, took another man to the
door on the left. Leslie checked behind several of the columns just to make
sure that no one was hiding in the great room itself.
“SHIT!” someone yelled from the back. RAPPPPPPP!
RAPPPPP! RAPPPPPPP! Automatic fire echoed loudly off the walls. Jefferies and
Leslie ran to the back of the hall to the left doorway from where the sounds
had emanated.
The Corporal and his partner stood wide-eyed holding
their rifles at the ready pointed at some shadows on the opposite wall.
BRAAAAP! The man fired again. “Hold it, I think they’re dead.” Said the Corpral.
“GOOOOODDDD DAMMMMN!”
Leslie didn’t have to see what the soldiers had shot,
she knew that SMELL. Her suspicions were confirmed when she saw what lay on the
floor of the small room.
The walls looked like they had been spattered with
blue paint, only it wasn’t paint, it was Rep blood. Two Rep bodies, cut nearly
in half, and full of holes, lay nearby.
“WHOA!” exclaimed Sergeant Jefferies as he realized
what he was looking at. He jumped back. “REPs?” he asked Leslie. She nodded.
There was something else, a white rag spattered with
purple, No, it was the remains of a linen tunic. She saw a pink,
football-shaped head lying nearby. “They got a half-mute too.” Leslie said
sadly as she bent over the chopped up body and examined it more closely. “A
female by the looks of it.” Leslie bit her lip. “It’s for the better I
suppose. Let’s get out of here.”
As Leslie turned to leave, something in the far
corner of the room caught her eye. “My GOD!” She thought. she had seen it
before, about a year ago at Konstantin’s offices. “THE MACHINE!” It was the
same device or one similar to it that she had been put into. The device that
had changed her DNA.
Leslie walked around and closely examined the machine.
Yes! It was identical to the device that Konstantin had used to change her into
a twin of Kora Horst. For the most part it consisted of a cylindrical glass or
plastic tank, about eight feet tall and a bit over two feet in diameter. It
was filled with a greenish, glowing liquid.
Attached to one side was a metal box, with red and green
lights and switches, about the size of a large suitcase. Flexible tubes ran
from both sides of the box and mated with fittings on either side of the tank.
The fluid appeared to be the key. The box obviously pumped the fluid through
it where it was “programmed” or somehow impressed with the desired DNA code and
pumped back or re-circulated back into the tank.
It was time for Leslie to do some hard thinking. Yes,
she had samples of her own former DNA she had collected from her personal items
and had been saving for such a chance. The machine would be destroyed along
with the temple if she just left it here, but it was too bulky to conveniently
move. Besides, neither she, nor anybody else around knew how to operate it.
Perhaps they could figure it out?
But then there was another problem, lying on the floor
next to it were five dead bodies, most of them grossly misshapen. One could
tell that they had been humans—once. Yes, the Reps had been making “half
mutes” here. These represented the “failures”.
Konstantin said that there was a 75 percent chance
that any human put into the device would be killed. It looked as if he knew
what he was talking about. Leslie was lucky indeed to still be alive, even if
she did now look like Kora.
Was she lucky enough to survive it once again? The
thought made her shiver. The temptation was very strong, but it would be like
winning a game of Russian roulette with five rounds in the chamber---Twice! No
one could be THAT lucky. No one would be so foolish . . .
Leslie brought the com phone to her mouth. “Morris! I
need Doc down here. Set down in the courtyard”
“Is anyone hurt?” Morris replied, a tone of concern in
his voice.
“No, thank God, but I need his expertise. I found
something that he needs to see.”
Five minutes later, the RETRIBUTION was parked in the
Temple courtyard. Doc climbed down the ladder, followed closely behind by
Commander Connor. Leslie met them at the main entrance and guided them inside.
“What are you doing here, Melissa?” Leslie asked as she
showed them to the room. “I only requested Doc.”
“I thought that Doc could use my advice. If you don’t
want me here, I’ll go back to the ship.”
“That’s all right. I didn’t say NOT to come did I?”
“Ok Doc, there it is. What do you think?”
Dr. Havelock examined the machine. His opinion on how
it worked closely paralleled Leslie’s. “You know we won’t be able to move it
out of here intact, don’t you?”
“Yes, I figure we can remove the instrumentation, take
a sample of the fluid for analysis and try to re-assemble the apparatus on one
of the more civilized worlds.” Leslie Replied.
Leslie climbed the ladder on the side of the tank.
“Hey, Melissa, hand me that vase over there so I can take a sample of this
green stuff.”
“Hold on!” interrupted the Doctor. “That fluid could
be extremely dangerous. I wouldn’t go near that stuff without a hazmat suit.”
“If this stuff does is what we think it does, then it
will change the DNA of the cells on any part of your body it touches.” He
explained.
“You mean I might have a few patches of Half Mute cells
if I get any on me?” asked Leslie.
“Yes, the cells will mutate where the fluid touches,
but that’s not the worse part. You body’s immune system will reject the areas
with the foreign DNA. The affected area will die, and you might get left with
an necrotic ulcer, or worse, depending on the size of the affected area.”
Leslie drew back. “Shit! So it ultimately would be as
bad as coming in contact with raw hydrofluoric acid.”
“Yes, unless your entire body, including the immune
system were changed into the same DNA. If you get any of that on you, you
might as well take a bath in it.”
“Wow, that’s nasty stuff,” Leslie replied. “ If the
process isn’t complete you could die a horrible death even if you survived the
initial conversion to start with.”
“You sure you want to take this thing with us?” Asked
Doc.
Leslie looked at Doc as if he had asked a dumb question.
“Tell Bill to bring us two of the hazmat suits. You don’t understand do you?
This represents the only hope I ever have of becoming my former self again.”
“Why would you want to? Is it worth the risk?” Doc
seriously inquired.
Leslie began to speak, but hesitated for a moment.
Melissa suddenly signaled for silence and pressed her
ear to her com phone on her left wrist.
“Leslie, Zee needs to talk to you immediately.” Said
the commander.
“What does she want?”
“She wants you to meet her in the telemetry room, Now!
She says it’s of extreme importance.”
“Why didn’t she call me on my own com?”
“I don’t know Leslie, perhaps it is malfunctioning.”
“Great!, just what I need. Stay here I’ll be right
back.”
Melissa watched Leslie leave the building. The
Commander then walked up to one of the troopers. “Soldier! Give my your gun!”
she ordered.
“Yes ma’am” Said the young man as he complied. He
handed Melissa his 20mm automatic rifle.
Doc seemed as puzzled as the soldier.
“Doc! Get over by the altar.” said Melissa as she
pointed to the far side of the room. “You too, kid”.
“What’s this about Commander?”
“That’s right Doc! COMMANDER! In the absence of the
Captain, I am the superior officer here, and I order both of you to comply with
my instructions immediately!”
Meanwhile, Leslie walked into the telemetry room.
“Okay Zee, what’s going on? What is it that is so important that you have to
see me?”
Zee looked confused “What are you talking about,
Leslie, I never sent for you?”
“Then what -- ?” BRAAAAAPPP! BRAAAAPPP! The sound of
automatic rifle fire was unmistakable. It came from the direction of the
Temple.
“Bill, Morris! Come with me!” Leslie shouted, the three
slid down the ladder and rushed into the temple.
Doc and the Soldier stood by the altar. Melissa held
the still smoking 20mm rifle. The floor beyond was scattered with shards of
the clear plastic fragments of the tank. The shot up remains of the mechanism
lay in the center of a large puddle of the greenish fluid.
As Leslie’s jaw dropped, Melissa handed the gun back to
the soldier.
Leslie was beside herself in both shock and rage.
“MELISSA! WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO!” she screamed hysterically.
“Careful,” Warned the Doc, “Don’t step in the fluid!”
“I just saved your life.” The Commander calmly replied.
“What?. . . What?---“ Leslie sputtered and fumed. Her
hands twitched. If Melissa weren’t her friend, Leslie would have strangled
her. She was too angry to say anything.
“You would have killed yourself, Leslie. You wouldn’t
have been able to resist the temptation” Said Melissa.
“Who are you to---? What right have you--? Damn it!
It’s MY LIFE! MY decision!”
“Quiet!” Melissa shouted “Dead Leslie! You would be
DEAD!”
“Well, I know the odds would be against me.” Leslie
sheepishly replied, cooling down somewhat.
“You would be DEAD Leslie. The odds were bad enough
even if you KNEW how to operate the machine. I removed the threat. The
temptation no longer exists.”
Leslie’s expression changed somewhat. “You CARE about
me don’t you? You have no emotions and yet you care about me.” She wiped a
tear from her eye.
“Yes, replied Melissa, “I care. I don’t know if my
care is an emotion or a logical expedient, but I care. The entire crew does.”
Leslie turned away, so that the others could not see
her face while she recovered her composure. “All right,” she said with
outturning, and headed for the door. Let’s get on with it and blow this
place.”
There were a few stragglers left in the courtyard, but
a few shots fired over their heads, got them to running and out the gates they
went.
Morris, Doc and Melissa returned to the ship.
Leslie, Bill and the soldiers went out to the streets and drove what people
were still hanging around the temple area away.
Soon Leslie and her party were a safe distance down
the street. The small, distant silhouette of the Retribution hovered overhead.
“It’s all yours Morris!” Leslie said over her com link phone.
Morris was the perfect man for the next phase of the
operation. He was an expert when it came to the use of the One-point-five
meter Photon cannon. He knew what it could do and knew the safest distance to
fire it from.
He looked at the beautiful, Parthenon-like structure on
his com screen. It would be a shame to destroy it, he thought. But then again
there was the equally grand Temple of Zeupater half a block away, which would
still remain.
He thought again about how the Reps had killed Sarah
and any reservations he held for what he would do next melted away. Ranging
marks and crosshairs appeared on the screen. Morris centered them on the roof
of the structure.
WHAM! The roar of the cannon, heard in the ship, was
magnified five-fold by the presence of an outer atmosphere. BOOM! A six-meter
hole was blasted through the roof and WHOOMMM! An internal explosion took out
the remainder of the interior of the structure.
Only a few columns and the front façade remained
standing. POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! Doc, manning the lower
one-point-five made short work of the remaining architectural elements. The
Temple of the Demons was now a smoldering pile of rubble.
The Remonians standing near Leslie were dumbstruck.
This group of strange people had defied the gods themselves.
Leslie’s wrist com phone beeped. It was Morris.
“I have just been hailed by the TCS MONOCEROS. They
are in high planet orbit. I am sending them a status report.”
Leslie felt a bit better, now. She could tell by the
name. The Confederation had finally sent a battle cruiser to protect them.
“Oh! Morris added, They have also placed two J-com
relays along their course. We now have direct communications with the rest of
civilization.”
Leslie dropped in on Antonius a few hours later and
asked him to set up another meeting with the Emperor. This time she needed to
be a bit more “diplomatic” and not simply “crash” the party any time they felt
like it. As a sign of respect, she let Klaudius himself choose the time and
place.
This time the meeting was less public and took place
in Klaudius’s private banquet room. Morris and the rest of the Retribution
crew attended. The emperor also brought along several of his senators and
advisors, including Antonius.
The Scene resembled closely, the Roman feasts often
depicted in literature and the visual media, save for the Space Command people
who wore their best uniforms.
