Death's Twilight

CHAPTER FIVE

  The M05, December 4, 2308 03:16:49 (T-Minus 01:04:46:23)

  To keep Kozel amused while he strategized on capturing Herman, Slade allowed him to watch his Back To The Future, Part II holo-film.  He was completely enthralled. Just like Slade hoped he would be. By the time the holo-film had finished, Kozel had fallen asleep.

  At this hour of the early morning, the M05 was deserted, and Slade let the hover's autopilot do what it was meant to do.  It allowed him time to formulate a plan. He accessed iCorps' data banks searching for information on Kozel. If he was coming along on this mission, Slade needed information on him. Slade quickly found a wealth of information on Dmytro Kozel, his wife, Lyuba, and their kids, Vasylyna and Yakiv. He learned that Kozel took bribes to make ends meet, how Lyuba begged him to get out of the system – to take a job in a different field. Slade found the schools that Vasylyna and Yakiv attended – their grades, classes and teachers.

  There wasn't anything here that was out of the ordinary. And only the bribes could be used against him. Kozel was a safe ally, for the moment. Finished that task, he consulted his implanted hard drive, analyzing the pages of the newspapers he'd scanned at the Poltava terminal. There wasn't much – the local news in Poltava was pretty dry. Even the Territory pages were relatively bland. Wait a minute. He paused on an article detailing a rumored weapons cache in Crimea.

  The writer theorized that Crimea kept its relative independence from the rest of the territories because the Principal had a large weapons cache at her disposal, and she was not afraid to use it. There was a list of six names – people who had "disappeared" because they represented a supposed threat to the Principal's rule.

  Was Herman in Crimea for weapons? Was he planning on assassinating the Principal like he had tried in 2299? That made his getting to Crimea that much more urgent. Unfortunately, Slade was still seven plus hours away from him. Assuming Herman stayed at the Agora and didn't move.

  Control would let Slade know if he moved, and where. All he could do now was wait. Kozel snored softly. The hum of the hover was a soothing melody. Slade's eyes grew heavy, and he started to doze. He roused himself enough to set the in-hover alarm for eight am. He'd been up for twenty-one hours. It was time to sleep.  The last thing Slade saw as he succumbed to the darkness was the steady flash-flash-flash of the white road lines as they passed his window.

  Slade awoke to the sound of harsh rapping on his window. He groggily rolled the window down to see we had stopped at a checkpoint on our way. Why hadn't the hover alerted Kozel or myself to the checkpoint?

  "Yes?"

  The guard looked at him impassively. He said something Slade’s chronometer couldn’t translate, lowering the bar to block the hover's passage.

  Slade was furious. This silly puffed-up border guard thought that he had the right to detain an Emissary? He shook Kozel awake.

  "Kozel, tell this pompous jerk that we don't have time for his stupid attitude!"

  Kozel fired off some rapid-fire speech, and the conversation continued. After a moment, Kozel turned to Slade

  "He says you have no travel documents. He cannot allow you into Crimea. 

  "Are you kidding me? I'm an Emissary for Pete's sake. I don't need documents. My rank alone is enough to cross any border."

  "I'm well aware, Emissary." Kozel turned to the border guard again. More conversation ensued, with the guard looking more and more anxious. After a few more moments, Kozel again turned to Slade.

  "I've asked him how much he wants to let us cross. He says Five Hundred Steel Royals.

  Slade lost it. "Five Hundred? Are you nuts? I should get out of this hover and kick his sorry border-crossing head in right now. Five Hundred! He's lucky I don't use my Boom Stick!" For emphasis, Slade pulled the Boom Stick from its sheath.  The guard paled visibly, but stood firm at his post.

  A final round of communication was volleyed back and forth, and Kozel shrugged, hands up in frustration.

  "He says he has orders, and to please tell you that he cannot let you pass for less than Five Hundred. He will be killed if he doesn't bring his supervisor the bribe."

  Slade paused. He certainly didn't want some mercenary thug to kill this man over a bribe he had no control over, but he also hesitated at the large sum of money that the guard was requesting. Punching a few buttons in quick succession on his chronometer, Slade handed the guard a slip of paper.

  "Five Hundred. For the bribe." He said to the guard.

  He nodded, then turned away from the gate, which he opened to let us pass. As they drove through the gate, Slade could see the worried look on his face. The guard didn't want to see them again, that was for sure. Slade only hoped that the bribe bought the man enough safety.

  Now to get to The Agora. Slade thought. He was tired of delays.

  "Kozel. I need you to get us to The Agora as quickly as possible." Slade said, getting out of the hover, and walking toward the passenger seat. "It's been almost twelve hours, and though Control told me they'd advise me, I know I'm not the only Emissary delivering."

  "With all haste, Emissary." Kozel assured him, shutting the hover's driver's side door.

  They sped through the streets of Crimea, sometimes passing so close to the market vendors that Slade could see the look of surprise on their face as they drove past. Kozel twisted and turned, navigating the narrow streets, laneways, and alleys. Makeshift housing jutted from the remains of old stone buildings. Corrugated steel formed roofs and walls meant to shelter the population from the weather. It was quite evident that the Principal of this area was less concerned about the citizens than she was about her own welfare.

  They arrived in front of the hotel, and Slade exited the hover, eager to be free from its confines after such a long journey. The moment his boot touched the cracked pavement of the sidewalk, children, begging for scraps of food, spare change, or clothing, bombarded him. Most people feared the change that an Emissary brought, but some people regarded Emissaries as benefactors. He had almost no small coins, but Slade distributed them as evenly as he could, promising the children that he would be back as soon as he could to help. He motioned to Kozel, and together they entered The Agora.

  There was a wide, squat man lounging behind the desk as Slade approached. He saw Kozel and sneered, but as soon as he saw Slade, it was all charm.

  "Honored Emissary. Welcome to The Agora. We are pleased that you would choose to grace us with your presence. Shall I have a room prepared for you and your...companion?"

  "Actually," Kozel began, but Slade cut him off.

  "Noble Innkeeper, I regret that I have to decline your offer of such esteemed accommodations. My duties as an Emissary preclude the necessity to stay in a place so well known as The Agora. Indeed, we are looking for an individual. May we count on your assistance?"

  "Of course, Emissary. How can I assist you, noble one?"

  "We are looking for a man by the name of Randy Emery Herman. I have been informed that he has booked a room here. I have a Letter for him that I must deliver. Can you direct me to his quarters?"

  The innkeeper cast a furtive glance at his monitor, and then paused, as if weighing his options.

  "Mr. Herman has indeed checked in.  His room is on the second floor."

  "Fantastic. Can you take us to see him, please?"

  "I'm afraid not, Emissary. Mr. Herman has left The Agora early this morning. He did say he would be returning Friday around lunchtime. I believe he had some business with the Principal."

  "The Principal? Crap!" Slade turned to Kozel. "We need to move. Let's go."

  He bolted to the hover and jumped into the driver's side without waiting to see if Kozel was behind him. As Slade pulled away from the curb, Kozel dove through the open passenger-side door and pulled it closed.

  "Not to question you, Emissary, but can you tell me why we are in such a hurry?"

  "You mean besides his impending delivery deadline? Herman has, in the past, tried to assassinate the Principal of Alberta Territor
y. He was ultimately convicted of murdering three government officials."

  "And you think he's after the Principal here in Crimea?"

  "I wouldn't put it past him. I need the Principal's Office."

  "Right. I'm on it."

  Kozel activated his chronometer, and dialed the Crimean Embassy. Once connected, he identified himself, and asked to be patched through to the Principal's quarters. When they hesitated, he patched the call to the hover's in-vehicle system. Slade took over.

  "This is Emissary Slade Meechan, identity 0247893. I am currently en route to rendezvous with Randy Emery Herman with the mission to deliver a Letter.  He has previous convictions for murder related to Principal and government officials. I believe that his purpose in coming to your office is to cause harm to the Principal."

  The voice on the other end of the call sounded skeptical.

  "But Emissary, the Principal and Mr. Herman are related. He is her cousin. You think that he would assassinate his own family?"

  That one took him by surprise. How had he missed that fact?

  "Are you sure? I'm not trying to question your knowledge, but..."

  "The Principal has confirmed it herself. I have no reason to disbelieve the Principal."

  "As well you shouldn't. Nonetheless, I am still coming for my original purpose. Will you be able to detain him until I can arrive?"

  "As you know, Emissary, any individuals in the Principal's care have immunity from all disciplinary actions, regardless of source. That includes the Letter."

  Herman was either very smart, or very foolish. Back in the eighties, a law was passed exempting government officials and their families from the Letter. Continuation of Government was important for society. Herman was clearly exploiting this law for his own benefit.

  "You are right again. We don't usually get assignments like Mr. Herman. Thank you for reminding me."

  "Is there anything else, Emissary?"

  "No. Thank you again."

  Slade disconnected the call and punched the hover's dash, creating a small indent in the fiberglass.

  "He's related to the Principal? I highly doubt it. Kozel, start digging. We need to determine the veracity of this statement."

  Slade punched his own chronometer and waited for the connection. While he waited, he began to hum the tune from "Hey Jude" a track from a group called The Beatles that was recorded almost two hundred and fifty years ago. It was, in his opinion, the greatest song ever recorded.

  The call finally connected. The sound transferred to the receiver in his left ear.

  "Emissary 0247893, this is Control. How can we be of assistance?"

  "Control, I need information. First, I need you to confirm that Randy Emery Herman is related to Principal McDonald."

  "We'll look into it. Anything else?"

  "That's the main issue. My secondary concern is issuing a Letter to someone under diplomatic protection."

  "It can't be done."

  "Then I need you to find a way. iCorps wants me to deliver this Letter, and I intend to. I also need all skills I had yesterday uploaded for use immediately."

  "Place the hover in auto-drive, and we'll initiate. Not sure what we can do about the immunity issue, though. We'll have to check with Iris."

  "Make. It. Happen. Auto on, 0247893 out.