Chapter 7
Delay
Vice Admiral Rugge Brunns and Lt. Aerial Muri led a half dozen Purist soldiers toward the second deck disembarkation platform where the two returning L22s were landing. Vice Admiral Brunns was a short grey-haired man with a stern demeanor. He’d been an officer in the TGA for over forty cycles and had been in charge of the Tarizon Repopulation Project for the last ten cycles before the war broke out. He sided with Videl Lai when he made his play for power because he shared Videl Lai’s hatred for nonhuman life-forms.
During the Nanomite War he’d seen his platoon silently smothered to death while they slept. He himself had been sealed in a crystal tomb and only survived because he was paranoid enough to sleep with a gun at his side at all times. When he awoke, struggling to breathe, he unloaded his gun on one wall, breaking the seal on his transparent tomb. The eight small bullet holes allowed enough air in for him to breathe until a rescue party finally arrived to free him.
During the war, he was assigned to the TGA Naval Air Station at Gallion, and was reprimanded for allowing Leek Lanzia and his 3rd Army to steal over one thousand TGA fighters. His punishment was assignment off-planet to the Intergalactic Fleet on Clarion. At the time, that was the least desirable assignment any officer could be given, but Brunns didn’t mind it because it was similar to the duties he’d had as drector of the Tarizon Repopulation Project. In fact, he excelled at those duties so much that Videl Lai delegated even more power and authority to him so he could accelerate the timetable for completion of the Fleet.
Lt. Aerial Muri, an attractive brunette from Dalo, had been Videl Lai’s girlfriend. She was a pilot by training, but when Videl Lai noticed how attractive she was, he reassigned her as his personal aide. She remained at his side until the siege of Shisk, when he sent her ahead to Clarion to prepare his quarters on one of the attack cruisers.
She’d seemed to worship Videl and told her friends he was following God’s will in leading the Purist movement. Evohn Cystrom was jealous of Lt. Muri’s close relationship with his father, and often questioned the sincerity of her espoused Purist beliefs. Since Videl’s death, she’d been assigned as an aide to Admiral Lugart, and there were rumors that they’d become intimate.
When the group reached the platform, the first L22 was just landing. When it had been secured, the hatch opened and Captain Cystrom stepped out. He smiled, nodded, and then turned to help out Rupra Bruda, who was walking a little shakily.
“Welcome, my Tahma,” the Vice Admiral bellowed. “We are so pleased to have you on Clarion.”
Bruda nodded appreciatively as he stepped onto the platform. “Thank you for rescuing me,” he said. “I had given up hope of rescue when I heard our great leader had fallen.”
“Well, we don’t forget our heroes. You did a great thing sacrificing your life to assassinate the traitor, Robert Garcia.”
“Yes, and by the grace of God you survived that ordeal unscathed,” Evohn Cystrom added.
“I’m afraid I am no hero,” Bruda said. “In the end Commander General Lanzia broke me and stole my memories.”
“It was not your fault. You were stronger,” the Vice Admiral assured him. “It was only when his cursed rhutz added her telepathic strength that they were able to penetrate your mind’s defenses.”
“One day we will return and kill Leek Lanzia, the rhutzes Rhin and Riddle, and all their murderous kind who walk on our beloved planet,” Evohn Cystrom promised.
Rupra Bruda eyed Evohn Cystrom. “I’ll hold you to that promise, Captain.” he said evenly. “Now, tell us what you are planning. You have quite an impressive armada of ships here. I hope you plan to put them to good use.”
The Vice Admiral smiled. “Yes, indeed. Come aboard and we’ll fill you in on our plans, but only after you have settled and dined with us. Lt. Muri will show you to your quarters.”
Rupra Bruda nodded.
“This way, sir,” Lt. Muri said, taking his arm and escorting him up a flight of stairs and then into a corridor that led deep into the interior of the battle cruiser.
Lt. Muri knew that Rupra Bruda was an ally of her rival, Evohn Cystrom. That’s why she had volunteered to prepare his quarters and make him comfortable. She wanted to get close to him, close enough that she would always know what he was up to. Being close to Videl Lai had been a very revealing experience. She’d watched him claw his way into power, and she knew his adopted son would do the same thing—unless she stopped him.
“So, were you treated badly in prison?” Lt. Muri asked.
“No, they’d gotten everything they needed from me, so they isolated me and left me alone pretty much. They planned a big public trial, and I thank God I was rescued before being subjected to such humiliation.”
“The dirty skutz. They’re a disgrace to the human race.”
“So, Videl’s death must have been horrible for you, my dear,” Bruda said sympathetically.
“Oh, yes. I was devastated. I told him to come with me when I left Shisk. I begged him to come with me.”
“Why did he linger?”
“General Bratfort promised him he’d be able to defend the city, and he would have been able to do so had not so many soldiers defected. How can any army win if a quarter of its soldiers desert on the field of battle?”
“Yes, the Liberation Network was our downfall. Chancellor Boskie did a good job selling Leek Lanzia as the Liberator and convincing the people he was sent by God to lead the rebellion. It was all nonsense, of course, but the average citizen of Tarizon is an idiot.”
Lt. Muri took a right turn at the first large corridor and followed it to a lift. They took the lift and went up three floors to the officers’ deck. When they got to Bruda’s quarters, she directed him to stand directly in front of the door and look into a square eye-level mirror centered on the door.
“Okay, this will just take a few tiks. The security lock is scanning your face, hands, and eyes. Only if all three check out will it open.”
A yellow light at the corner of the mirror came on. Lt. Muri put her hand on Bruda’s shoulder and squeezed it gently. “Okay, step aside and I’ll confirm your identity.” Bruda did as she said and then she stepped in front of the door and looked into the mirror. A few tiks later a green light came on and the lock mechanism disengaged. “All right, you can go in.”
Bruda pushed the door open and stepped inside. It was a spacious room decorated with plush white leather-like furniture, crystal lamps, a VC, and a bar. Bruda looked around and smiled.
“Very nice. It’s hard to believe I’m on a battle cruiser.”
“Yes, I made them take out all the drab military decor. It was really quite revolting. I thought the father of our party deserved more.”
Bruda raised his eyebrows. “You’ve done well, Lieutenant.”
“Thank you. You have a bedroom, bath, and office as well. If you need anything else, let me know. I’ll leave you alone to relax and freshen up for dinner.”
Bruda smiled and nodded. “Wonderful, you’ve been very kind. I’ll see you at dinner.”
Lt. Muri left and closed the door behind her. Bruda looked around, pleased by his sudden upgrade in accommodations. He took a deep breath and then strolled into the bedroom. He gasped at the size of the bed and the luxurious decor. He wondered if Lt. Muri planned to share it with him. His loins stirred at the thought. He sat on the side of the bed and closed his eyes.
“Evohn, can we converse?” Bruda asked telepathically.
Captain Cystrom was with the Admiral reporting on how the rescue had gone. “Well, if that’s all, Admiral, may I be excused? I have to oversee preparations for departure.”
“Yes,” the Admiral said. “Excellent job, Captain. I’ll see you at dinner.”
“Yes, sir.”
Cystrom saluted, left the Admiral’s quarters and headed for the officers’ lounge. He opened the door and was relieved to see that it was empty. He sat in a relaxation chair. It molded itself around his body and began
to vibrate slightly.
“Yes, Tahma, we can converse,” Evohn thought.
Videl Lai had been close to Bruda, and Evohn had spent a lot of time with him, often calling him Tahma. They were not blood related but had nevertheless developed a strong bond. Whereas Videl Lai did not have much of a telepathic gift, Evohn did, and Bruda had taught him to use that gift.
“You did well today. Thank you for arranging my rescue.”
“I couldn’t leave Tarizon knowing you were alive and in such a desperate circumstance.”
“Your father would be proud of you.”
“Yes, I’m sure he’s with God looking down on us.”
“So, I can see this Lt. Muri is a dangerous woman. I can understand how she beguiled your father.”
“Yes, and now she sleeps with the Admiral. She cares for nothing but power and wealth.”
“That’s all right. She’ll keep the Admiral busy while we steal his fleet.”
“I don’t know. She’s very intelligent and quite devious. She knows of our relationship and will try to subvert it. You must be careful. Don’t trust her for a tik.”
“I can take care of myself. Don’t worry. I’ve met more cunning women.”
“Good. I must go and oversee preparations for departure. We can converse after dinner.”
“Till then.”
Evohn got out of his chair, left the officers’ lounge, and headed for the bridge. When he got there, Lt. Lethrow was barking orders to one of his men.
“How long until we can depart?” Captain Cystrom asked.
“I’m not sure. We have sensor problems. They seem to be going off randomly, without any apparent reason.”
“Can’t you get some technicians up to fix them?”
“Ah . . . well, we can’t seem to locate any of the technicians right now. I’ve sent some of my men to find them.”
Evohn frowned at what he was hearing, anger quickly welling within him. “Did you do implant scans? You should be able to locate them immediately.”
“They’re not showing up on the scanners.”
“That’s impossible!” Evohn said impatiently.
“Not entirely,” Lt. Lethrow replied cautiously. “I’ve seen implant signatures disappear from time to time in certain parts of the base.”
“So, they could be in a structure that is shielding their implant signatures.”
“Or, they could have removed them. That’s not hard to do.”
“But why would they do that? Did they somehow find out what we had planned for them when we left?”
“That’s possible, or they just figured it out. They are all brilliant scientists and engineers. They know we can’t afford to leave our base intact when we leave. I’m sure they realized we’d destroy it when we took off.”
“Hmm,” Evohn said, thinking. “So, they are seeking shelter from our missiles. We should have anticipated this!”
“Yes, sir. But our soldiers will find them. They are sweeping the entire area. It shouldn’t be long.”
“I don’t know—”
There was a loud explosion and the attack cruiser shook violently. Lt. Lethrow flipped a switch on his console and an image of the base came up. Fire and smoke were billowing out of one of the cargo holds of their battle cruiser.
“What the—”
“We’re under attack!” Evohn screamed.
Lt. Lethrow pushed a few buttons and a siren began wailing throughout the ship. Evohn watched a T-59 fighter fly over a hangar and drop a cluster bomb. The hangar burst into a colossal mass of fire.
“How did they get past our sensors?” Evohn screamed. “Where are our fighters? Get them out there!”
The big attack cruiser started to come to life as men showed up for duty and took their stations. A gun turret sprang into action.
“They’re leaving,” the turret squad leader reported. “They’re out of range.”
“Wait,” the gunner beside him said. “There’s one circling back. One more tik and I’ll get a lock on him. . . . Got it.”
“Fire!” the squad leader screamed.
There was a rumble and then a flash of light. A beam shot straight at the fighter and cut it down the middle.
“Target destroyed.”
“Okay, where are the rest of you?” the squad leader asked impatiently, glaring down at his sensor screen. “Come on, you mutant scrum, show yourselves.”
“They’re gone, sir. Sorry.”
“Afraid to stick around and fight, huh?” the squad leader mumbled.
Evohn was immediately summoned to the Admiral’s quarters for a briefing. He was angry at the summons as he hadn’t had time to find out what had happened or what the extent of the damage was. He stood in front of the door and it opened immediately.
“Captain. What just happened?”
“We were attacked by eleven fighters, sir. It was a ‘dump and run.’ They came in low below our sensors. By the time we discovered them it was too late to do anything. We did manage to down one of them, though.”
The Admiral shook his head angrily. “This is unacceptable! Nobody should be able to take us by surprise. How did this happen?”
“It couldn’t happen out in space. Only here on Clarion. Because of the mountains our scanners have limited range close to the ground. When the fighters dropped into the valley we had only a few tiks to discover them. The alarms went off just before the attack, which distracted us at a critical moment.”
“What caused them to go off?”
“I suspect sabotage, sir,” Cystrom replied.
“What! Sabotage? You’ve got to be kidding.”
“No, sir. Many of the scientists and technicians have disappeared. It appears they may have realized we were going to kill them after we took off. It’s possible they sabotaged our sensors and dumped a virus into our computers to keep us occupied while they slipped away.”
“That’s outrageous! We can’t let them get away with that. Find them and kill them all. We cannot tolerate treason!”
“Yes, sir. We’re doing sweeps right now to find them.”
“How much time has this cost us? We’ve got to leave Clarion immediately. There is no telling what else Central Command is planning.”
“They won’t be able to get near us now, sir. I believe it was a onetime strike. They caught us off guard, but that won’t happen again. If they come at us now they’ll be slaughtered.”
“I don’t know. We’ve underestimated Lorin Boskie before. She’s got something up her sleeve. I can feel it in my bones.”
Evohn shrugged. “May I be excused, sir? I’ve got to clean up the mess and assess the damage.”
“Yes, but keep me posted.”
“Yes, sir.”
Evohn left the Admiral’s quarters, wondering if the Admiral was right. Did Lorin Boskie have something else up her sleeve? He had a healthy respect for her, but couldn’t think of any way she could stop them from leaving Clarion. But the Admiral’s warning was still bothering him as he set about to get the Intergalactic Fleet ready for its delayed departure.