The Archer's Paradox - The Travis Fletcher Chronicles (28 page)

Unsurprisingly, forced labour was not suited to improvement and invention, which meant that The Children of Éðel had actually regressed technologically, but the sheer number of their ships and the fact that they were born and bred warriors gave Otoch no advantage in an all-out war. Then there was the World Killer. Why that abomination still existed was beyond any reason that K'an Aayin could fathom. Had they used it on other planets since The Fall or was it just used to terrorise superior forces into submission? Was that its purpose here? To force them to give up The Original without a fight? Maybe The Children of Éðel were not so sure of victory either. Maybe he would soon find out.

As K'an Aayin’s vehicle disappeared into one of the exit tunnels, Kiiro No Wani stepped out of another bounce tube, his brow creased in concern. The Council Leader was so wrapped up in his own thoughts he had not noticed
Kiiro No Wani arrive in the garage moments after him or that the leader for Jitaku had caught his stray thoughts and taken an interest. Kiiro No Wani could not probe deeply without alerting K'an Aayin to the intrusion so he settled down in his own vehicle, closed his eyes and followed K'an Aayin’s mind signature discreetly and it was not long before his destination became apparent.

K'an Aayin’s vehicle stopped in front of a dimly lit tower. Over the rest of The City he could see the evening lightshow created by the setting sun, but here in the Éðel Sector nothing seemed to penetrate the gloom. Even the air seemed dank and oppressive, even though he knew it was being recycled through the same systems as the rest of The City. It was not much better inside the tower, where much of the internal lighting had failed due to lack of maintenance. He made his way to a bank of bounce tubes, thankfully still working.

At the designated floor he found the apartment number he had been given and activated the door chime. The door slid back and he was confronted by a tall lean man in a black uniform. His short blond hair clung to his scalp, his skin was pockmarked and he had a scar running down his right jawline from his ear to his chin. His hard blue eyes looked K'an Aayin up and down and the corner of his mouth curled up in disgust. At his waist hung an ugly looking weapon with his right hand hovering over it.

“You are late.” His accent was harsh and his tone clipped.

“Would you prefer that I left early with only half the information and arouse suspicion at the same time?” K'an Aayin replied evenly. The man only grunted and stepped back, allowing him to enter.

The inside of the apartment was a mess with equipment, clothes and remnants of food scattered around. The clothing unit and food dispenser had both been destroyed, seemingly by weapon’s fire. K'an Aayin surveyed the scene.

“Broken.” Áhýdende Snaca grunted.

“Just because you could not work them does not mean they were broken.” K'an Aayin explained, as if talking to a child. “How do you expect to eat?”

“I have emergency rations, enough for the task. Tell me what you know.”

“If I give you Travis Fletcher, you will leave Otoch in peace.” It was not so much a request but more of a plea.

Áhýdende Snaca grunted and nodded. “You can go and get a new Original.”

“What will you do with him?”

“Not your concern.”

“I do not want to be responsible for his death.”

“Not your concern.”

“I can find a suitable
Nuuktak
who can help you extract the cure without harming him.”

“Not your concern.” Áhýdende Snaca’s said with a chop of his hand, indicating that any further discussion was not only useless but could also be detrimental to K'an Aayin’s health.

One life for millions, K'an Aayin reasoned, and another Original could well be procured. The Xi Scorpii had waited so long, even a few years more would not make too much of a difference. “I will bring Travis Fletcher here in twenty days’ time.”

Why so long? You can bring him to me now.” It was more a statement of fact rather than an order.

“Because in twenty days, Otoch and Tocha will be at the closest point of their orbits so your escape route will be shortest.” K'an Aayin made circles with his hands to illustrate his explanation. “I would surmise that is when the fleet you have hidden in the remains of Tocha plans to attack as well.” K'an Aayin immediately regretted his admission, but was secretly pleased when he saw Áhýdende Snaca’s eyes widen in disbelief. “One hundred and eight warships.” He stated, consolidating his advantage. “I can even tell you how many of which type if you wish.” He continued, compounding his advantage. “Why do you think I agreed to this meeting? But how you evaded our patrols is a mystery that I will have to address after you have left.” His earlier success in one-upmanship had given him more courage.

Áhýdende Snaca grunted noncommittally.

“It will be up to you to make your way out of The City without being detected. If you are discovered before then, I will not allow myself to be dishonoured.” He chopped his hand in a similar fashion to Áhýdende Snaca, making it clear what he meant.

Áhýdende Snaca just grunted.

“I am doing this for the good of all the Xi Scorpii.”

“If you fail, I will make sure that you are the first to die.” Áhýdende Snaca interjected with a sneer and indicated that he should leave. The meeting was over.

In the garage below the Central Pyramid, Kiiro No Wani opened his eyes. K'an Aayin’s thoughts had been well guarded during the conversation but the person he met was not so well trained, so Kiiro No Wani was able to make out the full conversation from the other’s surface thoughts. Anger at K'an Aayin flashed though his mind, but he fought it down, along with his first thought to expose K'an Aayin as a traitor. That would only escalate the situation and could spark a war. No, he would have to use his skill at ‘honourable deception’, as K'an Aayin had put it and closed his eyes again to investigate some possibilities.

After a while he had the outline of a plan. It was bold and dangerous, not just for him, but for everyone he would have to drag into it, but if he failed, it could be far worse. He would have to act quickly and enlist his first two accomplices immediately. Both were the key to the success of the plan and one could get something he needed. He programmed his vehicle to take him to the Mukhapu
ṭ
a City Guard headquarters. Twenty days was not a long time to prepare.

On The Beorn, Fleet Commander Beadu Slecg paced round his cabin. He paced because he was bored. His crew was bored and the crews of all the other ships in the fleet were bored. They were warriors and the patience of a warrior grew thin very quickly without purpose or action. He had had his officers run every drill in the book until every member of the fleet could recite from memory, not only his actions during the emergency but also the action of everyone in his squad. But they could only run drills for so long. Without real action the crew would become bored and bored warriors would start fights and fights on star ships, especially warships, were very dangerous indeed. He thought idly about what he would do to the idiot that had planned this incursion. That whiled away a good few minutes as he imagined various members of the government having their skin stripped slowly from their bodies before being ejected into space. Spacing? No, too quick.

He reached for the communicator. “I want an inspection of the junior officers’ quarters in one hour.”

“Yes Sir!” He was sure he heard the faintest hint of dissention in the reply from his second on the bridge. He would have to attend to his attitude later. “And run a drill to begin half way through inspections.” He paused for a moment. “Hull breach in the forward weapons bay.” He decided on a whim. That should shake things up a bit. He cut the communicator off as soon as he had confirmation that his Second had understood. Satisfied for the moment, he decided to make a visit to the small arms range. Maybe destroying a few targets would relieve the boredom, as well as showing the rest of the crew that even the Fleet Commander was not above honing his skills on the battlefield. But before he could retrieve his sidearm from its locker the communicator buzzed.

“Yes?” He queried.

“Communications here, Sir. We have an incoming transmission for you from our undercover operative on the planet.”

“Route it to my station immediately.” He ordered, unable to mask the surprise in his voice. It had been reported that the whole team had been caught and killed.

“Sir, it is a one way encrypted signal, you will not be able to respond.”

“Acknowledged.”

A series of clicks indicated the connection had been made. “This is Communications Officer Áhýdende Snaca, Fleet Commander.” The comms unit announced. “I am the last surviving member of the insurgent team sent to secure The Original. Your position is compromised,” the disembodied voice continued, “the enemy knows your position and numbers. Your fleet was tracked to its current position behind the remains of Tocha and the enemy even have a ship hidden within the fleet, monitoring your transmissions, hence the reason for this encrypted transmission.”

Beadu Slecg could not believe what he was hearing, but could not question the sender. He sat impotently behind his desk, scowling at the comms unit. If this was true then he would have the head of the officer in charge of plotting their course. He was assured that no one could know of their location. He would then turn his attention to those responsible for allowing an enemy ship to go undetected within their fleet for so long. They would have time to contemplate their errors on their long walk back to Níwlíc Éðel.

But there was more. “I have been able to subvert the Council Leader, K'an Aayin and he will deliver The Original, Travis Fletcher to me in twenty days, when you are closest to Otoch. I have a fast shuttle hidden beyond the city’s dome and will bring him to you on condition that we take no further action against Otoch or its citizens. I also request a protective escort in case I am pursued as my shuttle is unarmed. That is all. I will report progress in fifteen days.” The comms unit clicked to indicate the transmission had been terminated.

Beadu Slecg leaned back in his chair to contemplate his next move. His knee-jerk reaction to immediately execute the crew that failed to keep their fleet hidden from the enemy was tempered by the news that no less a person than the Council Leader himself had been subverted and would offer up Travis Fletcher in order to save his people. This proved to him that the Xi Scorpii had no stomach or ability to wage war and would rather give up the one thing that could save them from extinction than risk a conflict with a superior opponent.

“Cowards indeed.” He snorted to himself and reached for the comms unit before thinking better of it. If there was an enemy spy hidden in his fleet listening in on their communications traffic, he did not want to give them any warning that they had been uncovered. He stood up, straightened his uniform and headed for the bridge.

Once on the bridge, he ordered the Communications Officer to block all outgoing transmissions to the rest of the fleet, except the most banal reports and updates. If all communications stopped, it could alert the enemy that something was wrong. He then set his scanning team the task of finding the intruder without alerting them, after reminding them that they had failed in their responsibilities so far and this was the only way they could redeem themselves. Ultimately it was a young junior who noticed an anomaly on one of the larger pieces of debris, much to the ire of his older and more experienced superiors. A small area where light seemed to bend slightly, sending back a distorted image about large enough to conceal a small craft. That was it! He had no idea how the technology worked and they had nothing remotely like it, but if they could capture the craft intact it would make a great prize to take home. The ability to slip into the very heart of enemy territory undetected! The possibilities were endless. He sent runners out to gather a crew to take an assault craft, with orders to preferably capture or destroy the enemy craft.

Finally, some action. Three scenarios played out in his head. Either the assault craft would be detected and the enemy would flee (most likely given the enemy’s predisposition to cowardice), or they would choose to fight, whereupon Beadu Slecg had no doubt that they would be destroyed or they would be captured, either by stealth or surrender. Any of these scenarios would please Beadu Slecg as it would rid him of an irritating insect burrowing in his skin, although like an insect bite, it had only become irritating after he knew it was there. Capture of the craft would bring him most prestige, but its destruction would give him the most satisfaction.

As Niji No Tori made her way back to the Jitaku sector where she lived, she played back the evening’s events in her mind. The streets were quiet and the people she did pass took no notice of her uncharacteristically ungainly gait. Travis Fletcher’s wine had dulled her senses and she was having trouble concentrating. The effect was not unpleasant, but it also made it easier to lose control of one’s emotions. Would Travis Fletcher have been so angry with her if it had not been for the amount of wine he had drunk? The conclusion she came to was that he may have been just as angry, but he would have tried to hide it from her, which would have meant that the situation would not have been resolved so quickly. She decided to make it up to her friend by planning a special meal and drinks for him made up of dishes from all the Xi Scorpii stars. She smiled at the prospect and she was sure that Travis Fletcher would enjoy it. She started to compose a menu in her head, starting with items from Xi Scorpii B, of course.