The Phoenix Rising (31 page)

“
I know. But I need you to
understand that this meeting is professional. We have some
questions for you that you will answer, outside of them, you and I
have nothing to discuss. Is that clear?”

“
Crystal
... son,” said Samil, a touch of sorrow in his
voice.

“
Good. Now, have you heard
of the Arcane Storm?”

He looked at Calvin shrewdly. Then glanced
at Tristan. “Close the door.” Calvin doubted the thin wooden door
would really prevent the keen ears of a strigoi from eavesdropping,
if one was near. But he humored Samil anyway and nodded for Tristan
to shut the door. Once it was closed Samil answered Calvin’s
question. “Yes, it’s a ship. What about it?”

Calvin raised an eyebrow. “I think you know
why it’s of interest to us. But I’ll humor you this once. The ship
disappeared and we believe it is carrying isotome weapons which can
destroy stars. That’s why it’s of interest to us. Last we heard,
the Enclave had possession of the ship. Know anything about
that?”

Calvin watched his father’s facial
expressions very carefully. In many ways it was an older version of
his own face, so he was sure he could spot the tell-tale signs of
insincerity.

“
Yes, the ship was in the
possession of the Enclave,” said Samil. “And it
is
carrying isotome weapons. That is
true. But I don’t think they can actually destroy stars—surely that
must be an exaggeration.”

“
They can,” said Calvin
flatly. “Who is in possession of the ship? And what do you know
about the weapons?”

“
You realize that by telling
you any of this, I’m putting my own life in danger,” said
Samil.

Calvin’s eyes narrowed. So
typical, only concerned about himself. From what Calvin could tell,
his father had lived his entire life—and made and lost his
fortunes—by watching his back, making sure he got paid, and
collecting favors from others. Motivated by pure self-interest, and
nothing more. “I think you owe me this much,
Father
.”

Samil seemed to think about
it. “Alright. Just so long as you understand that I’m doing this
for
you
. I’m
putting my ass on the line here and I don’t have to. I’m not even
asking to be paid or rewarded for it, so please… at least consider
having some gratitude.”

Calvin balked.
“Gratitude?
Really?
That depends on the quality of your information. Now tell us
what you know!”

“
The ship was lent to a
woman from Titan Three. She’s from some group called the Phoenix
Ring.”

“
What do you know about the
Phoenix Ring?”

“
Just that they seem pretty
well-connected and have their fingers in almost every pie. That’s
all I know.”

“
What’s the woman’s
name?”

“
I don’t know. But I can
describe her. She’s young, maybe a little over thirty years old,
blond hair, blue eyes, and pale skin. She’s thin too, maybe even a
little too thin, and she’s got a deep voice for a woman. I only met
her once and we didn’t speak much.”

“
She sounds
human.”

“
She is.”

“
Even though Titan Three is
a Polarian system?”

“
That’s right. I don’t know
if she’s originally from there, but that’s where she would take the
isotome after the Enclave gave it to her.”

“
Wait
. The Enclave gave her the isotome? Are you telling me the
Enclave is responsible for mining the isotome from the Xenobe
Nebula Region?”

“
Yes, that’s right. The
Enclave figured out how to extract it and, with the help of this
woman, they were able to weaponize it. She’s a scientist of some
kind and it’s all based on her theoretical work. The Enclave would
mine the isotome, transfer it to her, she’d take it away to some
secret plant on Titan Three—and there manufacture the isotome into
weapons. She’d then sell the weapons back to the
Enclave.”

“
So the enclave has the
weapons?”

“
Yes,” said Samil. “For a
little while longer.”

“
Where are they? We have to
destroy them,” said Calvin.

“
That will be a lot easier
said than done. Right now they are hidden away—somewhere extremely
dangerous to go—awaiting sale to the Rotham Republic.”

“
Why? What do they get out
of it?”

“
There are those in the
Republic that wish to change the balance of power in the
galaxy.”

“
No, I mean why is the
Enclave selling the weapons to the Rotham Republic? What do they
get out of it?”

“
Recognition, among other
things,” said Samil. “The Enclave is tired of living in secret, and
being treated like an ostracized disease in a galaxy unwilling to
accept them. The Rotham government is prepared to offer them a
home, public acknowledgement, all the food they could eat, money,
ships, and most precious of all... citizenship.”

“
I assume by food you
mean—”

“
Live prisoners, yeah,” said
Samil.

“
We
have
to stop them,” said Calvin. If
those weapons fell into the hands of the Rotham Republic… it would
undoubtedly lead to the most severe war the galaxy had ever seen,
and possibly the extinction of the human species. “You have to help
us.”

“
There’s nothing I can do,”
said Samil with an earnest shrug. “Other than tell you what I know.
And hope the others never learn that I’ve betrayed their
confidence.”

“
You’re
Savetnik
, whatever the hell that
means,” said Calvin. “Aren’t you some kind of leader or something?
They seem to value what you think of them.”

“
Savetnik is more like a
guide, friend, and counselor than a leader. I live here with these
night creatures in a kind of symbiosis, not because I really like
them, or fit in. I stay informed, I get them things, share
information, and so on. And they give me a safe place to live and
see to my other needs as well.” He glanced down at the syringe.
“But I do not lead them.”

Calvin was sure there was more to the story.
The strigoi who’d called himself the First seemed pretty bent on
remaining in Savetnik’s favor. “Then how do you know so much about
the Arcane Storm and the isotome?”

“
The Enclave used me to
arrange the meeting.”

“
I see,” said Calvin, still
believing his father had more influence in the Enclave than he was
admitting. “If you won’t help us, then at least tell us where the
weapons are, so we can destroy them.”

“
The weapons are stockpiled
on the surface of Remus Nine—that’s where the sale is going down.
As you must know, it’s a system that’s been removed from almost
every star chart—”

“
And surrounded by a mine
field. It’s the birthplace of the Remorii, yes I know,” said
Calvin. “I also know where it is.”

“
But knowing where it is
doesn’t give you even the tiniest sense of the danger that is on
the planet’s surface,” said Samil with strong emphasis.

“
That’s alright,” said
Calvin, “we don’t have to go down to the surface. We’ll wait for
the buyer to arrive and the trade to happen, we’ll ambush the buyer
on his way out and seize the cargo.”

“
I don’t think so,” said
Samil. “The buyer is sending a fleet of Rotham warships there to
make sure the cargo is secured and safely taken back to Republic
space.”

“
A fleet that close to the
Empire runs the risk of being spotted,” said Pellew.

“
Yes, but they don’t dare
risk losing the weapon. Or letting it fall into Imperial hands,”
said Samil. “Besides, once they have the weapon, what will it
matter if the Empire detects them violating the treaty? They will
have a weapon that can darken stars and freeze planets.”

“
The weapon can destroy
stars,” said Calvin. “And wipeout whole systems.”

“
So you claim.”

“
How large is this fleet?”
demanded Calvin.

“
Thirty
warships.”

“
Wow,” said
Pellew.

Samil was right. Engaging a fleet like that
was completely out of the question. “Alright then we’ll have to go
down onto the surface. Where on the planet are the weapons being
stored?”

“
Going onto the surface is
committing suicide,” said Samil.

“
He’s right,” said Tristan.
“The whole planet is covered in type one Remorii. They’re
everywhere.”

Calvin had heard almost nothing about type
one Remorii. “It’s a chance we’ll have to take,” he said. “I don’t
see another option.” He considered alerting Intel Wing, hoping that
he got through to someone who was still loyal to the Empire, and
who could dispatch a fleet to come to their aid. But the odds of
coming up with a force able to contend with the Rotham fleet, and
getting them into position in time, and not tipping off the Phoenix
Ring in the process, seemed astronomically small. The last thing he
wanted was to spook the seller into moving the stockpile somewhere
else, somewhere he might never find.

“
I can’t believe I’m saying
this,” said Samil. “But if you
are
hell bent on going to the planet’s surface, there
is one thing you can use to your advantage. The buyer is sending
someone down to the surface to inspect the weapons stockpile and
finish negotiations with the Enclave.”

“
What’s his
name?”

“
I don’t know his name. But
I do know this. On the orbital station there is a map which reveals
the location of the Enclave agent on the planet’s surface. It also
indicates where to land and what the safest route is to the
rendezvous. You could follow it.”

“
That doesn’t sound so bad,”
said Calvin.

Samil looked unconvinced.
“Just... don’t let the Enclave’s agent know you’re there. If he
feels threatened by you...
it won’t be
pretty
.”

“
Where on the station is the
map?” asked Pellew.

“
The forward control room.
You won’t find anyone on the station, it’s abandoned. And it
doesn’t have any power either, so you’ll have to supply its
computer with power before you can download the map.”

“
Shouldn’t be a problem,”
said Calvin. The Nighthawk easily had the resources for an op like
that.

“
You should also know,” said
Samil, “the map is encrypted. The cipher is this—it’s in the
strigoi language. I don’t know if you have software on your ship
that can translate it.”

“
I doubt it,” said Calvin.
“But you could come with us, and help us.”

“
No, I really can’t,” said
Samil, again a look of sadness covered his face.

“
Why not?”

“
You don’t have to explain,”
said Tristan. “But don’t worry, I know the Strigoi language—foul as
it is. I can read the map.”

“
Fine
.” Calvin didn’t really want his father coming aboard the
Nighthawk anyway. “When is this meeting happening?”

“
In two days. At 1530
Standard Galactic Time, sharp.”

“
That’s cutting it close,
but we should be able to make it,” said Calvin.

“
One more thing,” said
Samil. He paused, taking in a deep breath.

Calvin looked at him.
“
What?
”

“
I—” he struggled to
articulate the words. “
Please
… be safe.”

“
What do you care?” Calvin
resisted the urge to unleash on his old man more than a decade’s
worth of frustration, confusion, and hurt feelings that had been
created by Samil’s abrupt and inexplicable absence. But Calvin
managed to hold back. As far as he was concerned, his father died a
long time ago.

“
I
do
care about you...”

“
You sure have a strange way
of showing it.”

“
Alright so maybe I did walk
out on you and your mother—” said Samil. “Maybe I
was
a terrible father. But
I always wanted the best for you. And I still do.”

“
That’s why you left? You
wanted what’s best for me? I think you wanted what’s best
for
you
.”

Samil looked down at his feet. “There
were... complications. I had to leave. You wouldn’t
understand...”

“
You’re right,” said Calvin.
“I don’t understand. And frankly, I don’t want to. Now I don’t
think we have any more questions for you so—”

“
Aleator. CERKO. Titus
Antony,” said Samil in rapid succession.

“
What?” the names caught
Calvin by surprise.

“
Of course you might have
known him as Jacobi—if he gave you his name at all.”

“
How do you know about any
of that?” Calvin had hit a dead end trying to figure out who Titus
Antony was and why CERKO had attacked him on Aleator. Here was the
last place in the galaxy he’d expected to pick up a new
lead.