Knight of the Empire

Travelling back to the Havok my mind was in turmoil. Too much was happening too fast. Joyce’s revelation had thrown me but when I looked at it carefully it kind of made sense. Now we had been recalled to the ship something Marsha thought too important to handle herself.

“The captain didn’t give you any specifics as to the nature of this situation?” I addressed my question to Vorra.

“No ma’am she issued a priority one alert.”

I hadn’t heard of a priority one alert it must have been something peculiar to the Marines. I turned my attention to Tutor. “Standard procedure on landing.” It was the correct response when going into a potential combat situation. I couldn’t think of anything else that would have had us scrambling back to the Havok.

“Aye ma’am,” he replied adding. “You know the drill by now people.”

The sound of the engines powering down had us out of the shuttle and taking up combat positions. All weapons facing the door to the ship. The door slid open and Lieutenant Armaradies entered. “Put them away colonel. The captain wants all of you in the briefing room ASAP.” Armaradies often sounded terse but from her face and tone of voice she was angry, very angry. At least she wasn’t angry with us.

She stopped me with her hand on my arm, as I was about to leave. She waited until the squad had gone before letting go. “She’ll might need you later?” she said cryptically to me.

I wondered what she meant by that. Marsha had Shawna but what else would she need from me. I didn’t have time to speculate as I hurried to catch up with the rest of the squad.

I caught up to them just as they filed into the briefing room. Marsha sat at the head of the table with her back against the wall her face grim. I saw her eyes flick to Shawna as she sat down. I guess Marsha was going to want something from the both of us. But there were roads I would not walk down even for friendship. Shawna was there for that I was not. I took my usual seat at the table.

“Ma’am,” I intoned formally.

Marsha took a deep breath. “Captain Slanoi wasn’t who he said he was?”

I winced at the bluntness of her statement and stared hard at her. “What?” I heard the rest of the squad echo my comments.

“The false captain isn’t T’Arni,” Marsha stated bluntly.

A cold feeling trickled down my back. “Is that possible?”

“Apparently so. He’s human.”

“A ‘Brid’?” I asked.

“Not even that he is a full human.”

I stared at Marsha as if she had grown two heads. “I don’t understand!”

“A human surgically altered to look like a T’Arni!” she spat angrily.

“Not possible!” I said to a chorus of protests from my squad.

“Silence!” Marsha roared her fist hammered the table making it shake. “XO take you squad over to Elafi and investigate. You have full sanction from Com Ops to take whatever steps you need to resolve the situation.”

“I’ll need Lieutenant Prousenos,” I knew it was against regulations to use a tepe but this would help us resolve the situation faster. From Marsha’s expression Com Ops wanted to resolve this as quickly as possible.

“You have him and anything else you need. This comes from the top. You have full control.”

“Squad dismissed,” I said adding. “Grab a quick bite to eat and head to the shuttle bay full equipment check.”

“Aye ma’am.”

Then as I got up Marsha spoke.

“One other thing before you go XO?”

“Captain?”

“Wear your sash you’ll need it.”

The squad was already in the shuttle bay when I reached it running through their equipment check.

“Started without me LT?”

“Harms and Vorra volunteered to do your check.” He indicated a load bearing harness on the floor.

I nodded to the two women. “Thanks,” I said.

The only one that looked out of place was Lieutenant Prousenos rather lonely in his security armour, which consisted of an armoured jacket, shin and arm pads and a oval helmet with a flap at the back as basic as it could get. In the GF we called them bullet magnets. At least this time I wasn’t wearing that kit. Although my borrowed armour was basic it offered more protection than Prousenos’ armour did.

“Lieutenant Prousenos the captain tell you what we require,” I asked him directly.

He winced at my tone of voice. “Do a mind sweep of everyone on the ship.”

“You have a problem with that?”

“Ma’am?” He sounded unhappy about it.

“We haven’t time to deal with your ethics,” I snapped. “Do what you’ve been ordered we’re up against the clock here!” I glared hard at him he wilted under my gaze. I turned my attention back to the squad. “Treat this as a hostile situation LT?”

“Aye ma’am.”

We boarded the shuttle.

Twenty minutes later the shuttle was landing in the Elafi’s shuttle bay. As I waited for the bay to repressurize I spoke. “Lieutenant Prousenos you will remain on board the shuttle until we’ve assessed and cleared the shuttle bay. Bacare and Harms you’re with him while we are aboard. Vorra you’re with me. LT take the rest of squad and head up the investigation team once we’ve established what happened.”

“Aye ma’am.”

“Bay repressurized ma’am!” Ross called out.

“Helmets on,” I ordered. “And Prousenos wear your re-breather.”

We slipped into our routine and I felt at ease considering we were going into a dangerous situation. I was just glad to be back in action doing something that I knew how to do.

The door slid open and we exited in to Elafi shuttle bay. It was significantly larger that the bay on the Havok. I was aboard a cruiser and not a scout ship. There was enough room for at least three more shuttles. This wasn’t the only bay there was a twin to this one on the other side of the ship. A squad from the Elafi was waiting for us. A half dozen extremely tall warriors in combat armour their hands on the weapons strapped to their chests. I immediately recognised them as Valkyrie, which made sense now. Marsha had told me to wear my sash because it would be easier to deal with them if they thought I was a Valkyrie. As soon as they saw me they relaxed I guess my sash meant something to them. The squad leader stepped forward and saluted I returned the salute and removed my helmet. I noted the squad leader nod thoughtfully.

“Colonel Locke,” I said.

“Sergeant Dragna Hollen at your command Colonel Locke of Clan Yanik.”

“Who’s in command of the ship now sergeant Hollen?”

“Lieutenant Kyrikia I’ll take you to her with your permission Colonel Locke of Clan Yanik.”

“Just colonel or Locke please no need to be so formal.”

“Yes colonel,” Sergeant Hollen sounded pleased.

We followed the Valkyrie through the ship.

The briefing room of the Elafi was a wide as the Havok’s but twice as long. At the far table sat a number of people. If my guess was correct they were the bridge command or at least some of them if they followed procedures. No one wanted another Sovran least of all me. Had I not been late I would have suffered the fate of the command. Another thing that worried me as I surveyed the faces of the crew seated here was the youthfulness of those assembled. Seated at the head of the table was the T’Arni lieutenant that informed us that the captain had been replaced moments before the ship had been rammed by the freighter. The Elafi hadn’t suffered too much damage as far as I could see on our journey from the shuttle bay. I wasn’t here about the ship I was here for the fake captain and the reasons the impostor had not been uncovered before now. I hadn’t taken that much notice but she was as young as her companions. I had a sinking feeling that if I asked around the rest of the crew was just as young. There seemed to be a pattern forming and for the life of me I couldn’t connect all the dots yet. I figured that I’d work it out sooner or later another of those Terran expressions I had learned. I made a few introductions.

“Lieutenant Prousenos?” I asked.

“They’re all shocked that their captain was not who he said he was,” he responded reluctantly.

One of the crew nearest to us a human suddenly went paler than is sun-tanned face could get. “You brought a tepe!”

Which brought a chorus of protests.

“Shut up!” I roared. “Until Lieutenant Prousenos has cleared you I’ll think you were part of the conspiracy!” I found myself staring down at least a dozen frightened faces. Unlike Gena’s companions these had more training. Well I hoped they had otherwise we had a problem.

“Lieutenant Kyrikia?” I said.

“Ma’am?” Kyrikia sounded scared.

“Who’s your CO and I don’t mean the impostor?”

“That would be me,” she answered hesitantly.

“Prousenos?”

“True,” was all he said. I could hear the distaste in his voice.

“Your CMO?”

“Ma’am?”

“Chief Medical Officer.” Perhaps it would be better I treated them like Gena’s companions.

“That would be me,” a young human man answered holding up his shaking hand.

To my eyes he looked as if he had come straight from Med. School.

“Ok, for how many of you this is your first assignment I want a show of hands.”

Every one of the Elafi crew raised their hands. I felt a chill in the pit of my stomach as visions of the fight in the amphitheatre returned to haunt me. I drew a deep breath and swallowed hard blinking out the memory.

“And the rest of the crew,” I asked dreading the answer.

“We all are?” Kyrikia said with a tremble in her voice. “Except for the Ezarans and they mostly keep themselves in engineering.”

“Kyrikia get the Chief Engineer up here,” I said to her moderating the tone of my voice. I hadn’t asked about the Valkyrie squad that would be a good way to find myself on the floor picking up my teeth.

“Yes ma’am,” Kyrikia sounded calmer. Just as she was about to call her comms link chirped. “What is it Pauline!” she snapped. “This better be urgent?”

“Someone’s trying to access critical systems.”

“Vorra!” I said without looking in her direction.

“Not me!” she protested.

“Then who?” I shot Kyrikia a significant look. Luckily she got the message.

“Pauline who is trying to access the system?” Kyrikia shouted down her comms. I hadn’t the heart to tell her it wasn’t necessary the comms would auto-filter out too loud sounds.

“Unknown,” unseen Pauline replied.

“Where are they accessing the system from?” I asked Kyrikia.

“Signal source?” she yelled to her comms unit

“The brig?” Pauline sounded as surprised as I was.

“Impossible!” Kyrikia said staring at the comms unit on her wrist. “There’s no one there?”

“Just to remind you,” Sergeant Hollen remarked. “That we moved him there from the medbay it made more sense.”

“Oh yes I remember now but he’s under heavy sedation?” Kyrikia replied her face flushing.

“If he’s got an implant he won’t need to move to access it?”

“Is that possible Colonel Locke?” Kyrikia looked in shock.

“More than possible.” I tapped the side of my head. “I had one so that is possible.”

I turned to Sergeant Hollen. “Hollen get me to the brig promptly. LT take over here.”

“Aye ma’am.”

“And Vorra,” I added, “keep him out?”

“I’ll relish the challenge ma’am.”

As we hurried away from the briefing room I considered that this might be a trap but Prousenos would have sensed any deceit from the crew in the briefing room. My only other option would be an impostor with an implant, a very dangerous foe. Lottie may have been a rogue AI but she had kept me safe and sane. From what I had heard and witnessed on the Havok this impostor was anything but sane. There was only one way to stop him I didn’t want to go down that route but I had no choice. I unclipped my AR 32 and changed mags. The standard armour piercing rounds would be no good in a closed environment like the brig. The chance of shots ricocheting was too great. Reluctantly I switched to explosive rounds. They would make a hell of a mess of a non-armoured target but there would be no ricochet. I jammed my helmet back onto my head. Going into a hostile situation and not wearing it was a good way to get yourself killed.

“Don’t fire or draw your weapons unless I order you to,” I said to Sergeant Hollen and her squad of Valkyrie following me. I wasn’t sure if she would take commands from me. We normally got around this in the GF by issuing commands through their own officers. It worked most of the time.

“Yes ma’am,” Hollen responded.

“Vorra,” I called to my comms as we reached the entrance of the brig. “Signal location?”

“Emulating from your current location about five meters ahead of you.”

I would ask her later how she knew exactly where I was. She must have put a tracker on me. Understandable after what had happened to me on Nthus but she could have asked first. I signalled for Hollen’s squad to spread out.

Slowly I entered the brig. It was larger than I expected there was a reception area and five cells. One opposite the door to the rest of the ship and two pairs either side of the reception area. The reception area was large enough to have space to subdue a prisoner if he or she got too fractious. Hollen’s squad filed in behind me silently weapons at the ready.

“Which one?” I signalled to Hollen.

“The one at the end.” She signalled back.

Slowly and quietly I approached the cell. Each one had a viewing port in the door. There were no electronics anywhere in the brig it had been designed that way. The doors themselves slid sideways when opened. I signalled to Hollen.

Quietly she moved beside me her hand on the locking mechanism. I was surprised that such a tall woman could move like she was my shadow. I peered through the port and saw impostor. His face was bruised I guess the Valkyrie hadn’t too gentle in subduing him and from what I had heard he had fought like a man possessed. He looked like any T’Arni I had ever seen. I hadn’t the chance to ask Kyrikia those questions yet as to how she found out he wasn’t T’Arni.

My marked palm itched but I ignored it. This wasn’t a time for a shuriken especially knowing what it did to me and I wasn’t about to take my gauntlet off. I kneeled and took aim but my heart wasn’t in it. I could taste bile in my mouth and steeled myself for the task ahead.

“Open it.” I signalled Hollen.

The door was open in the time it took me to gather my thoughts. The last thing I saw as I pulled the trigger was the expression of anger on his face as he turned to face me. Then his head exploded showering the walls with blood and scraps of flesh.

“The signal’s stopped,” Vorra commed me.

“Ok Vorra see if you can disarm the scuttle charges.” I sounded callous to my own ears after what had happened.

“Aye ma’am,” she replied and broke the link.

I walked over to the headless body my boots squelching in the aftermath of my action. I felt sick, I wanted to throw up. I had never killed in cold blood. I had fought when I was in danger. This was so different I had executed a man. I might have saved the ship and all the lives within it in the process but it was still murder. I would answer for it later. I fully intended to turn myself in for this. I turned to see Hollen behind me.

“See what the CMO can find out about the body.”

I spent the next hour or so in the captain’s ready room trying to make sense of the report I’d compiled. I glanced down at the terminal reading the text on the screen.

“Computer send report.”

I didn’t wait long before a message pinged up on the terminal marked for my eyes only. “Computer open message!” I said and was surprised to see Admiral Prmi on the screen it was a live comm. “Admiral, sir!” I snapped a salute.

“At ease colonel, I’ve just read your message, yours and Captain Yanik’s make grim reading.

“I couldn’t take the risk he’d be able to access the systems.” I still doubted that I had done the right thing.

“Safety of the ship and crew comes first,” Admiral Prmi stated firmly. “I can find no fault in your actions.”

“Then why do I feel so bad about it?”

“It’s only natural,” the admiral reassured me. “You will get over it.”

I understood his reasoning. “And the impostor?”

Admiral Prmi sighed. “We can’t find any record of him. In fact there’s no record of him as a civilian as well as the navy. The only Slanoi we have on record is serving with the 16th GF and he’s alive and well.”

That didn’t sound good. “How is that possible?”

“We don’t know the only lead is that it was something to do with the Rhosani. There was a Rhosani replacement in charge of personnel movement and procurement. We think he’s the one that got that assassin onto the Havok but we are still investigating.”

“I’ve put Lawrence the medic from my squad in with the Elafi’s CMO.” My comms unit chirped before I could ask any more questions. “Excuse me admiral,” I said.

“Yes?”

“Colonel we need you in the medbay.” I recognised Lawrence’s voice he sounded alarmed.

“Be right there.” I turned my attention back to Admiral Prmi. “Sorry admiral I’m wanted in the medbay.”

“We speak again later.”

The screen went blank. I stood and hurried out. Sergeant Hollen was outside the door. She seemed to have taken on the task of being my personal guard.

“We need to get to the medbay,” I told her. “Can you show me the way?”

“This way colonel.” Her hand flicked a sign to her Valkyrie squad. I didn’t recognise the sign she used it wasn’t in the Marine handbook. It must have been something personal to the Valkyrie. I knew those in the GF used hand signals that only they knew and understood.

The medbay was larger than I expected with room for at least two dozen beds. The Terran ships had smaller medbays and there were more of them. The Elafi’s doctor stood with two T’Arni nurses in medical tunics the forth person was Lawrence. They were gathered around a cloth-covered shape at the far end of the medbay.

The doctor looked up as I entered Hollen’s squad at my back. “I’m sorry colonel we didn’t have time to be introduced. I’m Doctor Jim Rutherford and this is Senior Carer Tobritza and her assistant Staff Nurse Agryra.”

Both women nodded in my direction.

“Lawrence’s call sounded urgent?”

“Ah that it is.” Rutherford replied turning on an overhead monitor, “I couldn’t find if he had an implant.” He shuddered, as he said that. “Not enough skull left to examine.”

“I‘ve seen worse,” I replied bluntly. “I was on Anoxi.”

Rutherford stared at me but said nothing.

“The doc couldn’t find anything so I suggested we do a full body scan.” Lawrence said pointing to image on the monitor. “We found this?”

I looked at the image. It showed a cuboid object under the sternum about five centimetres on each side. My blood ran cold as I remembered what Alice told me about the object they had discovered on the Jakarta. The one their chief engineer had hacked a hole in his head to place it there.

“Hollen clear all humans from vicinity of the medbay,” I said quietly. “Lawrence you and Doctor Rutherford must leave.”

“Ma’am?”

“Clear the bay Lawrence that’s an order.” I turned on my comms unit. “Lieutenant Prousenos get down to medbay pronto!” My next call was to Tutor. “LT have Bacare and Kriaeusus meet me in the medbay and liase with Sergeant Hollen I want a cordon around the bay.”

“Aye ma’am.”

I turned my attention to the two nurses standing staring at me open-mouthed. “I think it will be for the best if you left.

“Are you sure ma’am,” Tobritza asked.

“I’m sure the fewer people here the better.”

I watched them leave I was alone with the corpse. I pulled back the cover over the body and stared down at it. To me it was just a hunk of meat I wasn’t going to cry at his loss I had a job to do. I had to think of a plan to get the device off the ship. I thought of Alice’s solution and thought I could do one better.

“Lieutenant Kyrikia,” I commed.

“Ma’am,” she responded quickly. “I’ve just been told the medbay off limits?”

“You on a private channel?”

“No ma’am, give me a couple of minutes.”

I waited until my comm link chirped. “Kyrikia?”

“Ma’am I’m on my way down.”

“No get yourself up to the bridge. Prep a missile and remove its guidance unit. And get helm to plot a course close as we can to the sun.”

“Could I ask what this what this about?”

“Just do as you have been ordered!” I shouted at my comms unit realising what a futile gesture it was.

I heard her draw a deep breath when she spoke again I could hear the fear in her voice. “Ma’am?”

“Pull yourself together!” I snapped.

Her comms cut out.

“Damn it!” I cursed.

Bacare and Kriaeusus entered at the run.

“Ma’am,” they said.

“Stand watch.”

“Aye ma’am.”

Kyrikia pushed past them before I could order her away. She saw the body and vomited. “What?” she burbled taking great gulps of air and placed her hand over her mouth in an effort not to vomit again. “I...” she faltered and vomited.

“The impostor has a Rhosani device in his body. It needs to be destroyed.” I had to be firm even though I felt sorry for her. I was used to it although it was one of things I wouldn’t have wanted to do I had my duty.

Kyrikia vomited again.

“Kriaeusus get the lieutenant to Doc Rutherford.”

“And me ma’am?” Bacare asked.

“ Stay here with me. I’m taking command of the ship until the device is destroyed,” adding to Kyrikia. “Any objections Lieutenant?”

She shook her head and allowed Kriaeusus to guide her gently out.

A few minutes later Prousenos entered his face flushed. “I’ve just seen Lieutenant Kyrikia and Kriaeusus heading away, what’s going on ma’am I’ve never seen a woman so shaken.”

I quickly explained the situation to him. He listened in silence expressionless. “That explains the scratching I’ve been hearing since I got here.”

“A scratching like an itch you can’t scratch at the back of your mind.” I remembered what Alice had told me.

“That’s it ma’am?” He seemed surprised with what I told him.

“Someone I know encountered a Rhosani device which confirms what we are dealing with.”

Prousenos’ eyes narrowed. “They are our bane. What do you want me to do? We won’t be their slaves again!”

“Monitor the crew, that’s all I can ask of you.”

“Of course ma’am and you?”

“Must do what I must.” I held out my hand. I couldn’t see any surgical instruments and wasn’t about to go routing about in the cabinets to find what I wanted. I didn’t have the luxury of time. “Bacare I need your blade.”

Bacare reached down and pulled his knife from the sheath in the top of his boot. “I’ll get another I don’t want it back,” he said as he handed it to me.

I understood his sentiment he didn’t want anything that had been touched by the Rhosani, no T’Arni did. Which was probably the reason they had used an altered human.

I pulled the cover off the rest of the body flinging it on the ground beside the gurney the body had been laid upon. I took a deep breath as I gripped the knife. I was about to mutilate a body not that I had any qualms in doing so. It was a task that had to be performed like any other. With a quick glance at the image on the monitor I plunged the knife in. Bacare must have spent a lot of time sharpening it. It sliced through flesh as if it was tissue paper. I quickly made two incisions one horizontal and one crossing it vertically. I was surprised by the amount of blood still in the body it hadn’t congealed yet. I wasn’t a medtech so I couldn’t be sure if it something to do with the device or not. I had basic medical training everyone in the GF did but that was to keep someone alive not carve them up after they had died. Finally I had cut away enough to get a glimpse of a solid block between the diaphragm and the sternum. I stuck my fingers in and pulled feeling some resistance as I tore it out of the body. As I examined the device I was suddenly glad of my combat armour gauntlets. It seemed to my mind to have a malignant feel to it something evil although I couldn’t explain why it felt that way.

“Prousenos?” I asked.

He knew what I was on about without me saying it directly. “I can still feel it.”

I looked around for something to put it in. Bacare handed me a medical contaminates container large enough to put the device in. He never said a word as he stepped back I couldn’t see his face through his helmet any more than he could see me through mine.

Sergeant Hollen was waiting for me outside the medbay. “Area secure ma’am,” she saluted ignoring my bloody gauntlets and blood smeared container I held.

“Nearest missile bay,” I replied simply.

“This way ma’am,” she said without hesitation.

I followed her through the bowels of the ship. Kyrikia must have followed my orders a crew of T’Arni and Ezarans awaited me in the missile bay. One of the missile’s lay open its guidance system lay beside it. The missile was about four metres long and a metre in circumference.

“We’ve removed the guidance system.” A grizzled looking Ezaran told me. He was the oldest person I’d seen of the ship so far.

“Will it still fire?” I said.

“On a line of sight. I hope you have a big enough target to fire this at?”

“Can’t get bigger than the target I’m aiming at.”

With the Ezaran’s help I loaded the container into the warhead compartment. I watched as they loaded it into the tube ready to fire. Satisfied I headed to the bridge.