Logos (Link Book Three), page 10
The guard came closer, reaching Luke’s clavicle. His big eyes reflected Luke’s image in a hundred facets, making him wonder if the Odiox saw him from every angle.
He gazed past, finding two more guards observing their interaction.
Baker lowered his cutting tool and walked up to them. “We are Hiphol.”
Klem joined Scout, both looking as weary as Luke felt. “We are Hiphol.”
Once everyone but Luke said the line, all gazes fell on him.
“Luke, just say it,” Baker said without moving his lips.
“No.”
The guard lifted the gun. Luke backed up a step, sensing the danger.
“Say it,” Scout pleaded.
Sweat stung as he blinked. The air reeked of sulfur, the stench something he’d grown accustomed to in such a short period of time.
“I am Hiphol,” he whispered.
The alien assessed him, the barrel dropping slightly. He spoke, but Luke couldn’t understand him.
“Louder,” Baker translated.
Luke met Scout’s gaze, and the kid nodded slightly. “I am Hiphol. There, are you happy? I am Hiphol!” he shouted.
Appeased, the guard’s wings began to flutter and it lifted off, leaving them in the mines.
“Was that so hard?” Baker switched the cutting torch on. “Look, we all went through it. Life is much easier if you just follow orders.”
“I’ve done that most of my life,” Luke muttered.
“Then why can’t you keep doing it?” Baker asked.
Scout and Klem returned to their quadrant. The two guards on foot were turned away, talking between themselves. “Because I’m finished being told what to do.”
Baker sighed. “Don’t be offended if I request a different partner.”
“You want to stay here?”
“No.”
“I’m getting us out,” he said.
“Sure you are.”
Luke glanced at the shield when it shimmered. Beyond were dozens of mining sites like the one their group was clustered in. Forty aliens were visible from his vantage point, with almost thirty others out of visual range. Lilly rarely left their building, staying put as the human coordinator and liaison between the Hiphol and their people. Consequently, it resulted in her taking the brunt of their anger.
Luke thought about the Hiphol being a conglomeration of many invaded species and wondered how they’d been indoctrinated—until he recalled Callie’s declarations in the aftermath of his loss on Phobos and realized how quickly the downtrodden could be brainwashed. For all he knew, he’d be calling himself Hiphol within weeks.
It was clear how fast guys like Baker and Klem had accepted their new rulers. Luke vowed to never again be taken advantage of, and he wasn’t about to start now. He had no way to contact Valentina since he’d ditched the Slab, but assumed she was watching them from afar. She was someone he would have proudly served with in the war. Val was yet another person he needed to safely escort out of enemy territory, adding to the mounting pressure.
While he evaluated the steps he needed to obtain freedom, he gathered flecks of ore with a magnetic stick, and anything larger he put into the endless supply of metal crates. When Baker and Luke filled one, an Automaton came to retrieve it. Luke noticed countless ways to improve the process, but guessed the Hiphol weren’t overly concerned with their performance. It was more about beating the captives into submission.
Finally, the buzzer sounded for break time. Luke stood far from the warm mining pit, though it did little to cool his body. A large ship hovered overhead, floating between the nearest asteroids connected by long tubes.
“Who’s that?” Luke asked.
“No idea.”
Ten ships surrounded it protectively, and Luke had a feeling someone important to the Hiphol was on that vessel. It slowed, and the shields encasing the mines shuddered and flashed red. An alarm sounded, exuding out of the nearest machines.
“Is there a problem?” Scout joined them, wiping his forehead.
“This has never happened,” Klem told them.
The guards motioned at them to leave, pointing at the exit with their weapons.
“Are we done for the day?” Luke put himself between the guards and the handful of workers in his quadrant.
“I guess so,” Baker said.
Soon every human in the vicinity had gathered near their building’s entrance as the guards urged them inside. Luke peered up, finding another camp on the adjacent planetoid. He’d never noticed it before. Figures moved to their own structure, and one of the alien prisoners stopped to look at Luke. He was tiny from this far, so Luke squinted, trying to catch the figure’s features. It lifted what could only be described as a claw, and Luke waved back before he was shoved by the Odiox guard.
Luke hadn’t quite gotten used to the decontamination chambers. He gritted his teeth while he stripped and was blasted with water. He dripped as he redressed, getting to the next room without the company of a guard.
Lilly waited with worry etched on her brow.
“What changed, not that I’ll complain about being sent home early?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I was informed that work would be halted and to prepare for a visitor.”
“You look scared.”
“This is the first time they’ve prematurely stopped the shift.” Lilly took his hand. “It might be about you and Scout.”
“I don’t think they caught me,” he said, but it was possible. If they had footage of his ship leaving the charging station, it would have been simple to track him to where he’d parked it a kilometer away from their current position. “On the other hand, I was a bit sloppy.”
Lilly gazed at her allies as they entered, probably theorizing what was going on. “I won’t let you die.”
“Neither will I,” he assured her. Despite being unarmed, he was confident he could blast his way out if necessary. Luke had personally trained Scout, and while he didn’t want to rely on a sixteen-year-old kid to back him up, it was better than nothing. The rest of them were terrified and undernourished, but guys like Baker were ropy and could probably cause some damage if it came to a fight.
As if he’d overheard Luke’s thoughts, Scout arrived. “What should we do, Mom?”
Lilly’s mouth was open; then she closed it. “Play nice. Tell the visitor we’re Hiphol and pretend to mean it. With any luck, they’ll move us to Ivoth.”
“Is that what happens?” he asked.
“I think so. It’s hard to pry information out of the guards.”
Luke relaxed, considering how much easier his escape would be if they weren’t under constant scrutiny. He needed to be patient. A fleet might be bearing down on Ethos, but that was their problem to handle. Luke could only think about freeing them and getting as far from Ivoth as possible.
“Everyone do as I say.” Luke walked to the front of the room.
When they continued talking, he whistled loudly. “Listen up!” He mimicked an old commander, who’d spat more than he spoke. Still, he had the respect of the soldiers under him. “Form lines of ten, seven deep.”
Scout went ahead, and the rest of the prisoners tried to follow suit. Luke adjusted them, making sure they were in proper formation. Mr. Abimbola was at the head with Lilly and Klem.
“We’re about to be visited by someone important. They might want information on Earth. You will tell them anything necessary and ensure we’re trusted implicitly. The sooner we prove our loyalty, the faster you’re out of these mines.”
Minutes passed, then an hour.
“I’m hungry,” someone said.
“Is there any water?” a woman asked.
Lilly turned to him. “Maybe we should…” Her words cut off when the door opened.
Luke sensed the entire base inhale when the robots entered. They were different than the mining Automatons, but very familiar nonetheless. The white machines ducked under the short entryway, then stood at their full height once inside. These Hiphol robots were on Ethos and he’d seen the same machines kidnap Lilly and her friends.
Everyone visibly tensed with their arrival. Before the hatch sealed, a figure stepped into the base.
Luke’s breath caught in his throat.
The alien was eight feet tall, nearly matching the robots in size. He wore a hood that covered most of his head, but Luke recognized the similarities to Primum.
The Locus walked in, seemingly unafraid of retribution. His arms were folded into his robe sleeves, much like the videos of the leader of the Diplomats. Small eyes blinked as he scanned the crowd, as if searching for someone.
When he spoke, his voice rolled smoothly, the cadence comforting. The words translated through the Hiphol robot, crisp and clear in a similar accent to Lilly’s, since that was their point of contact. “Praise be to the Stars, and to the Creator.”
Luke didn’t know how to respond.
The Locus flipped off his hood, revealing the smooth, wriggling appendages coming off the back of his head. One hung over his shoulder, draped halfway down his chest.
“We are Hiphol,” the robot repeated in English.
“We are Hiphol,” they chorused without further prompting. Even Luke joined them, though it hurt to do so.
The alien’s teeth bared in what he assumed to be a smile. “Who speaks for you?”
Lilly started to move, but Luke beat her to the punch. “I do.”
“Come.” The Locus beckoned him with a finger, revealing the skin of his arms. Tattoos covered them from elbow to the tips of his dueling thumbs. Seeing the same markings that Ambassador Cunningham wore sent tingles down Luke’s spine. He nervously strode behind the Locus, risking a glance at Scout, then at Lilly before the doors slammed closed.
FIVE
“Ambassador Gaines, there’s a message from Link Station,” Joanna’s aide said.
“Send it in.” Joanna flipped the Slab to a private setting, ensuring complete discretion.
The man on screen had worked for them for years, but she’d forgotten his name. “Hello…”
“It’s Sed, ma’am,” he told her. “Thanks for taking my call.”
She had a million things on her plate, but anything coming from Link Station might be important. “What do you have for me?”
Sed gulped, his Adam’s apple bobbing nervously. “There’s…”
“Just tell me,” she demanded, tired of people delaying the inevitable.
“A new wormhole has appeared.” Sed grimaced.
“Okay. Perhaps it’s Ambassador Cunningham delivering a message,” she said.
“I don’t think so.”
Joanna looked at her Slab, where dozens of messages waited for her to respond. The military fleet’s production was on hold since they’d run out of processing chips at the factory in Old York. The colony ships were behind schedule because she’d needed to approve funding, which took budget from the fledging schools at Mercury Station, not to mention the issues they’d had mining Enceladus since a virus spread through the camp. Doctors were confident they could mitigate the risk, but all transportation in and out of Saturn’s moon was on hold.
“Care to explain?” she asked impatiently.
“Let me show you.” Sed shot a video feed attached to a 3D rendering of the Sun Colonies.
“It’s nowhere near Link Station.”
“That’s the problem. I doubt anyone on our side would open a wormhole that close to Earth.”
Jo froze in her seat. “What are you saying?”
“This is my personal speculation, but I believe someone else is on their way.” Sed’s voice was quiet.
“Who else knows about this?” she asked.
“No one. I’ve been scanning the drone feeds in my off hours.”
“Who gave you that order?”
“I took it upon myself, Ambassador Gaines. Expect the unexpected.”
“Don’t tell anyone.”
“Ma’am?”
“Keep it quiet. I have to think,” she commanded.
“I will.”
“Great work, Sed. Perhaps there’s a position within Diplomat House on Geneva for someone as gifted as you.”
“I’m just doing my job, Ambassador.” Sed’s image blinked off, and Joanna continued to stare at the image of the wormhole’s exit, barely visible one hundred and fifty million kilometers from Earth. It sounded far, but not in the grand scheme of the Sun Colonies.
Ambassador Cunningham would have known what to do. Maybe he’d made a mistake in naming her his replacement. Jo cursed him silently for leaving, but the allure of Ethos was too strong for Terry to ignore.
She closed the feed and rose. Minister Black had left instructions should something happen in his absence. Joanna hadn’t read the notes, but with the recent news, it was imperative they prepare for the possibility of an invasion.
Jo stood at her large window, viewing Geneva bustling below. She closed her eyes, envisioning the entire city in rubble, Diplomat House a faded memory.
Her fingernails dug into her palm, and she released the clenched fist. If war was coming, it was her job to fight back.
She walked down the hall with a calm demeanor that betrayed her inner chaos.
“Ambassador Gaines,” her aide called. “You have to sign the—”
“Later,” she interjected, and got to the elevator. Five minutes later, she exited into the secret archives that Minister Black had frequented, studying battles from humanity’s past. The lights remained off, so the ancient disks weren’t damaged. Gaines jumped when she entered to find someone at the desk. His face glowed green where the visor he wore reflected off pale skin.
“I thought you were gone…”
He removed the visor. Instead of an old white-haired man, it was someone much younger. “I am, in a sense,” the man said.
“Who are you?” Gaines backed up, her heart pounding.
He was the spitting image of Darius Black in the Excursion One photo ops taken three hundred years earlier. “I’m Fleet Admiral Black.”
“But…”
“As you’re now aware, I came back from Ethos in Pod Seven and went through two years of surgeries. That’s when Henry found Dr. Lockerbie, and it was agreed that I would be cloned, my memories loaded into a new body. Before Dr. Lockerbie’s departure earlier this year, he made a replica in case my expertise was required.” Black set the visor down, and she could hardly see him in the dark room.
Staring at the cloned version of Minister Black, she couldn’t bring herself to tell him about the wormhole. “There’s a problem with the fleet’s construction timeline,” she blurted.
“Then I’d better get to work.”
Despite the strange revelation, Joanna found herself at peace knowing this man would oversee their military defense. It was up to her to do the rest.
____________
Jane’s legs ached ferociously. Dr. Singh plodded deeper into Ethos and hadn’t spoken in an hour. Lois marched ahead, but even her well-trained body seemed on the verge of collapse. Since watching the projections of the Locus and their robot, none of the gravity-fed elevators worked.
“We must be close,” Jane said.
“This was a bad idea.” Curtis’ knees buckled, sending him to the floor. His helmet struck the wall, and he looked up at them. “Go on without me.”
“Nonsense.” Jane took a seat, stretching her legs out. Lois peered into the next room, using the light on her T-51N to inspect it, then snapped the beam to low and set the weapon aside.
Before Jane could offer, Lois snatched off her own bag and spilled the contents. “I shouldn’t have packed so light.”
There were three energy bars, and two medical Patches.
“I brought a couple MREs.” Curtis removed the precooked meals and presented them. “Curry and chicken or...” He read the label. “Meat alternative and veggies.”
“When you say it that way…” Lois rolled her eyes. “I swore I’d never eat these again.”
“Wait, you weren’t in the Solar War, were you?” Jane asked.
“Yeah, but just the last six months. I wasn’t actually old enough, but I lied on my application. By that point, I’d heard they weren’t even checking; they only wanted warm bodies,” she answered.
“That’s horrible.” Curtis touched the bottom of the curry container, and steam hissed out of the lid as it heated.
Lois shrugged nonchalantly. “I bunked near a kid who couldn’t have been a day over sixteen. I wasn’t far off.”
Jane had been close to that age then, and she imagined having the nerve to stand in line at a recruitment base and offer her services. It had never even crossed her mind. War was no place for a studious young woman. During those years, Jane had stuck her nose in history books, ingesting everything she could on humanity’s past internal strife. Somehow knowing that it had happened on numerous occasions comforted her while the newsfeed spoke only of the Diplomats and their battle with the renegades.
Lois peeled the cover off the alternative meat substance, wrinkling her nose. “I may as well get this over with.” She unfolded a spoon from a multi-tool connected to her belt and ate a few scoops before sliding it to Jane.
“What about you, Curtis?” Jane asked.
“I was in a laboratory working on theoretical xenobiology with Quinn Desroches.”
“Valentina’s father?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “I hadn’t met the girl, but he spoke fondly of her. Of course, she wasn’t very old then. We often compared notes on what might happen if we contacted alien life. Quinn always believed it would be war, and I tried saying it was possible for two races to live in harmony.”
“I doubt it,” Lois said.
Jane ate three spoons’ worth before giving it back.
“Then you’re as close-minded as Kaze,” Curtis muttered.
“Why do you believe we can have peace?” Jane asked the anthropologist.
“Picture a forest in the American Midwest.”
Jane shut her eyes, seeing a deciduous woodland in the dawn.
“Now, there are wolves in the woods, and squirrels, rabbits, badgers, mice, hawks, and a plethora of other predators and prey. Some have no interaction whatsoever, and the ones that do find ways to adapt. But they all call it home.”
