Lacuna: The Prelude to Eternity (6 page)

C
HAPTER
II

Scarecrow

*****

Medical Bay

TFR
Rubens

Location Unknown

A
FEW
HOURS
’
NAP
,
OR
so she had thought. When Liao woke, the lights of the ship were dimmed, and it was ‘night,’ Saeed’s subtle nudge that she should continue sleeping.

The presence of a figure had woken her up, not a nurse—a tall, European woman with blond hair and an unfamiliar uniform bearing a German flag on the shoulder. It seemed like a long time since Liao had seen someone with blond hair.

“Yes?” she asked, which came out more snappy than she had intended.

“Captain Liao, my name is Oberleutnant zur See Hanna Keller, Marinestützpunktkommando Kiel. I’m with the Marines on the
Rubens
. Saeed said I could speak with you if you were awake.”

“I wasn’t, but I’m awake now.” Liao pushed off the bottom of the tank, letting herself float back down to the ground. “What’s on your mind, Oberleutnant?”

“Ma’am, I wanted to talk to you about Ben and the Toralii prisoners we have in our care—over thirty from the
Washington
’s engagements above Velsharn and eight from the capture of the
Knight
.”

Discussing her mirror with a stranger, as well as discussing command decisions with a Marine, did not seem prudent, but benefit of the doubt won out. “Proceed, Oberleutnant. Ben first.”

Her tone was blunt. “Ben is dangerous.”

“I am aware, Oberleutnant.” The bombing of Velsharn and the annihilation of the Telvan colony there flashed into her mind. The
Beijing
’s nuclear missiles had burst above the surface, bathing the entire colony in fire. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

“What I meant was, he knows us too well. He knows
you
too well. His choice in bodies can’t possibly be a coincidence. He sees something in you that he wants to emulate—emulate or take for himself. He’s Pinocchio, the doll who wants to be a real boy, but he doesn’t truly know what that means.”

Liao mused over that. She too had called him Pinocchio. Her observations were not as unique as she thought. “My thoughts exactly. To be honest, I haven’t decided what I’m going to do with Ben yet. He killed a lot of people on this planet, before we even arrived, and on Belthas IV as well. At the very least, he should deserve to suffer Telvan justice. Until then, he can sit in a cell and think about what he’s done.”

“Agreed,” said Keller. “Turn him over to them when we get a chance, let them sort it out.”

“I plan to.” She folded her arms, her fingers drumming lightly on the skin of her stump. The feeling was distinctly odd, as though she were passing through an incorporeal version of her own flesh. “You mentioned something about the Toralii prisoners?”

“Yes.” Keller’s voice became firmer. “Captain, I want to make sure that the Toralii prisoners are receiving the best of care and aren’t being abused or mistreated.”

A strange request. “I’m not sure why you’re asking—I don’t plan on mistreating them, nor would I support anyone under my command that does. Honestly, I haven’t even had the chance to deal with them. The prisoners are being kept aboard the
Washington
in their brig. The Americans are treating them well, to the best of my knowledge. Have you heard anything different?”

“No, ma’am,” she said, “although I’ve recently been made aware there was some kind of breakout. From what I heard, the eight from the
Knight
were determined to be the ringleaders and were moved from the
Washington
to the surface a few hours ago.”

“A breakout is a failure of discipline,” said Liao. “Captain Anderson is entitled to do whatever he needs to so order may be restored.”

“Germans disagree,” said Keller. “Under German law, freedom is considered a natural desire—attempting to escape detention is not a crime although, obviously, if someone were injured in the attempt, that would be a separate matter.”

“The
Washington
is under United States jurisdiction.” Liao understood there was little difference in semantics, with all their countries lying in ashes, but it was an important point. “I won’t attempt to undermine their authority in this matter—Anderson’s ship, Anderson’s rules.”

“I understand. I just want to make sure that I, personally, can get a chance to inspect them and verify that they’re not being mistreated and that their new accommodations are suitable both to hold them and to be, at least, some degree of comfortable.”

“We can’t have everyone traipsing over there to ensure the welfare of the prisoners,” said Liao, “especially if there are breakout attempts, but in this case, it’s not up to me. Such a request would have to be handled by Captain Anderson.”

“I see.” Keller hesitated. “Captain, can you make the request for me? It will carry more weight if it comes from you, I feel. Captain Williams has already said he will support stationing one of our Marines there as an observer until the prisoners are repatriated. He was hesitant, initially, but I convinced him.”

Liao chewed on the inside of her cheek. “There’s no clear timetable for that,” she said. “And there’s debate about what the eventual fate of these Toralii is going to be. There are a significant number of people who feel that, given everything that’s happened, we should no longer take prisoners, and we should execute the ones we have as an example.”

“With respect, that won’t work, Captain.”

Liao frowned despite an effort to maintain her composure. She always felt that when someone said ‘with respect,’ that was a polite way of saying they, in fact, did not respect her and her opinions at all.

“Explain, Oberleutnant.”

“The idea of surrender is simply, in practical terms and with all moral and ethical considerations aside, to provide a mechanism for armies to avoid having to fight each other to the death to resolve a conflict. It is designed to engender reciprocity—we take some of them as prisoners and treat them well. When hostilities have died down and it’s clear that those soldiers are not simply going to return to the front, we repatriate them. Our enemies do the same for their prisoners. The problem is this agreement is fragile. The moment either side breaks down the agreement, the other side does as well. Bullets are cheaper than prisoner-of-war camps.”

Bullets were simpler too, especially when dealing with a race taller and stronger than most Humans, and prideful too. However, violence had gotten them to that point, cowering on Velsharn, Earth in ruins.
 

“I am inclined to agree,” said Liao. “From a historical context, bloody revenge has rarely solved more problems than it has created. Heinlein was wrong—violence may well be the ultimate authority from which all other authorities extend, but history has shown decisively and convincingly that, in the end, it is the cooperators who eventually triumph. Many hands build our ships, more than any tyrant can muster. If we want more ships, we will need more even more hands, offered willingly.”

Keller smiled. “I agree. A noble sentiment, Captain.”

Liao regarded her curiously. An edge of formality crept into her tone. “I can understand your curiosity regarding the welfare of these prisoners, but this seems to be something more personal and deeper for you. Why are you asking me these questions?”

“Captain, I am German. We are a proud people with a long history. Some of that history is dark. History is a painful but accurate teacher. There’s one thing I’ve always kept close to my chest. When I was a teenager, my best friend’s parents moved from Essen to Frankfurt to be with their extended family. One day I was visiting my friend when her great-grandfather, a very nice man, told us, ‘Whatever you hear from other people from Germany about what went on before and during the war, don’t believe anyone who says they did not know. We all knew what was happening. We knew whole families were disappearing. People who were outspoken were gone in the morning. Anyone who tells you they were ignorant of what was happening is lying.’ If something’s happening to those prisoners, I want to know about it, own it, and never attempt to pretend that nothing was happening on my watch.”

Not on my watch
. Important words for those with any kind of authority. “Very well, then. Out of consideration for your cultural history, I’ll lodge a request with Captain Anderson to permit either yourself or a trusted representative to inspect the welfare of the prisoners and their accommodation on Eden personally. In fact, when I get out of here, I’ll go see them myself as well.”

Keller relaxed, the tension flowing out of her. This was no show for promotion or praise—it was genuine concern. “Thank you, Captain. I appreciate it.”

“It’s important,” said Liao. She shuffled, sloshing the water. “Perhaps, then, you can do me a favour in exchange. Two, in fact.”

“Certainly, ma’am,” said Keller. “What do you need?”

“Firstly,” said Liao. “Tell me. What is
Scarecrow
?”

Keller stiffened. “I’m afraid I can’t answer that question, ma’am.”

Liao’s eyes narrowed. “On whose authority?”

“Captain Anderson, ma’am. He was specific that he wanted to tell you about it in person.”

“Well,” she said, “get him to come over here.”

“I will ask. What was the second request?”

“The presence of Toralii escape pods on Velsharn disturbs me. Those civilians down there are all we have left. There are too many weapons, at our disposal or theirs, which can end Eden in a heartbeat. I want to make sure these intruders are found and dealt with.”

“I can look into that personally if you wish, ma’am,” said Keller. “All I know is the Kel-Voran were concerned about the large number of escape pods jettisoned from the
Seth’arak
’s stern as it broke up in the atmosphere. They believe there may be more survivors on Velsharn than we know about. We cased the whole island and perform regular fly-bys, but we haven’t spotted anything.”

“Keep searching,” said Liao. The words came from her gut, a warrior’s instinct honed over years. “Avaran is stubborn. Strong. Dedicated. I can only assume his crew are as well. I think it’ll take more than a fiery fall through the atmosphere to kill him.”

Liao floated in the tank after Keller left to follow up on the Toralii prisoners. It was relaxing, in a sense, yet also confining—frustrating. It was time for her to get out. The universe had not stopped while she was in there, and every minute she spent in the tank, letting her body recover, was one during which her enemies continued to work against her and the rest of humanity.

Fortunately, she did not have to wait long before the next visitor, someone she’d been waiting to see, appeared in the
Rubens
’s med-bay. Her face lit up as James entered, his dark skin a pleasant contrast to the white, plain hospital room. Saeed and he had a brief conversation, and then he was permitted to see her.

Suddenly, the heart-rate monitor spiked, and her chest tightened. She had been badly burned. Her face tingled—it had been half melted, including her scalp, leaving her hair a freakish half head. Her right arm was a stump.

What would he say?

“Good morning, gorgeous.” James beamed as he stepped up to the tank, showing his white teeth. “How are you holding up?”

“So much better now.” His smile was infectious. Liao couldn’t help but return it. She squelched her insecurities and focused on his voice. “How are you doing, James?”

“Much better now that I’m off duty.” He reached up and unbuttoned the top of his uniform. He had a beard, several months’ growth. When last she had seen him, James was clean shaven. He was always clean shaven. “It’s just been one thing after the other.” He had heavy bags under his eyes, but his joy at seeing her was also equally plain. “I’m guessing Saeed and Saara have filled you in on everything.”

“More or less,” she said. “It’s just so weird… my instincts tell me it’s been only a few days, even now—as though the attacks were just yesterday. It feels like everyone’s pulling a huge prank on me, and some part of me is just waiting for everyone to jump out from those cabinets and shout, ‘Surprise!’”

“Honestly, after the last couple of years, I’m kind of appreciating a little boring tedium at this point.” He reached up to rub his right eye and then, refocusing, continued. “The rebuilding work continues. Civilian administration is turning out to be a large part of what I’m doing these days—Shepherd’s even talking about general elections. Sabeen’s got her own ship, damn her, otherwise I’d make her the CO and leave this whole thing behind, become the city mayor or something.”

Sabeen as a CO didn’t make any sense to her. “We… have a new ship?” There was no way it could have been built in that time, even if they had the shipwright’s facilities that had created the
Triumph
-class cruisers such as the
Tehran
and the
Beijing
. Even a smaller ship would take six months, minimum.

James regarded her curiously. “Before you were injured, we captured a Toralii scout vessel.” His face became playful. “Scouts arrive, and we steal their ships. Toralii fleet drops in, they get blown up. Now they know not to come here. We’re uncultured, unpredictable, violent kleptomaniacs. Velsharn is the Detroit of the galaxy.”