The Catalyst (Targon Tales) (11 page)

"What's this?" Vincent said.

"That, my friends, is water ash."

They sat in stunned silence, looking at the scatter of dust like it might leap up and turn into some monster of profound proportions.

Acie laughed. "Or what's left of it. Totally inert. Useless. Non-poisonous. Might as well be wood ash."

Seth poked a finger at the dust. "How did you figure this out?"

"Took nothing more than to mix a little of Nova's blood with the ash in the absence of air. I still don't know what exactly is in the blood to make this happen, but that isn't the question here, is it?"

"The question is why," Nova said.

"Precisely. And you can bet it didn't take your Union doctors any longer than me to figure this out." She pointed at the dust. "It's a catalyst. What I don't know is why anyone would want to create something to counter water ash properties. Ash is rare, it's expensive, and it's very useful for all sorts of things from drugs to weapons."

"This catalyst could be useful in an emergency," Vincent suggested. "You can neutralize the poisonous effects of a water ash containment failure, maybe."

"No. As soon as you expose Nova's blood to air, the agent loses its cohesion with the hijacked hemoglobin and also becomes inert. I suspect it was made with some sort of plant matter. In any case, the catalyst won't work in an oxygen-rich environment. Which is precisely what most of us like to live in. I can't imagine this stuff is easy to create and we all know it's not easy to transport."

"Sabotage," Nova said. "Industrial. You can use this to destroy someone's stockpile of water ash. Or even a source of it." She looked around the table. "The Commonwealth holds most of the accessible water ash resources. It's what makes us powerful. A catalyst like this would cause far more damage to the money supply than blowing up a base or an arsenal."

"Rebels, you mean," Seth said.

"Now you're the one seeing rebels everywhere," she smiled. "This could just as well be a competitor. The Commonwealth is a big player, but there are others that trade in this stuff, I'm sure."

"You might have something there," Vincent said. "The Callas conglomerate, maybe. And Sadon Corp does business on Feyd and right here on Magra, among other places. They compete heavily with the Commonwealth over water ash rights. Some of their dealings with the Union have been pretty bitter."

"Pretty clever." Nova absently drew a finger through the dust. "Whether these people are rebels or competitors, they come up with this catalyst and ask an Air Command escort to ship it for them, pretending some sort of scientific undertaking. How much safer can it be than using the Union's own resources?"

"Except that the wrong people find out about the shipment and hire a bunch of thugs to waylay the
Dyona
and grab the box. Blame it on rebels and no one is accused of unethical treatment of competitors."

"You’re forgetting something," Acie said. "Didn’t you say earlier that the catalyst was sent by Delphians? I cannot imagine any Delphian with a reason to want to work with Sadon Corp. Or the Commonwealth on a commercial project. You two need to find those Delphians if we’re ever going to know why this was created and where it was going."

"Delphians who are
not
likely to be a rebel," Seth said with a meaningful glance at Nova. "No such thing as a Delphian rebel."

"None you know of," she said, unwilling to concede the point.

Vincent placed his hand over Nova's and gave it a gentle squeeze. "One doesn't have to be a rebel to oppose the dealings of your mighty Commonwealth of United Planets, Lieutenant. Let's dispense with labels. Perhaps Tharron's dreadful followers are truly rebels. But perhaps others just don't want to be part of your Union." He put his other hand on Acie's. "Acie lost her home in the invasion of Bellac. Sethran tells me you were there. Just because you liberated them does not make them your subjects. Or even Union loyalists."

Nova nodded. "I have to admit things seem a lot simpler if you're just told where to point your gun. Or so Seth keeps telling me." She reached into her pocket and withdrew one of her medicine capsules. "I am going to run out of this soon." She handed it to Acie. "And when I do I will have to go back, whether I want to or not."

Acie peered at the information shown in minute script on the ampoule. "They'll have to hold the court martial a while longer. I think I can get this batched up for you. Not here in Tanglan but up the coast a bit. There's a dispensary in Naos." She looked up at Seth. "Past the temple road by Joel's place. Might take a few days, though."

"I don't want to be on Magra that long," Seth said. "We'll trip over to Pelion to see what we can find and then come back here."

"We should all be that wealthy," Vincent said. "You must be using up coolant like water."'

"I am. Meanwhile, I need you to do something." Seth pointed a thumb at Nova. "My co-pilot pretty much shredded her career when she stepped off Targon. Can you get on the grapevine and spread a few rumors? Let it be known that she was taken by rebels. Maybe held for ransom or prisoner exchange or something." He grinned. "Nothing too dramatic. I'm starting to feel sorry for her old man and I don't even like the guy."

Chapter Seven

Few could argue that Feyd, a planet tucked safely among easily-accessible, well-charted and well-guarded jumpsites, offered a veritable paradise to most species that valued veritable paradises.

Colonel Drackon gazed through the transparent dome of the skimmer to see rolling hills of vegetation and open, untouched meadow as they sped smoothly over little-used traffic lanes into open country. Only the barely tolerable temperatures and airborne allergens kept outsiders from completely overrunning this planet, something for which, Drackon suspected, the native Feydans were grateful.

He turned to glance at the driver of the air car.

"Factor," he said, as always uncomfortable in the presence of any of the Elected Ten and especially this one. "As much as I like a drive in the countryside..."

"Now, Colonel, just enjoy the view. Look at those vineyards. The genes in those grapes come all the way from your home world and look at them here, growing past all expectation in this climate. Best wine anywhere."

Drackon sighed, resigned to the Factor’s penchant for keeping him tethered on some imaginary leash for as long as possible before getting to the point. Obedient to his master’s wishes, he admired the rows of vines stretching across the hills. His eyes also took in the air car in front of him and the two sleds just behind and to the side. While Rellius had chosen to drive alone with Drackon, his bodyguards were never completely out of sight.

He wondered if any of the other Ten were aware of Rellius’ current projects. Surely, one did not create a Commonwealth of this magnitude without making compromises, but would anyone sanction the sort of compromises they were now making? And did one rise into the ranks of the Elected Ten without sacrificing principle for the sake of expedience?

"I do so love a drive in the country," Rellius breathed deeply of the filtered and cooled air inside the dome. As usual, Drackon was unable to discern the Centauri’s sarcasm; his dislike for Feyd as the Commonwealth’s seat of commercial ventures was no secret. Other Factors oversaw Union military, cultural, scientific and civil matters from residences scattered over several planets here in Trans-Targon as well as in the distant Centauri sector. Feyd’s location within the jumpgate web was the obvious choice for this Factor’s base. Rellius thumbed a control on the car’s dashboard to drop the temperature further.

"Now, about Tharron," he said.

Drackon blinked, startled out of his thoughts. "Yes, Sire. The Shri-Lan are still holding the sub-sector that houses the breach to Naiya. In overall charge of that is Tharron’s newest henchman, a Caspian named Pe Khoja on Magra. Their demands are growing."

Rellius nodded. "Both a blessing and a curse, those pesky rebels, aren’t they?" He followed the lead car and turned into a forested area. Dappled shade from above turned the interior of the air car into a flickering confusion of light and shadow. "Too bad they found out about the breach, but their blockade is more effective than anything we can explain without drawing attention to that piece of nothing out there. What do they want now?"

"I received a message from Pe Khoja just yesterday. They want ten thousand flash modules or they’ll hand the coordinates over to Sadon."

At another time Drackon might have found it amusing to listen to the sort of language now spewing across the Factor’s lips. Their Commonwealth was not the only commercial entity in Trans-Targon and had competitors like any other business. Sadon Corp represented a very serious contender and water ash was among the trade-goods in contention. Losing Naiya to them would deal a serious blow to Union interests.

"Are we nowhere close to finishing the job? I am getting tired of pandering to Tharron, no matter how convenient he might be right now."

"I have some very good people on that, Sire, but we don’t have a Level Three spanner out there. Those tend to be Delphian and we aren’t likely to get one of them working with us on this project. Without someone with that skill every charting trip through the breach is costing a fortune and exhausts one of our spanners for a day, at least. It will still be a few more weeks before we have completed the calculations and the site is stable."

"Expedite it!  Get a better spanner somewhere! There has to be a hungry one out there looking for a job. If not, persuade one of them in whatever way you see fit. Just find one!"

"Yes, Factor," Drackon said.

"Send the damn modules," Rellius growled. "I’ll have them released to you for your campaign in the Mrak sector. Reroute them to Pe Khoja. But this has got to end. Soon. I’ll not have Tharron hold the entire project hostage."

"Yes, Factor,” the Colonel said.

"I want you out there, too."

Drackon gasped. "Me, sir?"

"Show a little muscle. They are getting far too belligerent. We are in charge of that platform, not Tharron and his lackeys. And most of all, light a fire under your damn spanners to finish those charts. I want the first ships going into Naiya by the next assembly of Factors. I need something to place before my esteemed colleagues. What’s better than the financial security of this entire sector!"

"Yes, Sire," Colonel Drackon said, already mentally rearranging his schedules to make a trip into the Outlands plausible. He’d have to take a cruiser and go little-armed into what was now essentially rebel-held territory near the breach to Naiya. Why had he even gotten out of bed this morning?

"If you can accomplish this, Sam, I will be that much more inclined to get you off this planet and onto Targon where you belong. My recommendation will go a long way to seeing you replace Tal Carras there. You’re as close to making General as he is, especially once the base is completed. I think having you there will serve both of us much better in the future, don’t you?"

"Most certainly, sir," the Colonel replied, inwardly jubilant. It had been a while since the Factor had so directly addressed Drackon’s ultimate ambition. Once based on Targon, few things stood in his way to direct Air Command’s efforts in this sector to his liking. Carras not only led the Eagle squadron but also most major tactical operations originating there. It represented power that was surpassed only by a tedious collection of Generals and the Factors themselves. But it would take the support of a Factor to unseat Carras and take that commission for himself.

"Now fill me in on our other problem," Rellius said. "That little girl with the nasty case of hypoxia."

Drackon ground his teeth, uneager to share more bad news with the Factor, especially now. "She... has disappeared, sir."

Rellius carefully slowed the skimmer and allowed it to settle gently to the ground. The escort vehicles around them did the same. He took his time in powering it down before half-turning in his seat to look at his subordinate. Drackon realized that he was sitting far too close to the Centauri, a design flaw of the skimmer that until today had not bothered him.

"Report," Rellius said, barely controlling his voice.

"As you know, she was hospitalized on Targon for testing. I received a report that they discovered the properties of the catalyst but had not taken steps to remove it. The implications of this substance are of course far-reaching and Carras knows it. He plans to defer the matter to the Factors once more is known about it. We tried to eliminate the woman as soon as possible but she eluded your agent. Killed him, in fact. She is currently listed as AWOL."

"AWOL on Targon?"

"We don’t know. Targon is riddled with cave systems. There are entire communities living underground, including rebels. She could also have left the planet on any number of outbound ships that day."

Rellius tipped his head against the backrest of his seat and closed his eyes. A long wave of his black hair hung over his eyes and he blew it forcefully back over his forehead.

An uncomfortable silence followed while Drackon stared out of the window at the Factor’s guards. They balanced casually on their sleds, apparently not interested in why their employer had stopped in this remote patch of forest. Drackon had sometimes fancied that these expressionless, silent men and women were perhaps some clever mechanical beings – those here today did not even seem affected by Feyd’s oppressive heat.

"Sir," he said cautiously. "As long as she’s invisible, no one can get at the catalyst. Any blood sample they still have from her would be useless by now."

Rellius waved his assurances aside with a weak gesture. "I am surrounding myself with people who can’t rob a cargo freighter without losing the objective, can’t control a handful of rebels in the middle of nowhere and who can’t manage to capture an unarmed woman in a hospital bed. How am I
not
supposed to despair at this moment, Colonel?"

"We may have underestimated her."

The Factor leaned forward to start the skimmer again. "She’ll try to contact her father, Colonel Whiteside. Make sure you stay on top of that. Then find her. Eliminate her. Don’t fail me again. Am I clear?"