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SAREE STOOD IN THE newly created Lightwave Clutch Command Center, formerly Cargo Bay Five. With Katryn’s remotes, finding the best of Gov Human’s surplus fittings in the jumbled mess of the storage compartments on Antlia Five Station wasn’t as big a challenge as it originally seemed. Although removing them once they’d been spotted wasn’t easy. Good thing those interior corridors were lightly used. They’d created quite the obstacle course trying to reach some of the better pieces. Loreli and Grant also found a stash of base materials for the 3D printer, along with another, larger printer, and created comfortable, colorful cushions for the chairs, along with soft seating in one corner for a break area. Or emergency napping in a crisis. Or Sa’sa clutch lounging.
They’d printed panels to cover the walls in the cargo bay, so it no longer looked like a cargo bay. No, it looked professional and luxurious. The upper wall panels resembled watered silk, in a warm beige, with mahogany wood panels below. Large areas on each wall were left smooth for vid display. Right now, they displayed local space surveillance. The soft furnishings were shades of dark charcoal, livened with accents of deep purple and ruby red, all the undertones in the same color palette so they didn’t clash, but harmonized.
Loreli and Grant also designed uniforms for them. Dark gray, with subtle stripes of deep, dark purple down the arms and legs, they were unique, but comfortable. The lack of “shiny stuff,” such as rank, made the crew happy.
Overall, Saree was much happier than she had any right to be, wasting two days in a medfloat. But she’d needed it. Not only had she developed an addiction to the sleep medication—despite the Maulana’s warnings about overuse and dependency—but she’d been exhausted and depleted. So, while Saree hadn’t been happy at to be forced into treatment, she was happy with the results. And, much to her surprise, no one seemed to hold her irrationality against her. No, they were all extremely professional. More than she had any right to expect. That uniform she’d designed, still lying on her compartment floor where she’d tossed it, was indeed eye-searing. Maybe she’d keep it as a reminder.
Saree plopped down in the command chair. Maybe they were too professional. She felt very alone, even when there were other people around. From the leadership books she’d read, she’d gathered this wasn’t usual. Even though she hadn’t said anything to either of them, both Porter and Ruhger sent her ‘recommended reading’ lists on leadership. There was quite a bit of overlap between the two lists, which wasn’t terribly surprising, since she gathered Ruhger’s parents got their start in the Gov Human military. There wasn’t a lot of overlap with the books she’d already read, which might explain some of the crew’s disdain with her previous approach.
Despite Gov Human taking on the entire military operation and insisting Lightwave fold under their cover name, remaining independent of the action, they did fit Lightwave with additional weapons. Chief was practically giddy, completely overhauling each weapon and overseeing the installation in meticulous detail. Saree was sure the installation team was thrilled when they were finished. She’d given each one a small bonus, rewarding them for putting up with Chief’s fussiness. Certainly Chief was justified in his care, but he wasn’t diplomatic when expressing his desires.
Now, if she could just figure out how to convey her needs to the Sa’sa Warriors, they’d be in great shape. Ruhger and Porter designed a plan with multiple branches and failure modes, but how did she tell the Warriors what they wanted? Saree studied the vids Interpreter McMaster sent her, but she missed so many cues, so many pieces of information each time. And those vids were only good for listening, not speaking. Besides, humans didn’t speak to Warriors, Sa’sa did. And the clutch Sa’sa in Canis Major didn’t understand why she needed help talking to Warriors; commanding Warriors was a clutch leader function, something they did automatically. She didn’t know who came up with strategy and tactics either, the Warriors themselves or the Leaders? Or both? Without access to the Sa’sa shared mind, it was difficult to tell. In the end, she’d transmitted a text and vid presentation to them, and hoped for the best.
She was in a damaged airlock without supplemental O2. She couldn’t do her only real, unique job, talking to the Sa’sa, with any kind of assurance that they understood what she wanted. Saree pulled up the battle simulation again. First, the immense Laniakea Fleet carrier, with thirty-two military shuttles, folded in to Sirius, using a very close Gov Human-only fold point and orbit. Then Lightwave folded, into a common merchant fold point, thrusting into a close orbit, supposedly to trade with Gianni. Next, the Warriors folded in, using Sa’sa fold points and staying in the far orbits, a general threat. It was the best they could do without being able to communicate easily in real time. After they retrieved Nari, a fast courier would take Saree to the clock and she’d update it before they folded out.
Saree leaned back in her seat, looking at the dark overhead. She had to find a way into the hive mind, without losing her own mind. How she could do that when she couldn’t even teach other humans how to find ^timespace^ and the transuranic frequencies? Maulana messaged her; some of their students seemed to be closing in on something, something that might be ^timespace^. But they needed Saree to be sure. She couldn’t be in two places at once. Gov Human, Ruhger, the crew and Al-Kindi assured her they could retrieve Nari without her, but she wanted to be here for the operation. Actually, she got the distinct feeling they’d rather do this without her. And the Captain of the Gov Human folder didn’t want Lightwave or the Warriors there. All the more reason to go. She had to learn everything she could about all facets of her new life.
She was the leader, it was her responsibility, she was accountable. If she was at fault, she had to know she’d done her best, or she couldn’t live with the consequences.
In this particular case, she couldn’t live with the consequences of not acting either. She was between a rock and a hard place. She snorted a laugh. At least this time it was a metaphor, rather than the tunnels of Cygnus-Gliese.
#
“WE’VE ARRIVED IN SIRIUS. Perform post-fold checks and report any issues. Ruhger out.” He remained in Alpha shuttle, but Tyron, Katryn and Grant had joined Saree in the new Lightwave command center. Despite their physical presence, she still felt isolated.
Saree accepted a comms request from General Kerr, who’d decided to observe the operation personally, although she left operational command to her fleet commander. “Clutch Leader, all is well?”
“Yes, General, thank you.”
“Good.” She nodded. “Fleet command has already transmitted our demand to Gianni Station. They claim Borgia isn’t there, but we’ve sent the proof that he is there, with Nari Al-Kindi. They’re acting shocked, but I’m sure they’re not. They’re also throwing subtle threats our way, but I’m ignoring those. Familia has a lot of political power, but politicians can’t act quickly.” She flashed a grin. “At least not at the speed of military operations. I’ve coordinated with the Gov Human military station at Sirius LaGrange Five, but they’re a small force, mostly there to support customs. There’s not usually a need for military fleets in the core. We’ve told Gianni either they find Borgia and return Nari Al-Kindi, or we launch and Gianni Station becomes the newest Gov Human military invasion training ground.”
“Rescuing Nari isn’t a training mission, General.”
She scowled. “Of course not. It’s just a way to warn the station that if we go in, we go all in. Full force. We have very good intelligence. We know exactly where she is, so we can target that area for the extraction. I don’t want to invade the station, but I will. A military invasion will create political uproar throughout the entire station, the system, the constellation, and eventually, throughout human space. The politics is just one reason I don’t want to do this. There’s also a possibility of civilian casualties along with military casualties. That kind of mission isn’t safe for anyone. Especially on a Familia station. There will be all kinds of nasty boobytraps and surprises along every step of the way, I’m sure.”
“I’m sure. I’d like to see the intelligence, please, General.”
“Of course.” She turned away, speaking to someone behind her where the vid couldn’t pick up her lips.
Saree was fairly certain she’d get a heavily sanitized version of the intel, but she didn’t care, as long as it showed where Nari was. If the Gov Human forces blew it out the airlock, she wanted to swoop in for the rescue herself. She held back a smile, sure that no one would be happy with that decision.
The minutes and hours ticked away. Saree wandered the command center. Al-Kindi returned to his shuttle, working on a distillation. Grant snoozed in the corner, while Tyron and Katryn hit the phys mod. She checked with Gov Human every hour, but they had nothing but platitudes from the station.
At twelve hours into the standoff, General Kerr contacted her. “We’re ramping up the pressure on Gianni. We’ve just informed them and every space-capable ship on or orbiting Gianni that they’re locked down. There will be no leaving the station, changing of orbits or folding out. Or any message pods.” Kerr smiled, a tiny, smirky smile. “Ship captains are told to complain to the station, since they have the ability to solve this problem. Gianni isn’t happy. We’re launching ten shuttles to ensure the travel ban.”
“Good. Gianni should be worried.”
“I am a little concerned, Clutch Leader. I thought they’d fold much faster than this. I believe we’ve underestimated the amount of fear Borgia creates. We’ve tapped his communications with the station authorities and he’s threatening to poison the entire station. They’ve electronically isolated the area of the station he’s in, and they’re quietly evacuating everyone in nearby compartments, but it’s taking more time than they want.”
“Don’t they control the air handlers on the station?”
“Yes, but this is an old station and Borgia is in his family’s compartments. They have their own emergency air system.”
“It’s connected to the stations?”
“No, but Borgia’s family does have some sort of connection to the air handling maintenance workers. Or some of them, anyway.”
“We didn’t know this?”
General Kerr shook her head. “No, we didn’t. If we had, we might have made a different approach.”
Saree’s stomach soured and she deliberately relaxed her shoulders. “I see. So, this doesn’t bode well, does it.”
“No.”
#
THREE DAYS LATER AND nothing changed, for them anyway. Saree paced around the consoles, bored beyond concern. Until she thought about poor terrified Nari. Although, Nari might be numb at this point too, terror becoming the new normal. Al-Kindi spent most of his time in his shuttle, working, checking in just before meals. Loreli’s meals became more and more creative as she channeled her stress into cooking. Saree wished she had an outlet like that. She’d been sparring with the crew more, but she could only do so much of that before her body gave out. Playing her guitar made her feel guilty, so she didn’t. She meditated and worked on her access to ^timespace^, but it didn’t bring the comfort it used to.
“Saree, Gov Human just recalled all their shuttles,” Tyron said.
“What?!”
“They’ve recalled their shuttles.”
Saree reached out to pull up comms when a request came in from General Kerr. She accepted it, ready to ask what in all the suns they were doing. But before she could open her mouth, the General spoke.
“We’ve been recalled, Clutch Leader Saree.”
“For what?!”
“Did you hear about the Antares supernova and evacuations?”
“Yes.” She wasn’t going to tell General Kerr they’d been there; better to keep some secrets.
“The Mermillods are attacking the Sa’sa. We’re aiding their defense, because the actual purchase was by the Time Guild, not just the Sa’sa or a particular clutch.”
“There’s no maintenance clutch there, just Warriors, General.”
“That was true. Now, the clutch that purchased Dschubba—As’sacha, I believe—is returning there to defend their stake, with all their Warriors. It could get ugly. We cannot afford to lose more clock maintenance clutches. And Clutch Leader?” General Kerr was grim.
“Yes?” There was more coming, Saree could feel it.
“You should leave immediately. I’m taking over half the military shuttles on the Gov Human Station at L5 with the fleet. I’m sure the Warriors here will fold out. You can’t afford to remain without military support.” The General looked off to the side, nodded, then returned to Saree. “Yes, we just got confirmation. The Sa’sa Warriors are folding out. If an enemy attacks you in the crowded orbits of Sirius, there’s little anyone can do safely.”
Saree closed her eyes and hung her head. No sense in objecting; Nari’s life was nothing in comparison to As’sacha clutch or the lives in the thousands of ships and many stations orbiting Sirius. “Blast and rad. Thank you, General. Please make sure we have all the latest intelligence on the Gianni Station situation before you go. We’ll be in touch.”
“Transmitting our intel now. Safe folds. Kerr out.”
Saree pulled up comms to request the crew and Al-Kindi come to the command center. Tyron anticipated her request, because the entire crew entered, Al-Kindi in their midst. “Bad news,” she told them.
Al-Kindi visibly braced himself, but didn’t say anything.
“Gov Human and the Sa’sa Warriors are leaving. The Mermillods attacked the Warriors protecting Dschubba. Gov Human is supporting the Time Guild. The Warriors are leaving to support As’sacha Clutch.”
“That was the clutch that purchased Dschubba, right?” Grant asked.
“Yes. General Kerr suggests we leave immediately.”
“No!” Al-Kindi said.
“While that makes sense, we did come here under cover, Clutch Leader,” Ruhger said calmly. “We could stay to monitor the situation at the least.”
“We know which shuttle is his, and we’ve tagged all his family shuttles too,” Katryn said. “I’m almost into Borgia’s net. I’ve got one more firewall.”
“But what if Borgia threatens the other Familia families, makes them provide transport?” Al-Kindi asked. “He hasn’t hesitated to do such things. He’s burning bridges and obligating his family to favors it will take generations to repay.”
“He is,” Tyron said. “I’m rather surprised his own family hasn’t taken him out over it. He must have a significant amount of dirt on them or some other pressure. They wouldn’t put up with this from most family members.”
“Is any of his family on the station with him?” Grant asked.
“Oh, good question. Maybe...” Tyron said.
“Maybe?” Saree prompted as Tyron continued to stare at the bulkhead.
He smiled. “Maybe we should contact Borgia’s family, especially if they’re on the station. Maybe they do want him gone. While blood may be thicker than water, poison works on both. It might be working on Borgia more than he likes.”
“The potential for a double-cross is high,” Ruhger pointed out.
“True.” Tyron shrugged. “But what do we have to lose?”
“I’ve found the names of Borgia’s family on the station,” Katryn said. “I’ve compiled short biographies on all of them. Most of his immediate family is on Valenti or Arriagada, but there’s some subordinate families here, looking out for their interests in Sirius. Gov Human believes the transport of illegal drugs into core human systems is coordinated here.”
Grant raised his brows. “So, it’s mostly a communications hub? Gianni has very good message folding. There’s a network of comms shooting to message pods way out from Sirius, so they can fold in and out almost continuously without too much warping. It makes sense they’d have their command and control here.”
“There’s probably other Familia coordination centers too,” Ruhger said. “But we don’t care about those. Unless they can help us with our problem, and if they could, they would have by now.”
“Perhaps,” Al-Kindi said with a small smile. “We may need a different incentive. Give me a moment.” He wandered off to the seating in the corner, intent on his holo.
Saree seized the moment. “Keep digging for leverage, please.”
Katryn scowled at her. “No, we thought we’d sit here and look pretty.” She returned to her holo, obviously shutting Saree out. Grant and Tyron didn’t reply or acknowledge her words. Saree sighed. Obviously she still had bridges to mend.
“I wonder if General Kerr forgot about Porter and her team or if she meant to leave them with us?” Ruhger asked.
“Or maybe both?” Grant questioned. “If she forgot—” he made air quotes “—then they could stay to help us.”
“Or babysit us,” Tyron grouched.
“Whatever the reason, please ask Chief Porter to join us,” Al-Kindi said, coming back to them. “I have a potential approach.”
“Excellent,” Ruhger said. “I’m tired of waiting.”
“I think we all are,” Saree told Ruhger. She turned to Al-Kindi. “Let’s take the fight to him.”