《Rush Into Dawn》


 Chapter 1

    The General spun around and slammed his fist on the desk. ¡°I¡¯ve had enough of this! I know what¡¯s best for my son and I¡¯m saying that he goes. This is my command Arez, do I need to remind you of that?¡±


    ¡°No sir, of course not, I just want to make sure you have thought this through and that we have considered all the angles. It¡¯s my job as the Mission Chief to hone the deadly edge on the war sword your plan represents, is it not?¡± Arez smiled slightly, pleased with his analogy, hoping this image would disarm the General¡¯s anger. ¡°That means finding and grinding away all the burrs and this situation doesn¡¯t feel¡­smooth.¡±


    ¡°Point taken, Arez. But are you seeking to sharpen the blade or keep it hidden in its sheath?¡±


    Arez frowned and his shoulders tensed, ¡°I only seek the best possible plan, sir, and that includes the evaluation of all personnel assignments as you are well aware.¡±


    ¡°Yes Arez, I am aware, and you are very good at it. The best. So please relax, I meant no offense. This is a very difficult decision for me as I am sure you can understand. Please continue.¡±


    ¡°Excellent marks in war games, near the top of his class, but questions remain about his decisiveness and temperament. Would he not benefit from additional seasoning to reduce the risk of this being an issue in the field?¡±


    ¡°Do his commanders agree with this sentiment, Arez?¡±


    ¡°They only evaluate his readiness and document his characteristics, sir, you know that. They do not speculate on the finer points; that is for mission officers like us to decide.¡±


    ¡°Do you agree with the sentiment then?¡±


    ¡°It is worth considering, sir, given his..¡± Arez paused and turned, considering his word choice carefully. ¡°His background. That is not condemnation, sir, one day those attributes may make him a better soldier, but is that day today?¡±


    The General let out an exasperated sigh. ¡°Because his mother is an Atula! That is what this is about? That was my choice, Arez, not his. Did you forget his father is a Musa, a Musa general? How many young officers can say that and have the chance learn from a mentor of my standing? What about my attributes?¡±


    He would not admit it to his chief planner, but the General knew exactly what Arez was referring to. Why would he expect his son¡¯s potential weaknesses to escape the man responsible for overseeing every detail of the mission¡¯s success and why did it make him so angry when they didn¡¯t? Born from a most unusual coupling, a general and an Atula, his son melded almost perfectly their two personalities. Thoughtful, sensitive, and aware as an Atula might be expected to be, he was also forceful, diligent and disciplined. He had the potential be a great leader, one whose men could sense his love and respect for them and would then follow him anywhere, fight for him with passion and conviction. But would he have the strength and especially the desire to lead? The General sometimes wondered. It was a difficult path, full of loneliness and regret, not a burden men with his son¡¯s temperament typically handle well.


    Arez stared blankly at his boss, knowing no response was expected or welcome. He decided to move on, for now. ¡°Shall we continue inspections, sir? We¡¯re three days out and behind schedule.¡±


    The General rose from his desk and followed his planner down the hall toward the hanger.


    ¡°There are some troubling inconsistencies in the target¡¯s weapons evaluation, sir. Have you seen my notes? There is no sign of Tier 1 weaponry on the satellite scan but the e-sensors in the atmosphere have recently picked up some very strong signatures. If those are guns, sir..¡± Arez trailed off, looking again at the numbers, almost not believing them. They were nearly off the charts.


    ¡°The e-sensors have been off before, Arez. If the guns existed, where are they? You can¡¯t hide something with those readings. They would need an enormous power supply.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but maybe they have some kind of alternative power source, something we haven¡¯t yet seen. Seems risky, sir, those levels nearly match our biggest force guns. In a few cases even exceed them ¨C that¡¯s unheard of.¡±


    ¡°There are always risks and unknowns, Arez, when you travel to a new star system and engage the population. If they had that type of energy, why wouldn¡¯t they leverage it to power their planet? None of their factories exhibit anything other than a normal source, correct?¡±


    ¡°That is correct, sir. As far as we know.¡±


    ¡°Then I don¡¯t think we can call off the engagement for that, do you? At this late date?¡±


    ¡°I suppose not, sir. But those readings¡­¡±Arez trailed off again, seeing if the General would pick up the thread of concern he was trying to draw him towards. The General didn¡¯t though, he was too focused on his son, that was clear enough. It was a classic warning sign for the planner, to have the commander distracted by a family matter at this stage was never a positive sign. When that family member was part of the crew, it was even worse. Arez focused on that in an attempt to reengage the General.


    ¡°I see the officer assignments are nearly complete and signed off¡­have you made a final decision on your son¡¯s command then?¡±


    ¡°1<sup>st</sup> commander of the 10<sup>th</sup> attack squad sounds about right, I think.¡±


    ¡°With respect, sir but are you sure? For a 1<sup>st</sup> mission? That is an ambitious assignment.¡±


    ¡°Really, Arez? I know better than that. It¡¯s entirely consistent for someone of his ranking and war games scores, is it not?¡±


    ¡°I suppose, sir, a little aggressive perhaps, given his temperament. Would it be the worst insult in the world to ease him in though, perhaps show the rest of the command there is no favoritism?


    The General paused to consider his planner¡¯s comment, trying to determine the subtext in his tone. Was Arez raising this issue on his own behalf or were there concerns coming out of the senior ranks he was trying to warn him about. Could he simply be working all angles as a good planner should? The General wanted to be fair to his son, give him what he had earned and deserved but could he be pushing too hard as Arez suggested? Maybe a bit, but if he was, he felt he had no choice and that part of the decision was best kept to himself. He needed his son committed to the military, fully engaged to avoid a sideways drift into another path. Perhaps the path of his mother, a Wander who had left her world behind to join another kiln, his kiln.


    The reports during his son¡¯s years at Mix school swirled around his head, the associations with the other artists, his mother¡¯s people. He claimed it was over a girl, quickly defensive, and it all seemed innocent enough. Jehz had every right to do that. God hadn¡¯t he done that, met the most important person in his life that exact way? He had of course but he¡¯d also been focused on the Musa culture in a way Jehz never was. Jehz¡¯s training was strong, though, always strong and he never gave the General a reason to doubt him.


    But the doubt was there nonetheless, there was no denying it. Nagging at him, threatening to tear his carefully laid plans apart though they were his dreams, ones Jehz may not share, should not need to share though he desperately wanted him to. Still the doubts persisted, despite the lack of any real evidence or justification. Because of what his mother did? Even if the worst did come to pass and he became a Wander, was that really something to be so scared of? The Wanders who left the military were made fun of, of course, but mostly in a lighthearted way, never with any serious malice ¨C and the Wanders who came were always welcome, especially the women and those who came to fight. So why worry? Because there was always a kind of a divide between the Wander and both his new and old kilns, a distance. Because Jehz was his son, a general¡¯s son, and he always dreamed of having his son by his side in an officer¡¯s uniform. It was supposed to happen, and the thought it might not filled him with dread and a sense of failure. It somehow reflected badly on him as a father, and a leader. Had there ever been a Council head whose son was a Wander? He thought not.


    ¡°1<sup>st</sup> commander of the 10<sup>th</sup>, Arez¡±, the General said with a tone that made it clear this line on conversation was over.


    Arez nodded looking over the General¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Are you ready to inspect the battle carrier, sir?¡± The General turned and glanced at the Seaz Morta, aware now of how distracted he must be by the concern over his son to not be aware of where he was. He always loved approaching the Morta, watching closely as the ship grew to almost impossibly large size, its iridescent purple black skin catching and casting light in explosive patterns across the surface of her hull. How beautiful she was, and how powerful, nearly bursting with destructive energy. Holding a crew of 100,000 soldiers, a fleet of 10,000 Telz fighters and armed with massive force guns she was capable of defeating single-handedly the collective armies of most planets in the Mother galaxy. Adding her full complement of support ships turned her into a force without peer. No world known to the Given could resist her and even the most ambitious rarely contemplated the thought with any seriousness once they¡¯d had a taste of her power.


    The General walked aboard, barely noticing the furtive glances of the soldiers and maintenance workers as they scrambled to finish their preparation. The General had commanded the Morta for a decade and during that time added fifty planets to the ranks of the protected. His command had been filled with the typical mix of challenge, conquest, and tribulation but the Morta had been a constant, pulling him forward and powering his rise in the military establishment. One day the Morta might even deliver him to the very top of the Council and he dreamed that the day he relinquished his command, he would place it in the hands of his son. It was a future he desperately strove for, a future that would begin with this mission, set to launch in a few days. It was a future he had planned for a long, long time, one that stretched all the way back to his days at Mix school.


    He¡¯d been an extremely serious student, not much interested in the social functions that were a critical part of life there for so many. How could he waste his time with childish play when there was so much military history, tactics, and engineering to study? He didn¡¯t feel jealous of the days his classmates spent with the other kilns, learning about their lives and cultures, comparing the beauty of their women and men. Avoiding it would give him an advantage he thought. Why bother getting too involved when it would all be over in a few years and he would settle back into life in the military kiln with his competitors that much more behind him because of their frivolity. To fend off the inevitable criticism from his advisors that he was not properly participating in the Mix tradition, he had made some casual friends from other kilns in his military classes. They had spent some enjoyable time together during shared study sessions and he felt that was enough. He struggled to understand why it mattered so much to everyone but knew if he did not at least pretend to comply it would hurt his class ranking.


    For the first couple years, his strategy worked. He was able to keep his focus squarely on his studies and his advisor could go no further than glance at him disapprovingly and suggest some additional energy be expended when his social life was discussed. The days and other students streamed by the window of his room as he sat steadily and quietly appearing almost permanently attached to his desk, barely noticing and not caring. One night, however, after pressing him for days, his roommate convinced him to attend a student production of The Awakening. ¡°It has battles, so it¡¯s military history,¡± he grinned at the General, ¡°you can¡¯t say no. Besides my advisor mentioned I should ask you to go and I would hate to have to tell them you tried some lame excuse on me to get out of it. Wouldn¡¯t look at all good on your perfect record, Mr. General¡±. The General knew of course there were no military battles as it was, of course, the legendary story of the Given¡¯s struggle for freedom when they were a slave people and didn¡¯t yet even have an army. But it turned out he was tired of both the studying and the nagging so he agreed to go. Maybe he would even run into his advisor there and use that encounter to shut down the awkward conversations about his social life for a few months.


    Entering the theatre, he was startled by the energy of students, jostling to greet their friends, talking loudly, very different from the more solemn tone of his classrooms. Classrooms admittedly mostly full of serious-minded military kiln much like himself. The clothes and hair, especially among the artists, were wild, like nothing he had ever seen. He had passed small groups of Atula on campus, but, by tradition, their daytime dress and presence was much more subdued. He realized as he took it in that this was their world, a place where their inner selves and training were allowed to blossom and take shape, this was their battlefield. It was oddly fascinating. He stared openly and curiously at a group of Atula girls that quickly brushed past him to grab seats near the front of the stage. He half wandered after them until his roommate grabbed his arm and pulled him down a row. They settled into their seats just as the house lights went down and curtain rose.


    In the opening scene, a group of enslaved Given women were celebrating a birthday in a small dingy hall, some singing traditional songs and dancing despite the depressing surroundings. His eyes quickly locked on a young actress playing a small role as a Given attending the festivities. As she danced, he watched her with a childlike fascination. Her body language and movement seemed so free and uninhibited, so different from the control and discipline that had dominated his upbringing. As the action moved towards her, she turned and seemed to be looking directly at him as she recited her lines. Intrigued and looking for confirmation of what he thought she had done, he watched intently, his heart racing. Would she do it again? But the rest of the scene passed without the slave girl speaking.


    He spent the remainder of the play searching for her in the background, ignoring the rest of the action, trying to guess where he might see her next. If only he had spent more time paying attention when the play had been taught in school. Maybe then he could guess when she might reappear. As the production ended and the actors took their bows, he leaned over to his roommate, his program opened to the page listing the bit parts. ¡°Who is that girl there, third from the left? Do you know?¡±


    His roommate turned to look at him, eyebrows raised ¡°So the monk has a heart after all, eh?¡± Pausing for effect, he scanned the General¡¯s face for a reaction, trying to think of clever ways to tease him over his interest. When he saw the pleading look in the General¡¯s eyes, he was so surprised he couldn¡¯t go through with it. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I think her name is Daez. Atula for sure, same year as us. You find her beautiful?¡± Not waiting for a response, he continued on, ¡°I know where there is going to be an after-party and a lot of the cast is supposed to be there. Why don¡¯t we go and see if we can find your slave princess? What do you say, General?¡±


    The General had nearly jumped at the chance but quickly caught himself before he agreed. What would he do at a party full of Atula? He¡¯d never been to an event like that before, wouldn¡¯t know how to behave or talk to the girl in the play even if he saw her.


    But he went anyway, pulled forward by the emotion and excitement of the evening. He knew he had to at least try and meet her, that for the first time he felt a tinge of regret at the shape of his social life. He was intrigued and challenged by the culture and energy of another kiln, something he never thought would be possible. In his head, he could hear the teasing voice of his roommate, ¡°A beautiful girl will do that for you every time, General.¡± Somehow he knew there was more to it than that though. Daez was the key but there was something here for him, something he never really knew he needed. Of course, he also thought about the story he would be able to tell his advisor, it would earn him some breathing room for sure.


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    Walking in, feeling the strange eyes upon him, it was as awkward as he expected it would be. His roommate stayed around for a while then drifted off nodding his head in Daez¡¯s direction when a group of girls breezed by shouting greetings. He stood alone for some time, watching, unable to shake the feeling that he had been missing something after all but not knowing what he could do to fix it. Frustrated and angry with himself, he turned to leave, but Daez was standing in front of him, smiling. She stepped forward to introduce herself, immediately putting him at ease with her grace and gentle manner. He typically didn¡¯t have an easy time making small talk, but he tried to rally his inner reserve. Don¡¯t let this opportunity go he told himself or you know you¡¯ll regret it.


    ¡°Hey, you were at the play tonight weren¡¯t you? Fifteenth row, just left of center stage. Right in front of my parents, that¡¯s how I know.¡±


    ¡°Yes, that was me, I guess. I really enjoyed the play, you were very good.¡± He was terrified, but tried to find the courage to show her the friendliest, most relaxed version of himself he could manage. A quick-to-smile, easily laughing version that barely existed and hadn¡¯t been seen in years.


    ¡°Oh hardly, I barely had any lines, but sweet of you to say. You didn¡¯t seem to be enjoying yourself very much. You looked like a theatre critic out there, studying every move disapprovingly.¡±


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t get out much, never even been to a play, so you know, just trying to take you all in. I mean the play, take it all in, sorry.¡± He looked down at his drink, silently cursing his misstep.


    Daez looked amused and stared at him, trying to determine if he was flirting with her or was as awkward as he appeared. It wasn¡¯t until much later that she realized it was both.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name, Mr. Critic? I don¡¯t recall seeing you around before.¡±


    ¡°Forenz. Forenz Alta, but my friends call me, it¡¯s a little embarrassing, but they call me General.


    ¡°Do they now?¡± She tried not to laugh, didn¡¯t want to make him feel more uncomfortable than he already seemed to be, but she couldn¡¯t help herself. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but that is funny. Please don¡¯t be offended, it just caught me off guard a little.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, I realize how silly it is. It¡¯s just a nickname given to me by my mother long ago that somehow stuck. Feel free to call me Gen. Can I get you a drink, Daez?¡±


    ¡°Is that an order, General?¡± She smiled, looked at him through narrowed eyes, wondering now if she were the one doing the flirting or just returning the favor. He turned to her, trying to gauge the tone of her comment and she quickly recognized his confusion. She thought it charming and unspoiled he didn¡¯t immediately recognize the banter for what it was. How different from the Atula men she knew who would trade wit for intelligence and hide any insecurity beneath layers of bluster. While she had half an idea to let the moment pass unexplained, she liked Gen and didn¡¯t want a chance of hurt feelings so she quickly added. ¡°Sorry again, I just couldn¡¯t resist. That¡¯s the last time I promise, Gen.¡±


    The General returned with their drinks and the unlikely pair hit it off quickly, spending the night talking on a balcony just outside of where the main party was going on. He was surprised at her intelligence and how grounded she seemed, not at all like the flighty actress type he expected her to be. Artists are all crazy and vain he had been told, valuable to the Balance, but suitable only as entertainment for the other kiln. Many of the women were beautiful and exotic but their psyches were delicate and thin as hand blown glass and they could never be counted on to be serious company for a military officer. This one seemed different though, lively, fascinating, but real. She even impressed him with some military history, though later he learned she had simply recited a few names and stories she had recently picked up from a history class. In the end that didn¡¯t matter as much as the fact that an Atula would even take the time to learn the names of those military legends was impressive to him, a sign of her depth.


    As the evening drew to a close, he got up the nerve to ask her to see her again for a date and she quickly agreed. She found his seriousness and strength intriguing and powerful, quite unlike anyone she had ever met before. One date turned into another and they began seeing each other steadily. As the months rolled past, their relationship began to blossom and strengthen and he started to think often about a Given word he had never much considered before ¨C Wander. Wanders were those who had left their kiln, often shutting the door forever on their families and former lives. Motivated by love or the need to escape, they were looked on as curiosities by most, serving primarily as sources of news and gossip about life in the other kilns. They were not allowed to seek positions of political significance and rarely excelled professionally due to forms of discrimination both unconscious and explicit. Wanders were also kept at arm¡¯s length socially by most Given. Tolerated but not embraced, they were the tattered edge of Given society fabric and culture, the untidy corner of an otherwise pristine house. The priests made regular calls for equality and acceptance, citing how critical Wanders were to the Balance, but for most is seemed like mere platitudes.


    Could he possibly ever ask that sacrifice of Daez? Would he make that sacrifice for her? He couldn¡¯t imagine what kind of life he could make for himself in the artist kiln. His was a literal, orderly mind that had never applied itself well to the arts. He¡¯d be lost there with no chance to pursue his true calling. If Daez should come over instead, then how would she feel, sitting in the audience watching an Atula performance, knowing that she would never be able to take the stage again? Would he be robbing her of the very thing that had drew him so strongly to her in the first place? In the end, he should have known that Daez, with typical clarity, would have sorted it all out in a way that made it make simple and inevitable sense.


    ¡°To the bridge, sir?¡±, Arez said, his slightly annoyed and inpatient tone stretched thinner by the General¡¯s daydreaming.


    ¡°Yes, of course¡±, the General responded, pretending not to notice, ¡°Do you have all the high-level system diagnostics?¡±


    ¡°On your screens now, sir. The General glanced at the screen floating in front of him, not having the patience or focus to study them in any productive way. He waited an appropriate amount of time to make Arez believe he could have reviewed them, confirmed the head officer¡¯s signatures on the reports, and made a mental note to return to them later as he waved them away. This was a dangerous path he was taking, a miscalculation or oversight on a mission of this magnitude and his career would be effectively over, if he was lucky. If he wasn¡¯t, he might lose his life as well. What would happen to his son¡¯s future then?


    He tried hard to focus as he exited the elevator, turned, and strode past the guards and onto the bridge. His senior officers were there, milling around, some having planning discussions with their staff. All snapped to attention when they noticed the General enter the room. He waved his hand, signaling them to relax as he took his seat at the head of the triangular command table. His officers quickly filled in the remaining seats.


    ¡°What have you got for me boys and girls?¡± the General yelled. ¡°Another master plan or should we just fly in there guns blazing?¡±


    The officers simply smiled dryly, tolerating the joke they¡¯d been told many times before by the General to tease Arez. The General knew it was silly, even a little unprofessional but it seemed to ease the tension and had become a bit of a ritual so he carried on with it.


    Glancing at his First Officer Serez, he nodded and Serez stood up. ¡°Just a quick review to start. The planet targeted in this mission is a class 4 alpha giant the homelanders call Castone - code name Rising Sun. He pressed a button on the table and a holographic map sprung up in front each of the officers. ¡°Interesting topography, 50% water, 18 major mountain ranges, some with peaks rising 25 miles so the pilots need to be very careful here. Highly volcanic with hundreds of active volcanoes. Tech rating is T-Minus-200 so they would appear to have very little advanced weaponry that we know of. There have been high power readings though here, here, and here,¡± Serez pointed near the peaks of some of the taller mountains. ¡°Very high. But we don¡¯t know if they are being generated by the residents or if they are a natural phenomenon of some type. Culture is medio-religious with a naturalistic focus on a volcano deity. Predictable given all the activity here. Look at these images ¨C this place is like a gigantic backyard barbeque.¡± The pictures spun by, most showing a barren landscape, baked by rivers of fire. Some however showed incredibly dense jungle, filled with exotic trees and flowers, thriving in the older rich volcanic soil. ¡°The main city, X85, is located here, well away from the worst thermal activity ¨C we don¡¯t know if that is the capitol or not. There is no sign of government activity that we recognize.¡±


    ¡°If necessary, the first battle line will land about fifty marks southeast of X85 with the second line five marks east of that. Using a scissor attack, we will penetrate the known defenses here and here and X85 should fall within hours. Final details will be synced to all official Planex devices active for this mission within the hour. Any questions so far?¡±


    There was a standard discussion about expected weather conditions and angles of attack, but the plan was routine and concerns quickly exhausted. The General and his fellow senior officers had executed these missions dozens of times with rarely a hitch. As his staff wrapped up the meeting, the General¡¯s mind wandered to the diplomatic staff assigned to the mission and he glanced at his screens to find the names. The diplomat¡¯s job was to transition the homelanders to the Given¡¯s governmental structure after the mission had completed. It was a delicate task, one that could strongly affect the trajectory of the future relationship. Too strong a hand and an entrenched rebel culture or terrorist force could emerge. Too weak and the control defined by the initial visit was quickly dissipated. Either extreme could result in a return clean-up that would put additional men and women at risk. The General was relieved to see Mriz Salta was the diplomatic lead. His team was solid with a strong reputation as a firm but fair hand in these matters. So it seemed the mission was under control, with little risk from some of the usual variables though he was sure Arez would have something to say about that when they met to compare notes later.


    As he tried to focus on the stack of mind-numbing ready reports, the General¡¯s mind drifted back to his final days at Mix school. He had been two years in before he had met Daez, and as fast as the first two years had flown by, the final two had been an absolute blur. At the top of his class, he had responsibility over the student officer corp as well as an extremely demanding academic load. Trying to find time for Daez was difficult but, much to his commanding officer¡¯s dismay, it was his top priority. Far from being a drag on his military focus and resolve, his time with her energized him and provided him a new spirit with which to attack his responsibilities. Time itself was another matter though and he rushed from one world to another, barely making the appointments, classes, meetings, dates, dinners, and secret rendezvous that filled his days. Through it all, he never doubted for a second which world he belonged in and wondered if Daez felt the same. They almost never talked about the graduation they both were keenly aware was coming, both knowing that it would probably be the start of a new reality, one where they would share no part of their lives with their beloved. The General sensed they were both scared to ask the other¡¯s intention for fear of coloring their final months and days together with despair.


    This couldn¡¯t really be the end though, could it, given how strong their relationship had become? Shouldn¡¯t they try to make things work after returning to their kilns? The Celebrations would be there, times when the kilns mixed as freely as the wine and spirits flowed. But those days were short and spaced too far apart for any relationship to withstand. Perhaps the travel freedoms that Atula were allowed would supplement that, though in the end, he knew that too was a false hope. The requirements of a military career could never be synced to that sort of schedule. In the back of his mind, he had always known what he would do in the end, ask her, beg her to become a Wander and build a life with him in the Musa kiln. He didn¡¯t know when, but he knew he had better find the time soon.


    It was three weeks before graduation and he was laying on a couch in Daez¡¯s apartment, his head in her lap, both reading for final exams. ¡°Daez, what do you think you¡¯ll do after graduation.¡± He cringed as he said it, knowing it was an awkward question considering the obvious reality hanging over their relationship and didn¡¯t come close to expressing what he really wanted to say.


    ¡°You mean what will I do after the ceremony? I thought maybe you might want to take me to the ball. Is it after all sponsored by your Musa brethren this year, is it not? Do you not want to go?¡±


    ¡°No, I do, of course I do. I meant after graduation.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡± Daez smiled knowingly, ¡°After graduation. Well, I¡¯ve arranged for my roommate to be away for the weekend at her girlfriend¡¯s ¨C I thought I told you that. Anyway, I figured we¡¯d start by maybe coming back here and having a nightcap. Alderean whiskey maybe, I know that¡¯s one of your favorites, and a light snack if you¡¯re still hungry. Then after a little time relaxing, I thought maybe I would take off your tie and then slowly start unbuttoning your shirt, kind of like this.¡± She put her hand on his neck and slipped it underneath his collar, caressing his chest. ¡°After that maybe you might reach around and undo the zipper on my dress, though you really could start with the straps I suppose. Your choice, my love, I know how you military types don¡¯t like being ordered around.¡±


    The General smiled at the thought but was frustrated at his inability to find the words to address the situation head on. ¡°No, I mean yes, that sounds fine of course, more than fine, but after the weekend is over?¡± He wanted to tell her everything he was thinking, how deeply he loved her, how much he wanted her to join him in the military kiln, how he would honor her sacrifice, and do everything to make her happy, but somehow he just couldn¡¯t say the words, didn¡¯t know where to start, or if he deserved to even ask that of her. Especially when he knew if she asked him the same question, he would have to say no. It would break his heart, and maybe hers too but he knew that he would say it anyway. He hoped she wouldn¡¯t ask and he wouldn¡¯t have to.


    The General looked up intently at her but she had turned her head and stared off out the window, a faint crease of a smile in the corner of her mouth. ¡°Well, yes, there¡¯s a lot to be done isn¡¯t there. Just loads of packing and we only have a couple days to get out of here if I remember. Oh, and you were going to fix that hole behind the couch where that drunk Atula boy kicked it in, don¡¯t forget about that ¨C I do not want to lose my deposit over that. My God, remember how mad you were the night he did that, the way he was flirting with me, it just drove you crazy. You were so sweet. But he was just drunk, and you were such a gentleman not just destroy him after the swing he took at you. I mean with your training and fitness and all, I imagine that would have been very unpleasant for him. He was very skinny, and you..¡±


    ¡°Yes, I remember, I¡¯ll take care of that and sorry for interrupting but I mean after that? You know?¡±


    ¡°Well, after that. Let me see¡±, Daez continued to stare off into space for a long minute, her mouth now almost breaking into a grin. She put her hand through his hair absentmindedly, finally turning to look directly at him ¡°After that, I thought maybe there might be a place near Fort Jejez available, that is where your first commission is, isn¡¯t it? After we decide on one, well there¡¯s a lot of work required to get a place like that ready to live in, especially the ones I saw that we could afford. I mean you might not realize that, I¡¯ve seen your room after all, but it really does.¡±


    The General felt a wave of relief wash over him, and then panic. Was he hearing what he thought he was hearing? Did Daez say that she was coming to Fort Jejez, to be with him? Just like that?


    ¡°So we¡¯ll be.. together..after graduation?¡± The words were still not coming easily and the pressure on his chest now was nearly too much to bear.


    ¡°Well, yes, we¡¯ll still be together after graduation. You don¡¯t think I am planning to live on Fort Jejez by myself do you? Not that would be legal anyway, I don¡¯t think. Since there¡¯s probably no permanent theatre company there or anything like that, so yes, together. After graduation.¡±


    She stared into his eyes now, intense and serious, with no trace of her smile still showing, ¡°That is what you want isn¡¯t it? Because you¡¯ve sure been acting like that is what you want, and this is a big step, the biggest. So if this is not what you want, you better be honest with me right now, or..¡±


    ¡°Of course it is what I want, Daez, what I wanted for a long time. You know that. I just couldn¡¯t think of the best way to talk to you about it. Things were going so well between us and it is such a big decision, for both of us but especially for you. You must have known or why else would you have brought it up this way?.¡±


    ¡°I wondered sometimes if maybe I just wanted it to be true, you¡¯re never completely sure about something like this, are you? But yes, I knew. For a man who doesn¡¯t say very much, you are awfully bad at keeping things to yourself. Still might be nice to be asked though.¡± The smile had returned to her face.


    Finally, the words came to him, ¡°Daez, my love, would you do me the honor of returning to Millez with me, to be my partner, to share my life, to build our dreams together? There¡¯s nothing in the world that would make me happier and I can¡¯t imagine a future with you not in it. A future worth living anyway.¡±


    As their lips met, the General felt a joy and sense of accomplishment greater than he had ever felt before. She was his and now nothing could stand in their way.


    The General felt the eyes upon him and glanced over his shoulder at Arez.


    ¡°Tomorrow at seven then, sir, for the final fleet inspection?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course, Arez, that¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll meet you at docking door #9¡±. The General rose and moved toward the door, oblivious to the salutes, but answering their calls of ¡°Tola Capi¡±, calls that marked their brotherhood in the mission to come. A mission that would be his son¡¯s first, another step toward the dream life he began living with Deaz so many years ago.

 Chapter 2

    Usually calm before missions after a lifetime of preparation, the General¡¯s sleep that night was fitful and he spent most of it staring at Daez¡¯s relaxed face and listening to her nighttime noises. The soft cooing and whistling reminded him of simpler times, when they had none of the luxury and responsibility and he would sometimes watch her at night, still amazed that he had been able to win her heart and bring her back to Millez.  He knew deep down that she had chosen him for reasons he did not fully comprehend.  It was a topic he had pondered frequently in the early days, searching desperately for the part of himself that could have attracted a woman like this. He knew that was the part he needed to nurture and keep developing to ensure their relationship would be a lasting one. Too insecure to ask, he never did feel comfortable or satisfied with the answers he found on his own.  It mattered less and less to him though as time went on.  Whatever the source, he felt her love for him was strong and true and the fact that no one in their right mind becomes a Wander on a whim convinced him her feelings ran deep.


    Rising early, he quietly dressed and ate, studying the plans and waiting for the time when he could go to the hangars and meet Arez.  No point in showing up early. He would just disturb the soldier¡¯s rhythms as they readied for the mission or, even worse, make them feel that something was wrong. He wondered what Jehz might be up to.  Having finally received his assignment, he likely would have been at the hangars for hours already. This was a big step up for any ¡°schoolie¡±, with an incredible amount of information to process in a short time. War games were one thing, but a mission by the mighty Given to add another planet to the ranks of the Protected was something altogether different.


    Walking through the loading door #9 exactly on time, the General found Arez standing at attention, his planning computer tucked under his arm. The General felt his uneasiness pass into the adrenaline-filled rush of a mission almost underway. ¡°Good morning, Arez, any overnight developments?¡±


    ¡°Morning, sir, nothing you would classify as major, I would imagine. Probes still picking up the abnormal power readings from Rising Sun. We are no closer to determining the source but there¡¯s still no evidence they know we are coming.¡±


    ¡°Good, continue to keep an eye on the probe data. We¡¯re still at go status.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll relay that immediately, sir.  Where shall we start, the Time Jumper?¡±


    ¡°Sure, we might as well get it out of the way, Arez¡± The Time Jumper was the only fleet ship not fully manned by military personnel.  Responsible for opening the jump ports used by the Given to travel to different solar systems, they were largely manned by Illuta, the scientists¡¯ kiln. Time Jumpers operated under a unique joint command structure that was an endless source of frustration for the military ¨C the success of their missions and therefore the fate of the Given itself relied on these ships. To have to subjugate their military authority over this critical strategic resource to a group they considered mostly unfit for combat rankled all in the military kiln. Of course, they were told by their command it was part of the Balance. They were also reminded on a regular basis that they did not have the expertise to run the technology on their own and it would be a violation of Given law to have the Illuta operate under military authority. Still, it still felt like a painful and unwelcome intrusion into their world, one the Illuta commanders seemed to enjoy.


    They arrived at the Time Jumper and were greeted and led on board by the Musa and Illuta commanders. Before they had a chance to take their seats at the meeting room table, the Illuta commander, in a clear breach of protocol began a review of the jump plan.


    ¡°The plan is to launch by midday and we should be in final position by nightfall. That should give us plenty of time to open the jump port based on current energy projections. Please look at the screen...¡±


    The General stared hard at the Illuta officer ¡°I don¡¯t recall asking for the jump plan, Commander Fluxr.¡±


    Fluxr frowned and tried to remember the Musa¡¯s unwavering focus on process so he wouldn¡¯t take the General¡¯s comments personally. ¡°Yes, sir, sorry, I just thought.¡±


    ¡°Thought you could predict what the stuffy General was going to ask because that¡¯s what he asked first on the 4 other missions you were the Illuta commander of, and perhaps even had heard on the 3 before that when you were a 1<sup>st</sup> commander?¡¯


    ¡°No, sir, of course not, just trying to be efficient.¡±, said Fluxr surprised that the General even remembered him as a 1<sup>st  </sup>commander.


    ¡°Efficiency is about following a well-worn path, Fluxr. Well-worn because it is proven to bring you to the place you are going, reliably, while other paths remain rightfully abandoned or full of unknowns and uncertainties. It might seem like a small thing to you, but now is not the time to take even a single step off the path.¡±  The General glanced around the room, briefly meeting the eyes of the Illuta present to send the clear message that regardless of what the official command structure was, he was the one with the power.  The General then paused a moment to let the message sink in before continuing.


    ¡°Now, I trust you both have seen the energy readings coming in over the last few days from Rising Sun? We¡¯d like to be conservative here and move the final jump zone back about 20 zeks if it¡¯s not too late. It looks like there is plenty of open space and that would shield us behind the primary moon if we want to follow that orbit. Can you have your men start working on the coordinates immediately and report back to me on the feasibility ¨C we need to know ASAP.¡±


    The commander looked surprised and wondered if he should challenge the General given his initial faux pas and resulting criticism, but he was obligated to counter the General¡¯s order. ¡°It is late sir, but I will start the process. We¡¯ll also need a risk assessment performed and a passing grade before we can proceed, of course. There¡¯s no guarantee we can finish in time.¡±


    ¡°Yes, the risk assessment as well,¡± the General sighed. He actually liked Fluxr, even if he sometimes had a bit too much of the stereotypical Illuta personality. At least he was always reliable, without emotion or politics, and the General appreciated that. ¡°Do your best and let me know as soon as you get the results,¡± he said already turning to leave, with Arez close behind.


    ¡°The Haaks next sir?¡± said Arez already knowing the answer and stepping on the transfer platform to enter the destination before hearing a response.


    ¡°Yes, of course,¡± said the General.  The Haaks were the secondary attack ships in a Given battle formation. Staffed with a crew of 20,000 and 2,000 Telz fighters each, they were an able companion to the Saez Morta. Though not quite as powerful, they were more nimble in atmosphere and typically the first, and often the last ship seen in a Given invasion.  While serving on the mother ship was considered a more prestigious post by most soldiers, the majority of the elite fighting units remained aboard Haaks. There they were more likely to see combat and earn the honor medals that increased both reputation and pay in the Musa ranks.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    The Haak hangers were buzzing with activity as the supply teams moved items aboard and the fighting squads prepped their gear, or if they were senior enough, stood watch over the junior officers. The General had begun his military career on a Haak and still remembered fondly his early days there. The energy and bravado of the Haak strike teams made them the heart of the Given attack groups. Their tendency to draw well outside the lines in battle and risk-taking culture made them a source of concern to many in the fleet as well, but to the General they were a welcome counterpoint to his sternly measured command and a strategic enhancement to the Given¡¯s effectiveness.


    ¡°General, so glad you could make it¡± bellowed the Haack commander Maez as soon as he and Arez entered the bridge. ¡°You always make time to visit your brothers and sisters on the Birds.  Some think it¡¯s a little annoying when the nosy mission chief shows up when we are trying to prep but I like that about you.¡± Maez was an old friend of the General and one of the most highly decorated officers in the Given ranks. He was fearless and his list of planets protected one of longest around which gave him license to be irreverent and avoid protocol even with the mission commanding general. The two soldiers greeted each other with the traditional two-handed handshake of the Birds crews, grabbing each other deep on the forearm.


    ¡°How are we looking, General? Or has all those years in the big chair made it impossible to tell?¡± No one else would dare attempt to speak to the General so bluntly, never mind get away with it. The General simply laughed.


    ¡°My eyes are everywhere, commander, I see what I need to see. And I know you¡¯ve been cutting corners on your planning routines to chase that pretty major around I hear you¡¯ve been spending time with. Am I right?¡±


    Maez smiled broadly ¡°You got me fair and square, General. After all this time, you wouldn¡¯t want me messing with a winning formula, would you? Consistency and execution, isn¡¯t that what you always say? Consistency and execution.¡±


    ¡°So I do,¡± nodded the General solemnly ¡°And it doesn¡¯t escape my notice that you have a funny habit of applying my ideas and orders in about every possible way than the one intended.  It¡¯s quite a gift.¡±


    ¡°Maybe so¡± said Maez rubbing his chin, ¡°maybe so, but I follow the spirit of them and that is what the Birds are all about, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I suppose it is,¡± said the General.  Maez¡¯s lightheartedness in the face of the impending mission told him all he needed to know about the Haak¡¯s mission readiness, and his worries eased a little knowing that box had could be checked off.  Just as he began to relax though, he noticed tension in his friend¡¯s face and a look of concern in his eyes.  Something was on his mind.


    ¡°Since we¡¯re having such a tender heart to heart discussion, General, maybe I bring up a somewhat sensitive topic of a personal nature?


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°Jehz¡¯s orders.¡±


    ¡°C¡¯mon, Maez, you not going to do this to me too, are you?  You¡¯ve looked at his file I¡¯m sure.  You know he deserves this.¡±


    ¡°Maybe. I won¡¯t say he doesn¡¯t but this is a steep road for a general¡¯s kid, don¡¯t you think? Sometimes it doesn¡¯t matter whether something is right or not. What matters is if this could be twisted into something improper that could be used against you¡­or him. It¡¯s a politician¡¯s world at your level, General, you know that. I¡¯m just trying to look out for you and the kid ¨C why push the envelope on this? Jehz¡¯s time will come, I¡¯m sure of it, and I got a sweet little unit command in the Birds waiting for him, you just say the word. If he is anything like you, he could use a little exposure to our kick-ass spirit.  It would do him good in more ways than one. What do 1y0ou think ¨C let¡¯s take the pressure down a few notches on both of you?


    The General sighed and looked Maez in the eye. ¡°I appreciate what you are trying to do Maez, I really do, but I¡¯m comfortable I¡¯m making the right decision here.  I¡¯m not going to sell Jehz short just to prove a point to the powers that be any more than I¡¯m going promote him to a post he doesn¡¯t deserve because he is my son. Can you honestly say I¡¯m out of line?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not my place to say, General. I¡¯m just making sure you know what¡¯s out there. What you do with it is your business and I¡¯m with you all the way no matter what you decide ¨C you know that, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course I do Maez, of course I do. But where is all this coming from, senior levels or in-line officers or what?


    ¡°Both I¡¯m afraid.  Look you know in your position you got a target on your back and this is just another way to try and get under your skin.¡±


    ¡°But what about Dilloz¡¯s and Fearz¡¯s sons? No one said a word about their posts if I remember.¡±


    ¡°I believe they did, but maybe just a little too quietly for you to hear from way up there on your command chair.¡±  Maez smiled and pointed to the sky, but his expression faded quickly and turned solemn. ¡°They were also not given the same rank as Jehz though close enough I suppose.  In the end, this is different, you¡¯re right about that. Jehz is not a prototype officer, General, you know¡­¡±


    ¡°You have to be kidding me Maez, now this? You¡¯re not going to play the Wander card, are you?  I really wouldn¡¯t expect that coming from you.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that, General. I could care less if his mother was a whore from Butfa, no offense of course, you know me. It¡¯s not like my background is full of good breeding either. All I care about is if a soldier can do his job. And you have to wonder looking at his scores and evaluations if maybe Jehz thinks too much, feels too much.  Maybe thinks too much because he feels too much. There¡¯s nothing wrong with that General, but that¡¯s not the kind of officer you place aggressively, he might need a little time to grow into his role. You give him to me and I¡¯ll have him following his wild impulses like a schoolie on shore leave in no time.¡±


    ¡°Your offer is noted and appreciated, Maez, but I am staying the course on this one.  Anyone who has a problem with this can take it up with me personally or go jump off Mt. Tuka.¡±


    ¡°Ok General, but don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t try.¡± He slapped the General on the arm. ¡°Gotta get busy, Boss. I see you in a couple days.¡± As his platform moved away, his call of ¡°Tola Capi¡± could be heard rising above the din of the preparations.


    ¡°My god, is everyone against me on this, Arez?¡± He turned to his planner who looked at him with raised eyebrows, considering his response. ¡°Don¡¯t answer that. I think I¡¯m going to cut the inspection short today and head back to the Morta to finish my work there. I¡¯ll let you know if I need you.¡±


    ¡°Of course, sir¡± responded Arez, and he quickly moved off on his platform.


    The General returned to the massive hanger housing the Morta and climbed the stairs to the upper observation deck.  From there he could fully appreciate the grandeur of the mothership and the scale of the undertaking they would soon embark on.  He watched as the soldiers scurried around the prepping floor and noticed his son Jehz standing alone at a planning terminal, reviewing the mission data from the battle units under his command.


    The General thought Jehz looked serious and almost fatefully sad as he concentrated on his work.  Hoping it was only the lighting or Jehz¡¯s understandable nervousness about what lay ahead, the General tried to shake the negative thoughts from his mind. He wanted desperately for the mission to turn out well for Jehz and that it would be the start of a long and glorious career, one that surpassed even his.  Should it come to pass, that would make him happier than anything he could imagine, the crowning achievement of the life he and Daez had built together. The General knew that soon this fuss over Jehz¡¯s assignment would fade and be forgotten, as most political squabbles over mission roles do. In the end, Jehz¡¯s future would emerge and overshadow all of it, brushing it away like dust.


    Jehz suddenly looked up and noticed his father, the General, standing on the observation deck. He was nervous about the coming mission but had prepared well and was ready. All his senior officers said so. Jehz raised his arm and slowly waived to his father.  For a few seconds the General thought he waving goodbye in the traditional Musa manner with his palm inwards and he stared quizzically wondering why Jehz would do that.  Continuing to stare, he caught himself and realized he must be mistaken and returned the wave before turning toward the elevator that would take him to the Morta¡¯s bridge.  As he stepped on, he found himself almost unconsciously whispering a Musa prayer ¡°Good luck, my son. May the spirit of Voz look over you and lift you up high above your enemies.¡±

 Chapter 3

    The General dropped into his command chair and surveyed his screens one last time.  The attack fleet has been assembling for the last couple days and looked to finally be in place. ¡°Are we ready to move, Serez?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir, all ships have reported in and are on go status.¡±


    ¡°Are the time jumpers in place and powered up?¡±


    ¡°Powered up, sir. Waiting for your order, General.¡±


    ¡°All ships proceed to the jump zone, Serez.¡±  Serez passed the order through all the comm channels and the force began to move. The mission had begun.


    The General checked the availability of the weapons and defense systems on his screen and was pleased to see even the finicky biostatic backup systems were already fully online.  That was something he hadn¡¯t seen in a long time and he chose to take it as a sign of good luck. Even though the systems were secondary and rarely used, they provided the Morta with near invulnerability against any type of electromagnetic attack.  He had worried about his distracted approach to this mission causing preparation levels to slip, but his teams had clearly executed well.


    The Morta arrived at the jump port at the head of the formation. As the most powerful ship, she would go in first, followed by the Haaks, then the stealth ships. After surveying the space on the other side of the jump port to ensure all was safe, the supply and medical ships would come through. Finally, and only after the attack ships could guarantee security would the second Time Jumper in the fleet pass through the jump port. The second Time Jumper was required to stabilize the port and in many ways was the most important ship in the fleet.  Without her, the jump port would be powered only by the first Time Jumper¡¯s matter engines and could easily collapse.  If this occurred and the jump port shut down, it could be weeks before it was opened again. The attack fleet would be on their own until that happened and that was a long time to wait in hostile, largely unknown space.  Even a Given attack formation with their enormous power would be vulnerable under such conditions.


    ¡°The ships are all in position, sir, whenever you are ready.¡±


    ¡°The let us lead, Serez. Let us lead!¡± the General shouted the Musa battle cry and the Morta began moving to the jump port, the power and hope of generations of Given expressed in a ship of almost immeasurable force.  The crew inside her were almost as dangerous as the Morta herself, many who had faced them would say even more so.  Lifetimes of training and preparation under the most difficult conditions imaginable were coming to a focus on a planet called the Rising Sun.  Few in the universe had faced such a difficult foe and most who met them on the battlefield could not even have imagined the existence of this type of army.  The mission had begun and soon they would be knocking on the front door of a world whose version of reality and the universe was about to be irrevocably changed. The remaining ships in the convoy moved through the port uneventfully and regrouped on the other side. It would be a couple of days before the Time Jumper¡¯s space drive engines were powered up enough to reliably maintain the jump port. Until that occurred there could be no risk of contact with the target planet so the final waiting period began. During the wait, the crew members rested and ran through the final plans again and again to ensure there would be no mistakes should an armed invasion become necessary.  If there was, it might be their wife or brother that would pay the price and that extra level of concern kept them sharp.  Musa service teams were typically a family affair and arose out of the same needs and culture, so intertwined they could not be separated.


    Nearly two days exactly after arriving through the jump port, word came in from the Time Jumper that the matter engines were fully powered and the jump port stabilized from both sides. The news traveled quickly though the fleet and once all ships had checked in, the twenty-four hour voyage to the target planet Rising Sun was underway and final preparation for the interaction begun.  The main attack group arrived first, settling into deep orbit and waited for the General¡¯s orders.  At their current tech level, the inhabitants of the Rising Sun would be unlikely to have discovered their approach but the Given scanned the surface activity and comm traffic to ensure their initial message was properly framed.


    ¡°Any evidence they know we are here, Serez?¡± the General asked.


    ¡°Nothing showing up on our radar, sir, or on the probes. It would seem we are clear.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s take the Morta down then and deliver the Greeting, we have a Level 2-Beta greeting translated into the main tongues ready to go, I presume?¡± asked the General.


    ¡°Cued up and ready to go on all channels, sir.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go then. Engage approach formation 7F over the main city, X85. Get low, we need to be highly visible for these folks ¨C they are fairly primitive. Full shields and all weapons systems on readiness level 5.¡±


    The Morta and two of the Haaks descended over the capitol of the Rising Son, and after jamming all identified communication frequencies, began playing versions of their speech in all common languages.


    ¡°People of Himya, do not be frightened.  Please be assured we are not here to hurt you.  In fact, the exact opposite is true. We are known as the Given, famous throughout the universe for the protection we provide to over 10,000 planets like yours.  Ensuring that all beings on the worlds we watch over are safe from disaster caused by either environmental causes or hostile entities from other worlds is our highest cause and most noble purpose. This may seem surprising or hard to accept as you are unlikely to have encountered or heard of a culture like ours on your homeworld.  Your historical experience is likely similar to other citizens of the galaxy in that groups of sentient beings are typically driven to exploit and hurt other groups, to seek subjugation and fortune. Rest assured we do not and have many deeply held reasons for pursuing our path despite the power and technology we possess, reasons we will share with you and carefully explain in the time ahead.¡±


    ¡°We know that you are new to the exploration of the universe and its occupants, so you may be largely unaware of the dangers that exist so very close by. A basic study of your planet has confirmed that asteroid strikes have plagued your past, causing major disruption to life. Evidence of this can be clearly seen in the Puut canyon at the foot of your Mt Parison. If your scientists are not yet aware of the extreme danger these objects represent to the future survival of your people, they soon will be. We will share our knowledge and technology so they can learn for themselves and work to provide warning and protection to you, their people.


    ¡°Unfortunately, being aware of these dangers and preventing the massive destruction they can cause are two very different things. The Given can protect Himya from these asteroids now and forever as we have proven technology to identify these dangerous objects and divert or destroy them before they can pose a risk.  This technology we will freely share with your planet.


    ¡°There are numerous additional dangers of this type that our scientists will be able to educate you about in the months and years ahead as our partnership grows. Any one of them could mean the end of life on your planet if not handled properly. Understanding how to counter these risks yourselves would take enormous time and resources.  Any solutions developed would be uncertain.  The Given have already devoted vast amounts of time and money to solving these problems and can guarantee the success of our methods, freeing your people to devote themselves to subjects that are most meaningful to them and ensuring a bright future.


    ¡°I am very sad to say that there are dangers surrounding you that are even more frightening than the natural phenomena like the asteroids. That danger, I¡¯m afraid, is some of the other inhabitants of our shared universe.  Yes, our own brothers and sisters.  You undoubtedly and understandably have questioned whether you were the only sentient creatures in the universe as many peoples have before you, but now our presence proves you are not. We are not the only ones. There are others, powerful and deadly and many of them have far less honorable intentions than ours.  They would rob and pillage, torture and kill, happily destroying or enslaving your civilization in a matter of days. Your own internal armed conflicts provide only a hint of the depravity that lives in the hearts of some. Should these warlike societies find you, they would quickly and easily overpower you.  The technology employed in your defenses are simply not strong enough to provide suitable protection at this stage of your development and the powerful spirit of your people will not be enough to overcome that disadvantage.


    ¡°The Given are another matter though. We are the largest, strongest, and most technologically advanced fighting force that has ever existed.  But we have no intention of using that power against you, instead we are deeply committed to your protection.  If you understood the long trials of servitude in our past, you would know we have no desire to enslave your people or play any significant role in your self-governing.  All that we ask in return is a fair contribution to our cause so that other planets like yours might be similarly protected and societies of free beings might thrive throughout the universe. Please take time to consider our offer, but understand that the risk you face is so significant, we must insist that you accept at least some level of protection. It would be suicide not to and would weaken the wall of protection for all behind it.  The only path to a safe and secure galaxy free from the danger of our vicious and demented neighbors is to create a strategic barrier of free worlds, and in that, Himya plays a critical role. Please, we entreat you, join us in our noble quest and guarantee a free and prosperous future for your people and for all people.  We await your response.¡±


    While the greeting provided to all target planets was basically the same in content, there were important differences in tone based on the culture study of the planet performed by the assessment scientist teams.  Depending on the expected response to this type of message, some planets were even negotiated with rather than forced to accept the Given¡¯s offer, though even in that case, the outcome was predetermined.  Once a planet was chosen, it would be brought into the fold, even at the cost of significant loss of life for both the Given and the target planet.  For more primitive planets like Rising Sun, that cost would likely be steep indeed, especially for them.  Societies with their structure and level of advancement typically reacted fearfully and resisted protection with all the power they had.  Against the Given war machine, however, that would likely be much too little to do anything other than delay the inevitable for a short time.


    The greeting would be continued in a loop for at least a few hours, sometimes longer based on the conditions on the target planet and the calculated likelihood that the goal could be achieved with minimal conflict.  After that period of time, the diplomatic team would initiate contact with the identified leaders of the world and attempt to negotiate a peaceful settlement.  Should that effort not be successful, the Musa would then take over with much more powerful attempts at persuasion.


    While the greeting continued to play, the General and his command team scanned the planet surface trying to gauge the activity level and intent of the inhabitants.


    ¡°What are they up to, Serez, I don¡¯t see much activity on the surface around their military bases?¡±


    ¡°Tough to tell so far sir. Looks like they are moving a lot of heavy equipment of some kind underground, maybe through tunnels. Really heavy equipment.  Take a look at your seismic scanners.¡±


    The General glanced at his screens, flipping through some of the readings. ¡°Those must be some big tunnels, are we sure?¡±


    ¡°Not yet sir, but we did see evidence of a large tunnel network near the surface in our in our initial close scans, almost surely created by geothermal processes.  We couldn¡¯t get reading on where they went initially and there was no activity so we moved on.¡±


    The General turned to his chief science officer, ¡°Larrz, we need a closer look at those tunnels.¡±


    ¡°Working on it, sir, but we¡¯ll need to get a probe near the surface within range of their scanners and attack ships.  It will likely be perceived as a hostile act if we proceed and our diplomat friends are not going to be happy with us.¡±


    ¡°Agreed, do the best you can at predetection levels, it¡¯s only been a few hours. Maybe time is on our side.¡±


    ¡®That may be wishful thinking, sir.¡± said Serez ¡®These beings have a strong warrior culture and their silence and activity level has me thinking they are not going down without a fight.¡±


    ¡°One can hope, Serez, but I fear you are right. How long until first contact?¡±


    ¡°Mriz hasn¡¯t said yet, but I would think it would be soon. Should I get an update from him?¡±


    ¡°No, not yet, we should probably spend some more time reviewing the battle plans. I think we are going to need to be creative here, these primitive planets are always such a nuisance.¡±


    A couple more hours passed and the General and his staff became increasingly nervous about the lack of visible action on the planet surface.  There were signs of civilians trying to get to safety in bunkers and smaller community centers but almost no military movement. No war planes scrambling, troops being organized, or missiles being prepped.  The General had never seen anything like it. It was almost as if their army had disappeared.  Were they hiding?  It didn¡¯t seem likely with their profile. Then what was going on, where were they?


    Larrz looked up from his screens, alarmed and said ¡°General, we¡¯re seeing some hot spots on the energy sensors, mostly around the bases of a number of their largest volcanoes ¨C and they are building fast.¡±


    ¡°Are they natural? Is that why everyone has gone underground? Maybe there is some kind of planet-wide eruption building or something?¡±


    ¡°No way to know sir, but whatever is going on down there is throwing off a serious amount of energy. Any update on contact?¡±


    ¡°No official word from Mriz yet, so I would say not.¡±


    ¡°Well we may want consider it soon, sir, these fields are building at out of control rates.  I know Rising Sun is a planet with a lot of active volcanos, but this looks like it could be a major, major eruption event. They may need our help.¡±


    The General opened a comm channel to the diplomatic ship ¡°Mriz, we are running out of time here ¨C something big is going down on the surface.  What is your contact plan?¡±


    ¡°We are talking to them now, have been for an hour or so.  They are resistant but have given no sign yet of inciting armed aggression.  They are saying this is a normal geothermal event for their planet. There may be an eruption but they cannot really predict where or when.  They are claiming they know how to handle it, there¡¯s no real danger.¡±


    ¡°No real danger to them? Or us?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, General, they really don¡¯t seem as dangerous as we thought based on their language to date.  All the signs point a relatively quick surrender, though we¡¯ll likely need to prove our superior power at some point.¡±


    ¡°I hope you are, right, Mriz, I really...¡±


    Larrz interrupted, ¡°Sir, you really need to see this.  It looks like the volcano right below us is about to erupt, and it¡¯s going to be a big one.¡±


    ¡°Get ready to pull back, Arez. Until we can get a better handle on what¡¯s going on down there I don¡¯t want to take any chances.¡±


    At that moment, the glow around the volcano turned from red to white and an enormous cloud of dust formed in the air.  The Haak fighter Blazarian was seemingly struck by a massive blast and her side was immediately engulfed in flames.


    ¡°What the hell was that?!¡±, said the General. ¡°Get Captain Druz on a comm  channel immediately and start a damage report.¡±


    ¡°You have a channel, General, go ahead.¡± said the comm officer.


    ¡°Druz, what happened, did they hit you with something or was there some kind of explosion on the ship?¡±


    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    ¡°They hit us General, I don¡¯t know with what, but it took down our left lateral shields and tore a good size hole in our side.  That was one shot too - your guns couldn¡¯t even do that.  The breach is being sealed now but I¡¯ve got 500 soldiers down, at least.¡±


    ¡°Holy dogs of Syber, pull back immediately and begin repair.  Get your people safe and I¡¯ll reassess.  General out.  Larrz, what have you got on the attack¡±.


    ¡°Still processing the readings sir, but it looks like some kind of geothermal weapon.  Somehow they seem to be harnessing the power of volcano.  Searching through the database now, but I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve ever seen anything like this before.¡±


    ¡°So are they preparing to fire again or was that it? And do we know how they aimed that thing.  We have probes all over the place and they picked up nothing?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what it looks like, sir. As far as we can tell, the energy levels have dropped by 50% at the site that shot came from so they might be done there, but the other sites are still fired up, and there are a lot of them. We are picking up no known radar signatures so we still have no idea how they hit us¡±


    ¡°Any idea what the range on that last shot was?¡±


    ¡°No idea at all and since we don¡¯t know how that weapon was aimed, fired or even what it really was, I respectfully suggest we pull back, sir. Quickly.¡±


    ¡°Agreed, pull back to 5 zeks and let¡¯s figure out where we go from here¡±. There was no discussion of stopping or aborting the mission, the Given never did that.  This was bad but they had been caught off guard before, it was an occupational hazard when you confronted as many new worlds with unknown tech as they did. ¡°Let¡¯s see how they do when there no longer have the element of surprise on their side¡±. The General was deeply angered and embarrassed by the surprise attack and though Musa culture wouldn¡¯t allow him to say it out loud, he silently committed to making these beings regret their impertinence.


    ¡°Mriz has been trying to contact you sir, shall I put him through?¡± The General looked at his screen and realized his focus on his distress about the attack had caused to miss his diplomatic officer¡¯s comm request.  Similar to the way he was feeling before the mission began due to his son¡¯s appointment, he had again been emotionally distracted at a critical juncture.  He knew had to stop indulging in the anger, clear his head, and develop a strong plan quickly or this could all end very badly.


    ¡°What is it, Mriz?¡± asked the General ¡°I¡¯m a little busy here.¡±


    ¡°Of course, sir but I have their Commander Arok online. He claims to be the acting head of the military force on the Rising Sun. Would you like to speak to him?¡±


    The General raised his head and looked at Serez for confirmation of the Commander as the senior military leader based on their intelligence. Serez nodded. ¡°Put him through. On the main screen, Serez.¡±


    Commander Arok appeared, his body language relaxed and confident, almost arrogant. ¡°Welcome to our planet, General.  As you can now see, I hope, the Hayim are more than capable of defending ourselves, so your generous offer of ¡°protection¡± is declined.  Furthermore, you must immediately begin a full withdrawal of your ships from Hayim space or the next thing you will see is your mighty but wounded warship tumbling through space in a flaming ball of fire. If you leave now, maybe we won¡¯t tell the rest of your ¡°protected¡± planets that perhaps the supposedly all-powerful Given may not be quite as powerful as they would try to make others believe.  The greatest fighting force the universe has ever seen?  Maybe that is a title the Hayim will now take for ourselves, though it seems unlikely it was ever truly yours to give.  You have one hour to withdraw from our solar system ¨C if you remain after that, your destruction is guaranteed. Consider yourselves warned, we will not contact you again.¡±


    The commander¡¯s face flickered from the screen and the General turned to gaze into the eyes of his senior officers.  Never in their lives has they been so openly threatened by a targeted planet.  Even if they planned to resist, most had the sense to at least attempt to hide their plans from the Musa.  The threat would have been laughable if not for the damage to the Blazarian. With that kind of technical capability, they must have been able to assess the strength of the Musa armada and have some idea of what they were getting themselves into.


    ¡°Begin a strategic withdrawal, or at least what looks like one. Until we figure out more about how they are doing this or what they can detect, we need to choose our appearances very carefully. While we pull back, I want all the Haak captains linked in so can develop a plan to make sure they think twice before ever insulting a Musa warrior again.¡±


    As soon as he clicked off his comm unit, the General jumped up and immediately headed to his planning room. Musa were taught to treat all setbacks and conquests with a serene acceptance and long-term view called the Prazan. This promoted unemotional and tactical thinking under all circumstances, including the loss of loved ones and fellow soldiers.  There would be time to honor them in the appropriate way after the battle was won. Until then, the focus must remain on the mission.  But the General, never a master practitioner of Prazan despite his rank knew he would have trouble maintaining an even mindset in light of the embarrassing attack and the Commander¡¯s maddening speech. He was determined not to let this conflict, as it stood, become part of his legacy as a general. Even if it was not the Musa way, he would find a way to exact his revenge on these backwater lowlifes.  He would minimize losses if he could but Arok would taste the fury of a Musa attack force.


    He entered the planning room and the four Haak captains were already onscreen, trying their best to hide their agitation. ¡°Druz, it was your ship they hit and your crew, so I¡¯ll let you lead off this discussion.  How would you like to respond? Is there anything coming out of the attack data we can use?¡±


    ¡°Well, that is one hell of a powerful gun, or mountain, or whatever it is, but my tech officers are saying they shot us when we were only 5 degrees out of true above the launch site. We¡¯re guessing if they can really aim those things, it¡¯s not by much, or we¡¯d be in pieces by now. So if we can stay out of line of the straight shots, we should have no problem getting to the planet floor and then we can properly introduce ourselves.¡±


    ¡°Agreed, our analysts have reached the same conclusion¡±, the General responded. ¡°So let¡¯s send a thousand or so fighters to penetrate their big gun defense, land at the spots we¡¯ve highlighted on your screens and give us some recon of the planet floor.  Then we¡¯ll send in the transport ships and pick up the original plan where we were before the unfortunate interruption.  The Morta will stay at the edge of our force gun range at full shields in case we need the back up and the Cloakers should be on high alert to provide some close in fire power.  I¡¯ll bet those cowards have never seen anything like them before.  Let¡¯s plan to launch the attack in exactly an hour ¨C that should provide the Commander the answer he was looking for.¡±


    As the Haak crews hurried to prepare their fighters for the counterattack, the inevitable call from Mriz came through. The General rolled his eyes and clicked on the comm channel. He knew what Mriz, always the diplomat, was going to say, at least in general terms.  If he tried to talk the General out of landing an attack team on the surface though, he would have to consider blasting the diplomatic ship out of the sky.  There was going to be a fight today. ¡°Please go ahead Mriz.¡±


    ¡°I understand your¡­concern about your soldier¡¯s safety and the desire to resolve the situation quickly, General, but let¡¯s not forget about the goal here.  We shall continue to build our strength though the acquisition of this target for our community of member planets. I¡¯m sure you will admit that their technology is intriguing and could be of use to us.  Let¡¯s make sure the sacrifice of your men contributes to the greatness of the Given and that they are well sent. We¡¯ll have a lot of additional work to do after this is all over and many lives at risk. In that spirit, and with our minds on Prazan, please keep your response at the appropriate level.¡±


    ¡°Understood, Mriz, we all have the same goal. I don¡¯t expect things will get too ugly down there and our Prazan will not be tested any more than it already has.  They¡¯ve shown their cards early, probably too early, but it was their only chance so I suppose the Commander¡¯s strategy made sense. This one is almost over, my friend.¡±


    ¡°I hope so, General. Best wishes to your soldiers. May Voz bless them.¡±


    The words came though that the fighters were ready to counterattack and at exactly fifty minutes after the Commander¡¯s warning, they were launched from the Haak fighters.  That would soon be close enough to sending the message with their arrival that the General hoped for.  He imagined the Hayim scanning the sky above their world anxious to find confirmation of the Given retreat only to be faced with a swarm of fighters more advanced than any they had ever seen, each one impossible for their guns to hit and capable of nearly destroying a city by itself.


    ¡°The fighters are approaching the outer atmosphere, General.  They know we are coming as a couple shots have been fired from their mountain guns.  Their limited aiming ability seems confirmed, they are not even close.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Larrz, that¡¯s exactly what I wanted to hear.  Let¡¯s hope we are right about the rest of it.  Give me mission updates as the planes reach the surface.¡±


    ¡°Approaching now, sir. Some of the feeds from the lead pilots are on your screen.  Reports of scattered resistance, low-tech fire power only.  Some fixed installations being easily neutralized with Laaz rockets.  Scans showing very low numbers of civilians, though.  Looks like most have gone underground.¡±


    As time passed and reports of a lightly defended planet surface continued to stream in, the General agreed that the Hayim must have withdrawn to underground fortresses to force the Given to give up or attempt to breach their mountain strongholds at great loss of life.


    ¡°Larrz, can we tell what kind of defenses they have around these mountain guns and where all the goddamn people are?


    ¡°We¡¯re sending down better sensor equipment now but early reports from surface scans makes it look like they are all clustered deep in the caverns that are part of the mountain formations.  We still can¡¯t tell yet if they are natural or made by the Hayim and have no idea how fortified they are.  Sure looks like this is where they are going to make their last stand, though.¡±


    ¡°As soon as we have confirmation, start sending down the transport ships.  I¡¯m not feeling like I have a lot of patience for these folks. Maybe if we just bust open a few of these caverns, the rest of them will give up.¡±


    ¡°Will do General, we should hear from the teams with the deep-ground sensors shortly.¡±


    Within an hour, the recon teams had reported back to the Morta with a general layout.  There were deep underground chambers and tunnels everywhere, many filled with civilians and more streaming in from cities around the mountain.  The chambers and tunnels appeared naturally formed though enhanced by the Hayim to make the passageways more of a connected network.


    Transport ships loaded with Kruz attack teams began landing around  the mountain fortresses, setting up positions, and releasing their Tribo guard robots at critical junctures around the potential attack paths the Hayim might follow.  Highly intelligent and versatile, each Tribo was trained by its owner in the tactics they preferred making them unpredictable and difficult to contain.  Looking a little like two guns mounted on a walking tripod, Tribos were an impossibly narrow target to hit and almost indestructible if they somehow were.  Tribo technology had been a gift payment from a protected planet and despite the deep Given mistrust of robots had quickly established themselves as an indispensable weapon.  After their release, the Tribo quickly spread out around the fortresses creating an almost impenetrable barrier.


    Once the Kruz forces were set and the Tribo fully deployed, they awaited the General¡¯s order to attack. The General had been trying to reach the Hayim Commander for a final attempt at parley, but had no luck.  He felt sure the Hayim were digging in for a last battle, but knew Mriz¡¯s report would criticize him if he did at least try to negotiate a final surrender.  He wondered how long he would have to wait to deflect a negative interpretation of his tactics. It quickly became apparent it would not be long as word from the sensor teams came in that Hayim forces were massing around the many of the exits and an attack was likely imminent.  Within fifteen minutes, Hayim forces had blown open the ten-foot-thick stone slabs blocking the doorways and were streaming down the hillsides, directly toward the positions of the Tribo.


    Darting around in a seemingly random array of movements honed by the war games they had survived with their Kruz owner, the Tribo cut through the Hayim forces with devastating efficiency and nearly zero losses.  The Hayim appeared frightened by the Tribo, never having battled or even seen a robot before and their weapons and tactics were tragically underpowered for an enemy with this level of tech.


    The General watched as the Hayim armies were nearly wiped out by the Tribo and was surprised they had no additional weapons that could rival their mountain guns.  The battle was turning into an absolute bloodbath, but the Commander was still refusing all comm requests.  The Given had more than extracted their revenge for the shot on the Haak fighter but the General was virtually helpless to stop the attack without some sign that the Hayim were ready to surrender. Larrz looked up from his screens ¡°General, the sites where the Kruz are attacking look like they are powering up again.  Not sure why they would do that, we don¡¯t have any ships anywhere near range.¡±


    The first thought that jumped into the General¡¯s mind was that they were going to blow up the mountains in a suicide mission.  Knowing they had lost, they were intent on taking as many of the Given with them as possible.


    ¡°Pull the soldiers back immediately, Serez, I think they may be planning to blow themselves up. We have made our point for now.¡±


    The order went out quickly and as the Kruz began pulling back, smaller beams like the ones that struck the Haak fighter began shooting wildly from the mountaintop at all angles, starting fires and destroying everything in their path. Several Given attack ships were destroyed and the Kruz scrambled for cover.


    The lead Kruz officer on the ground opened a channel to the General, ¡°General can you see this? Looks like some version of the mountain gun.  They don¡¯t seem to be able to aim it any better than the space version but we are pinned down here and taking damage.  Should we try to take the mountain and see if we can stop it?


    The General glanced at Larrz for an assessment but the science officer immediately shook his head ¡°The concentration of the beams is much denser as you get closer to the caverns.  If they don¡¯t stop this or answer our comm requests so we can negotiate, we are going to need change tactics and bring in our heavy guns.  With the power of these weapons, a direct ground attack would be suicide.¡±


    ¡°How are we going to fight a mountain, Larrz?  We still don¡¯t really know exactly where the shots are even coming from or what will happen if we fire on those sites. ¡°


    ¡°Do we have any choice, General? If we let this go for much longer, we are going to start losing soldiers in bunches. We have dozens pinned down in vulnerable positions according to the locmap.¡±


    ¡°OK, then start beaming a message to the Commander and all channels on a loop, ¡°Commander Arok, this is General Alta of the Given.  You are surrounded by overwhelming forces and the indiscriminate use of the weapons housed in your mountains will not save you or even buy you much time.  It will not be long before we will be forced to unleash an attack with firepower that exceeds your weapons and can also be accurately targeted in order to protect our soldiers. The consequences for all the Hayim people, soldiers and civilians alike may be grave.  It is not too late to negotiate a settlement, the Given are forgiving people and we have no intent to destroy you.  Please respond to our comm requests immediately¡±


    ¡°Are the force guns powered up, Larrz?¡±


    ¡°Ready to go when you are sir.¡±


    The General sighed.  As angry as he had been before, he took no pleasure in this sort of one-sided destruction.  If only the Hayim could see the truth about what they were about to lose, all for no reason other than simple pride.  It was all such a waste.  They had come across these types of cultures occasionally in the past.  Usually fairly primitive and proud, they sacrificed themselves only to end up in the same position or worse they would have been in had they negotiated peace from the beginning.  The Given did not lose or change their minds once a planet had been chosen.  It was a deep cultural commitment made with religious fervor and agreed to by all kiln in Given society.  The peace would be extended and safety for all would be guaranteed.  The ignorance of a single planet would not be allowed to jeopardize that.  One way or another, no matter what the cost on either side, the chosen planet would be protected.


    ¡°Fire a half-power shot at the mountain gun in sector L6 that is causing the most damage to our warships.  Maybe that will wake them up a little and make them find their sense.  Fire when ready.¡±


    The Morta¡¯s main force gun locked in on the target and fired. The mountainside exploded, raining boulders and debris on the bodies of the fallen Hayim below.  The gun had not penetrated the walls of the mountain and the shots from the mountain gun continued to rain down on the landscape.  The Kruz soldiers had mostly pulled back by this time but were still in danger of being hit by some of the higher angle blasts.  There seemed to be no completely safe area and the comm chatter from wounded and vulnerable soldiers filled the airwaves.  The General was quickly losing all patience.


    ¡°Any response to the comm requests from the Commander, Larrz?  Anything at all from their command centers?


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid not, sir.¡±


    ¡°Another shot, then, this time full power.¡±


    ¡°That could collapse the mountain, sir.  We really can¡¯t tell how stable these structures are.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m aware of that Larrz. We¡¯ve lost enough soldiers today and I don¡¯t think waiting is going to change anything, do you?¡±


    ¡°No sir, I guess it won¡¯t.¡±


    The force gun¡¯s shot hit the mountain, blowing it open and shaking the ground for miles. Massive landslides coursed down the mountain sides, burying the dead Hayim and Kruz alike in a thick blanket of rock.  The machinery of the volcano gun could now be seen inside the mountain but the gun was still firing in spite of the damage.


    The General looked grimly at the scene below, knowing the next shot would likely cause tens of thousands of deaths. He sighed.


    ¡°Again¡± he said.


    The third shot tore through the hole in the mountain and out the other side, stopping the volcano gun almost immediately.  Enormous slabs of rocks fell from the collapsing cliffs down onto the chambers below.  Soon the mountain was enveloped in dust and could no longer be seen.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening down there, Larrz?¡±


    ¡°As we thought, sir, the caverns are destabilizing, there is no way they are strong enough to survive an attack like this.  Many collapsed after the second shot, and nearly all are gone now.¡±


    The General shook his head. ¡°Keep broadcasting the message.  What¡¯s going on at the other sites?¡±


    ¡°No change, sir. The guns are still firing. We¡¯ve lost a few more soldiers but casualties are minor.  Most of the teams are pulled back but some of the shots are still threatening them. Based on the strategy analysis results, none of the Kruz commanders see any ground-based solution that is not going to result in a high death percentage even in the unlikely event they were successful.¡±


    ¡°Why am I not surprised you would say that? Why won¡¯t they just shut those infernal guns off?¡±


    The General continued to be as patient as he could, but still could not contact the Hayim commander. The Morta moved carefully around the planet, avoiding the range of the volcano guns, slowly knocking them out as they went.


    After the tenth mountain was destroyed, Larrz lifted his head suddenly. ¡°Sir, we¡¯ve picked up a strong energy signature in a cave far away from the volcano guns.  It looks like it could be a command center.¡±


    ¡°Good work, Larrz.  Maybe if I go down there and negotiate face to face, we can put an end to this.¡±


    ¡°Do you really think that is wise, sir, given what we¡¯ve seen today?¡±


    ¡°If we keep circling this planet blowing everybody up, there isn¡¯t going to be a whole lot for the Given to claim when this is over.  We have to give it a chance. Have the Kruz in the area move in and notify Attack Forces 1 through 10 to get ready to launch to the planet surface.¡±


    As the General rushed to his quarters to prepare his strategy for negotiation and gather his gear, a thought rushed fearfully into his mind. It was one that normally would have filled him with joy but somehow had been forgotten due to the stress of the day.  His son was the commander of Attack Force 10.

 Chapter 4

    As the General strode into the vast hanger of the Morta to join up with his landing party, he wondered to himself about Jehz¡¯s role in the operation. Should he keep him close by assigning him to his personal guard or pretend he wasn¡¯t there and send his unit to one of the outlying defense positions?  Keeping him close would be the safest route but he was already stung by the favoritism claims he had heard from Arez. Giving him what was seemingly a lead position in the mission would only serve to breathe stronger life into those rumors.   On the other hand, sending him away could unnecessarily expose him to danger given his inexperience and the unpredictability of the planet surface.


    It was a tough decision but as he strapped in, he decided he would use Jehz¡¯s Force 10 as one of his protective units along with the more experienced commander of Force 7 in the lead.  This was consistent with his handling of similar assignments for new officers under his command and he knew he would never be able to face Daez if he didn¡¯t do everything in his power to protect Jehz.  Daez, for all her strengths, was not Musa, and he wondered if she would be able to survive the kind of loss that was all too common in his kiln.


    As they lifted off, the General turned to Frenz, his number one commander for the ground mission, and confirmed the assignments for Jehz and the rest of the attack teams.  He was relieved when Frenz, normally very vocal about personnel matters, did not react to the news that Jehz would be in his protective units. That made him feel he had made the right decision.


    The General turned on a command link to the ship so he and the senior officers could be briefed on the latest scan data during the descent to the planet surface.


    ¡°Larrz, do we have any update on how many soldiers are in this facility?


    ¡°Sorry, sir, we still can¡¯t tell though we are pretty sure there are none on the outside.  Seems a little surprising given how important this place looks to them but if their mountain defense is any indication, they appear to be more comfortable hiding their security away.  We have a Kruz unit sent ahead of you with deep scanning equipment and they should be there to meet you with a full report on what¡¯s going on below.¡±


    ¡°Very good.  What¡¯s the update on the rest of the battles?¡±


    ¡°Everything is on hold, sir as you ordered.  The mountain guns are still firing in any zone where we have soldiers in the vicinity but all teams are moving away or have reinforced protection.  There¡¯s still no contact from Arok and no signs of surrender anywhere.¡±


    The General was disappointed but not surprised.  This one would go to the bitter end with untold pointless deaths unless he could make a connection with Arok or whomever was running this facility.  His early anger over the surprise attack had passed as his emotion waned and the clear realization took hold that the Hayim were just proud soldiers fighting under the illusion they were defending their people.  It was hard to understand but often true that newly contacted societies could not comprehend the offer being made to them.  They could not believe they needed protection or that the Given would provide it to them.  They knew only the language of threats and violence, the thought that a more powerful society would partner with them was foreign.  If the roles were reversed, he probably would have done the same or worse if he felt he needed to. The fog clouding his focus over the last few weeks had cleared under the rush of the battle and he knew he needed to make this negotiation work.


    The ships in the landing party safely navigated the channel between the mountain gun¡¯s range until they reached the planning point near the surface and dove away from each other to their final landing spots.  The General and his two protection units touched down a couple mzeks from the cave opening that led to the suspected command facility deep in the mountainside of a long dormant volcano. A Kruz commander quickly approached.


    ¡°General, you are not going to believe this, but it looks like there is only one being in there.  No weapon signatures or electromagnetic robot waves either. Nothing.  Either they have more of their famous surprises hidden away or it¡¯s just one guy doing who knows what.¡±


    ¡°I would believe almost anything, Lenz.  In a world like the one the Rising Sun has turned out to be, nothing else would make sense. Send Teams 2 & 4 to check it out.¡±


    The signal went out to the teams stationed outside the cave entrance who set loose their Tribo and then followed them in. An hour passed without response, then the commander of Team 2 opened a comm channel.


    ¡°General, we are ? a mzek down, right where the sensors told us we should be. It¡¯s weird, there is no equipment at all down here. It looks like someone¡¯s house or something the way it is decorated.  We can see somebody just sitting in a chair, their back is to us, but it looks like he is sleeping or maybe dead. We can¡¯t pull any of his vitals though and we are right on top of him. Should we engage?


    ¡°No, definitely not. Don¡¯t do anything. Larrz, what do you make of this?


    ¡°Don¡¯t know, sir.  The energy signature from before is gone, so if the Kruz teams don¡¯t see any sign of equipment anywhere, maybe it was moved like they moved the mountain gun equipment.  Or maybe it was him. Who knows.¡±


    ¡°OK, Lenz, send some soldiers in there and try to make contact with the person in the chair.  Gently please, let¡¯s all get home safely tonight.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Lenz motioned six of his soldiers to cross the cavernous room and try to get the attention of the sitting man.  They moved slowly, their Tribos ordered to withdraw given the way the robots had spooked the Hayim in the mountain attack.  The Kruz wouldn¡¯t need them anyway for a single man.


    As they drew around the outside of the room, the soldier could see that the man in the chair seemed to be breathing, his eyes open, staring straight ahead.  He was dressed plainly, in the style of the civilians with no visible government or military insignia. Using their translation equipment, they called out to him.


    ¡°Sir, we are soldiers of the Given people but we are not here to hurt you. Please identify yourself and let us know if you are injured or there is anything else you need and we will do our best to help.¡±


    The man¡¯s eyes quickly darted around the room, looking at each of the soldiers but he did not respond. He did not look afraid. After five minutes had past and the greeting repeated multiple times with no response, Commander Lenz moved back to the room opening and again opened a comm channel to the General.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know General, he¡¯s still just sitting there, no weapons or even what looks like it could conceivably be a weapon is nearby.  We can see he is awake and he must understand at least one of the languages used if he is on this planet, but he is not responding verbally. Maybe he is not even from here? Should we take him into custody?¡±


    ¡°No, stand down. He¡¯s still our best bet to end this thing or get us to the people who can, so continue searching for any weapons or anything suspicious.  If the area is clear, let me know, and I¡¯ll come in and try to negotiate.¡±


    The attack teams searched and scanned the cave and its surrounding tunnels for an hour but did not find any sign of additional soldiers, weapons or equipment.  The signal went out to the General and he began to make his way toward the cave.


    Entering the large main room with his son and a hundred of his elite guards, the General was struck by its spare beauty.  Filled with a few beautifully constructed pieces of furniture and artwork that appeared to be collected from throughout the galaxy based on a few styles he thought he recognized, this hardly seemed to be a stronghold or command center of any kind.  The General strolled around the room, looking occasionally at the man, hoping that he would start the dialogue, but he did not.  He seemed lost in thought, his eyes mostly closed, his palms together.


    ¡°For 100,000 years, brother, I have fought, you know that. I am one of the oldest ever, much older than you were at the time of your crossing. Does that not grant me the right to make this decision without your infernal second guessing?¡±


    ¡°Were it not for the conditions of your decision, Keer, of course it would. You may make it anyway as you well know. You are a rightfully chosen holder of the crystals. But to make it while your people¡¯s world lay in ruins with many dead, and to pick one of your enemies as the recipient. You must understand how strange it looks, like some kind of revenge.¡±


    ¡°I suppose it may look that way¡± said Keer, ¡°and I won¡¯t deny I enjoy the irony of it, but you can see the boy scans as a viable candidate and those are beyond rare these days.  I was tired before this event; you all know that brothers and sisters. I am exhausted now. My people, if you can call them that after so many centuries dedicated to our cause, will survive.  Even now they regroup and the Given will probably think twice before trying again, especially after witnessing what they are about to witness.  In fact, this transfer may be the only thing that can save them.¡±


    ¡°You are indeed wise, Keer, and we of course know your fatigue with the universe is real.  If you are sure this decision is not being driven by anger, you have our blessing and our love.  But why jump so quickly into the transfer? Perhaps the boy should be followed a bit more so we can understand the impact this change might have.¡±


    ¡°Has that ever changed anything really? And you have no way of knowing how things would have really turned out even if some of the previous transfers planned had gone otherwise. I understand the inclination toward restraint but you no longer live in the reality I do and have much too much time to ponder these decisions endlessly. The time to act is now, I¡¯ve waited long enough, brothers and sisters, and will join you soon.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be waiting Keer. You¡¯ve done well and we¡¯ll be honored by your presence.¡±


    Not honored enough to shut up for five minutes and give me a little peace I bet, Keer thought to himself smiling though he knew the regular attention from his Solon brothers was due more out of concern and his complaints than anything else. Was he really ready? The answer came quickly and he knew he was.  For a second, he again contemplated destroying the Given himself as their dismantling had been a regular topic of discussion among the Solon.  The rise of the Given to dominate their corner of the galaxy had not gone unnoticed.  They were so many in so many places though, stamping them out completely could take decades and it was far from clear what would take their place. He hated the Given for what they had done to his people but bad as they were, there were worse out there, much worse.  No, this would be the better path, it was right, and it was time.  After 100,000 years of constant battle, he deserved rest.


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    Keer sat forward and put hands on his knees, his small movement throwing the room into a near panic.  A group of soldiers, including Jehz, quickly moved in front of the General. This was a diplomatic mission so no weapons were drawn but many hands were tensed and ready to move and the Tribos standing guard received a wave of alert messages.


    The General forced his way between his soldiers and stood in front of Keer, trying to assess him.  What kind of man could sit here in this much danger with no means to protect himself and still be so quiet and calm?  If he was disturbed there were no obvious signs. The room was in order, and there was no indication of mental decay.  His eyes were clear, intelligent and focused.  He felt this being was a leader of the Hayim people, but what kind? Surely not military, maybe some kind of religious guru or spiritual advisor.  He radiated power, of that much the General was sure and needed to be approached respectfully.


    ¡°Greetings, sir, I am General Forenz of the Given army.  You seem like a man who does not want his time wasted so I will directly say that I am here to negotiate a settlement between our two peoples.  We wish for no further bloodshed.  While I know we must appear warlike to you, I assure you we are not. We are trying to protect our people and in doing so protect all the beings in the galaxy. Remember that we were fired upon first by the Hayim. Is there a language you prefer or any counselors from your people that would be helpful to you?  If so, we will bring them here to assist.¡±


    Keer stared at the General, felt the anger well up in him, and realized if he did not act soon, he would likely change his mind and destroy the Given himself, starting with this overstuffed buffoon of a leader.


    ¡°I speak your language, Forenz, and no additional counselors will be needed to end this ¡°exchange¡± between our peoples.  That is the word you Given use, is it not, exchange?  I think I would choose one much more unfavorable to your way of thinking.  I have only a few brief words to say, so listen carefully.  Their meaning may not be clear now, but one day they will be so record them carefully and take them back to your Given brothers.¡±


    ¡°Like most military men, you fear the limits of your strength and hide that in false bravery. That makes you blind to the suffering of the weak and the greater forces swirling around you, dangerously blind.  In that way you are truly a reflection of the Given way of life, blundering away from centuries of oppression only to become exactly what you fear and loathe, even worse perhaps because you fool yourselves into thinking you are something else.  Today you will pay for the blindness and tomorrow you should question your priests on why they chose this path for you and your son.  Make sure you ask them General, their response will be most interesting, I assure you.¡±


    The General¡¯s mind was immediately reeling.  What was this man talking about and how did he even know his son was on this mission with him?  Why did he mention the Given priests? The man must have some previous connection to the Given, perhaps as the leader of a Given protected world.  Maybe that was where all the art from the outer reaches of this galaxy came from.  If only he had time to direct Larrz to pull their research, maybe he could find an angle for the negotiation.


    ¡°What do you know about the Given or any of us? You should consider the prosperity and peace we bring the universe. Death from war and conflict between planets is nearly nonexistent in the areas under our control.  Did you know that as well?


    ¡°I know enough, Forenz, to put an end to it.  Before the next steps in our little duet here together begin, I need you to understand something.  Really understand it.  While it may be hard to believe looking at me, I have within me, as I sit here before you, the power to kill you and all your elite soldiers without hardly trying.  While I imagine you find that amusing, try to comprehend that on top of that I could take down your entire attack fleet and every one of your soldiers would die without barely knowing what hit them. Don¡¯t believe me?  I see the surprise on your face, and the anger.  The Given aren¡¯t used to being spoken to in this manner are they and you must think my bluster is from the same breath as the Hayim people I used to belong to.  I assure you it is not.  Please prove it to yourself, it is important that you understand.  Fire your most powerful weapons at me, I guarantee you I will not be harmed, and it will be only a trivial example of my strength.  What are you waiting for General?  I really must insist or I will be the only one to walk out of this room alive.¡±  Keer stared around the room, saw the flashes of fear in the eyes of many of the Given soldiers and then focused on the General.  After a few seconds the General nodded, the soldiers cleared away and a soldier with a ground mounted force gun opened fire.  The air around Keer glistened and he turned toward the gun, unaffected and began to move towards it. ¡°You will see for yourself one day what a Crystal Keeper is capable of and know in that moment the truth of what I am saying.  Remember it well Forenz.  Remember all the choices made that ended up putting us together in this room on this day.  Yes, I could have destroyed your entire fleet, ended your career or your life, whatever I chose.  But I will do something worse. I will take your son from you. One day perhaps the Given people will understand, even thank me for what I am about to do, maybe you will as well for giving him the strength to break free of you. You are weak and vain and have done some very bad things, but there is some good in you. I see that too.¡±  Keer gestured with his hand and the force gun went silent.


    The General wasn¡¯t sure how the magic trick he felt he had just witnessed had been accomplished but he boiled over with rage at the thought of this primitive threatening him, threatening his son. ¡°Thank you?! Thank you?! In a few minutes you¡¯ll be thanking me for allowing your pathetic life to continue after begging me not to hurt you anymore.¡±


    The General rushed at Keer and attempted to strike him with a Given martial arts death blow to the neck.  For a second the General¡¯s hand seemed to stick to Keer but Keer didn¡¯t react to the blow or seem affected, he simply stared at the General, grabbed his wrist, and threw him to the side as if tossing a pebble.


    ¡°Get Jehz out of here¡±, yelled the General, thinking this must be a aHayim ambush, but before anyone could move, Keer slapped his hands together and a bubble of white light began to grow between his fingers. It quickly grew, enveloping Keer and he disappeared into the light.  As the bubble expanded, it pushed the General and the other soldiers away toward the outer walls of the chamber.  When it reached Jehz however, the circle grew around him and he was absorbed into the center along with Keer.  The General began to panic as he neared the outer wall and yelled ¡°Someone find a way to stop this thing before it crushes us¡± but immediately after enclosing Jehz, the bubble stopped growing.  The General and the soldiers tried to punch their way through but the bubble simply flexed around their efforts without bursting.


    The General opened a comm channel to Larrz, ¡°Larrz, this being has created some kind of energy shield that has absorbed Jehz. We need to get in there.  Can you see it?¡±


    ¡°I can sir, analyzing now. Give me a few minutes.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure we have a few minutes. He made some kind of threat against Jehz and named him as my son.  I don¡¯t even know how he knew who he was.  Maybe we have a rebel on this planet whose has been advising him.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s been known to happen sir, but no one outside the inner planning circle even knew we were coming.  And how would they know you¡¯d be leading the mission and that you¡¯d be landing on the surface with your son. Seems like a long shot sir.¡±


    The General turned at stared at the light bubble, wondered what could possibly be going on inside. He wouldn¡¯t just kill Jehz to get revenge would he? Why would he kill only one man even if it was the commander¡¯s son? What did he say, we would thank him? Maybe this man was truly crazy, it was as simple as that. Ask your priests he had said, ask your priests.  Why had he said that? He waited for what seemed like an eternity before Larrz responded back.


    ¡°Sir, I finished the analysis but I¡¯m afraid I don¡¯t have much to tell you.  The energy signatures are not from any known source but appear enormously powerful. I can¡¯t tell how it¡¯s being contained but none of our weapons would be able to get through. One more thing sir, we did find a way to partially scan the inside and it looks like there¡¯s nothing alive in there.  Sorry, sir.¡±


    The General¡¯s heart sank and he immediately thought of Daez.  Our only son gone and on his very first mission.  It couldn¡¯t be happening. ¡°Could Jehz have been transported out of there?¡±


    ¡°Maybe, but we haven¡¯t seen any activity like that in the area that we can recognize.¡±


    Suddenly the bubble began to shrink. The soldiers nearby all turned and drew their weapons.  The Tribo had returned and scrambled for position on the outside of the cavern with the rest of the soldiers trying to provide cover for the General¡¯s personal guard.


    Keer emerged from the bubble and the soldiers quickly cleared a firing path so that a coordinated offensive could be launched against the being that had tried to attack one of their own. In typical Kruz fashion, there was no waiting for the order to fire, all soldiers knew the threat must be contained immediately.  After the first few shots simply bounced off, threatening to hit other soldiers or the general, the call to hold fire went out from the Kruz commander.


    The soldiers quickly realized that Keer was not moving and seemed to be encased in some kind of shell or had been turned into stone like a statue.  They all turned as the bubble continued to shrink and watched it be absorbed into Jehz¡¯s hands. Jehz stood there, staring at his hands, then looking at the soldiers, clearly confused.


    After the bubble faded, the General rushed over to him, grabbing his shoulders, examining his face for signs of distress. ¡°Are you alright, Jehz?¡± he asked, breaking the Musa custom of never referring to another soldier by name during a battle, but not caring. A wave of relief washed over him.


    Jehz looked up, surprised, trying to find something wrong with himself, some odd feeling somewhere but found nothing. ¡°I feel fine. Completely normal.¡±


    ¡°You know we¡¯ll need to get you into a containment pod until the doctors have had a chance to examine you. It¡¯s only a precaution.¡±


    ¡°I understand the protocol, General. It¡¯s fine of course.¡±


    ¡°The pod is on its way, sir.¡± said Lenz. It should be at the entrance in fifteen minutes. You need to be aware that we are getting no life readings at all from Jehz.  Are you sure it¡¯s him?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s him alright, he was in exactly the same position he was when the light swallowed him.¡± The General said it with certainty but looked at Jehz trying to figure out if it was really him, the thought had not entered his mind until Lenz mentioned it.  Every detail matched. It was definitely Jehz¡¯ body but had that thing switched with him somehow or taken over his mind? He noticed Jehz staring at his hands and could see what seemed to be two large crystals embedded in his palms.  Something pretty weird had definitely happened in there the General thought to himself. That much was obvious but his son had come back. Hopefully the containment pod would hold him if that something was bad news for Jehz.


    ¡°We better bring the statue thing with us as well, Lenz so we are going to need another containment pod.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s going to happen General. This structure weighs 50,000 tons at least, that¡¯s more than some of our battleships and it seems to have some energy force that is working to attach it to the rock below.  I have no idea what it is made of but if we want it, we¡¯re going to have to come back for it. It¡¯s not going in a containment pod.¡± The General nodded and then shook his head.  Everything about this planet and this mission had been strange even for Musa soldiers that were used to strange.


    As Jehz was loaded into his containment pod and lifted off the planet surface, the General began to think about their return to the Given home world and the contentious debrief he was almost guaranteed to face. He suspected it was going to get very ugly and wondered what would be left of his career after the senior military counsel was through with him. At least he was bringing Jehz home he thought, smiling and thinking of Daez, but he quickly caught himself, remembering the crystals in Jehz¡¯s hands and began shaking his head.  Please great spirit Voz, oh please at least let that be true.

 Chapter 5

    As the Morta emerged from the jump port into space around the Given home world, the General immediately began preparing mentally for the debrief session, considering strategy and reevaluating the data points surrounding his decision making on Rising Sun.  The mission had been such a brutal failure it was almost comical, three major ambushes, dozens of lives lost, his son kidnapped or worse by an unknown alien and in the end, the target planet had not even been contained. It had been a millennium since a Given protection mission had ended in withdrawal, a historic humiliation even though their forces had not come close to being defeated on the battlefield.


    The General had seen some strange customs in his day and many violent people ready to die when challenged by the Given, typically driven by primitive fear or unbridled aggression.  Never had he seen such a contradictory combination of strength and weakness.  The Hayim possessed powerful and unique weaponry that nearly rivaled their own in brute strength but manned them with fighting forces that mostly hid, protecting themselves with primitive guns that gave them no chance against the Given army.  What kind of battle were they prepared to engage in? They were led by a commander who, as Larrz tells it, could have destroyed the Given fleet as he had boasted but who instead decided to use his power against only one soldier, the General¡¯s son, and seemingly sacrificed himself and dissipated his enormous advantage to do it.  Despite intense study on the return trip home, they still had no idea what the Hayim leader had even done to Jehz and not a clue as to why.


    The Given weren¡¯t driven off the battlefield, they were simply led by an opponent into believing they had no idea what would come next.  That wasn¡¯t a situation any Given leader would have expected his army to fight through - uncertainty and surprise made all Musa military leaders nervous.  Like the predator fish of their home world, Musa only engaged in fights they could win easily or at least with certainty and historically had no fear withdrawing temporarily if conditions didn¡¯t favor them.  The problem was it hadn¡¯t happened in such a long time, the strategy had taken on the air of failure rather than prudence.  But was that deserved when the great general Rahz had himself done it?  Maybe that fact coupled with their decisive military domination during all direct combat would be the key to his defense ¨C maybe, just maybe he could walk away from this without it turning into more than a minor setback. He just had to sell it, and sell it well.


    As the Morta drifted toward her landing site, the General could see off in the distance the usual enormous crowd that typically gathered to celebrate their typically triumphant return had not appeared.  He could only imagine the rumors, theories, and half-truths that were circulating among the Musa on the ground about what had transpired on Hayim and hoped Daez didn¡¯t hear them though knew she probably would. He longed to tell her the truth, they had been surprised by some unconventional weaponry and tactics, it was as simple as that. They had not been defeated in battle and he and Jehz had come home alive. But it would be hours, if not days, before he would be allowed to come home or even see her. For Jehz, it could be months.


    On the ground, he slowly gathered his things and waited for his escort to the debrief to appear. Glancing out his window, he could see Jehz¡¯s containment pod was being quickly unloaded, an unusual break from typical protocol in these situations. He clearly wasn¡¯t going directly back to the base.  ¡°Good luck, son,¡± said the General under his breath. ¡°We are both going to need it. Mighty Voz guide my hand.¡±


    After the pod had been set on a transport ship, the driver was approached by a senior Musa officer accompanied by a Rija priest and handed an order board sent directly from the Musa high council, ¡°Take Jehz to Rejzik immediately.¡± it said.  The driver glanced at the Musa officer quickly and nervously, almost not believing what he was being asked but the officer calmly met his gaze and nodded.  All present recognized the highly irregular nature of this order and its possible threat to the Balance.  Jehz would not be brought to a military hospital or containment facility where he could be evaluated by his Musa kiln as would be the typical path for a soldier exposed to a potential contaminant.  Instead Jehz was being brought to the home base of the Rija or priest kiln organization. A place that for most citizens was the center of Given society itself.  Rejzik, the main Rija building was the most spectacular on the Given home world full of them and the most intimidating to those outside the priest kiln.  A massive black tower building with an enormous spire reaching five miles off the mountain plateau it was built on, it dominated the horizon for hundreds of miles around it. The three residential wings cutting out from its sides made it look a bit like a spaceship about to take off, a tangible symbol of the Given¡¯s self-appointed mission.  Ironically to some, instead of housing adventurers and explorers, Rejzik was filled with the kiln members least likely to ever be aboard a space mission, the Rija.  Inside its polished black granite walls there were hundreds of thousands of Rija running its many religious, research, and political facilities. Rejzik had been the central hub of both the priest kiln and the Given people for thousands of years and the Rija within were the heart and conscience for a culture that had struggled to find both.  Because of this, the Rija carried enormous power and influence despite being the smallest of all the kiln groups.


    During the troubled years of the Occupation, the Rija had, at great cost to themselves, provided the care and moral support the people needed to survive the trial of Syber domination. They had been the most heavily targeted of all the Given kiln and the Syber had used nearly every tool at their disposal to turn them into an agent of their twisted control.  When that didn¡¯t work, they tried to stamp them out of existence using assassination and their most brutal torture techniques.  Their losses were severe, but through it all, the Rija persevered and continued their teaching, never wavering.  Their message of the superiority and importance of the Given culture had been key to generating hope among their people and served to keep their culture alive under soul crushing living conditions.


    After their release, the Rija had reshaped that message and guided the rise of the Given people to the level of power they now enjoyed by providing the spiritual and moral justification for the Given aggression. They were destined to be the benevolent rulers of the galaxy and eventually the universe because they had suffered though the worst occupation and enslavement ever visited on a people and come out stronger and more empathic and armed with keener insight into the nature of sentient beings and power than ever.  They knew deep suffering and through that suffering had learned what it meant to lead, how important it was to lead and how to survive the enormous sacrifices that might be necessary.  If they didn¡¯t, a society much less inclined to preserve life and culture on other planets would do it in their place.  One needn¡¯t look far around the universe or too deep into the history books of nearly any planet to understand this.  Should those people seizing control be anything like the Syber, the end of freedom would only be the beginning.  Soon after would follow unrelenting death and destruction and the eventual termination of the millions of wondrous societal experiments occurring throughout the galaxy. Experiments that could be fostered by the Given and the beneficial results fed back into their system of protected planets to spur even more growth of their culture and influence.


    The Rija felt strongly it was their role to manage this process and expended great energy in maintaining that position among the Given kilns.  Only they had the perspective and foresight coupled with a commitment to modesty and restraint that would allow the Given to properly wield their enormous power. The Rija used this influence judiciously but forcefully, calling in favors when tactically it was most politically advantageous.  After getting the early reports on the Hayim mission, it was quickly evident that this was one of those times, and strings were pulled to ensure Jehz was quickly sent directly to Rejzik.


    ***


    At the top of the occupied space in Rejzik, four miles above the plateau floor, the head Rija priest or Rejiz and his Council of Eight met to contemplate the mission data. ¡°I¡¯ll assume you¡¯ve all been briefed on the reports from Hayim by your staffs.¡± said the Rejiz, ¡°Our final curated summary should be on your screens now for reference.¡±


    ¡°There is so much to contemplate here, it¡¯s hard to know where to start.  Of course, we owe our fallen brothers and sisters a moment of prayer for giving the ultimate sacrifice to ensure a brighter future for the Given and the galaxy.  Let¡¯s focus on them now and in our meditations tonight.¡±


    After a pause, the Rejiz raised his head and continued. ¡°At the risk of sidelining the rest of the important topics this mission has presented us with, I feel obligated to bring into the open that which many of your staffs, and yourselves have been whispering about ¨C the legend of the Solon.¡±


    ¡°We have all been taught the story and counseled strongly to keep it to ourselves over the millennia, mostly out of fear of being presented as something less than the most practical and sensible kiln among the Given. It has always been curious to me how we strive so earnestly for that considering some of our teachings and beliefs, but that is a topic for another day.¡±


    ¡°The legend has a clear and enduring place in our Book of Stories for reasons I still struggle to understand.  A fanciful race of beings, ancient but more technically advanced than even the most sophisticated modern culture, capable of miraculous feats.  Saving or destroying worlds if need be.  They are portrayed as generally acting for good, but vengeful and complex, driven by motives never made clear to the saved or the destroyed.  An early version of our Gods, perhaps, destined to be replaced by more refined concepts as our society and culture took shape?  Who can say I suppose and I am well aware of course that many would consider my interpretation simplistic and reflexive.


    ¡°Did we really believe they would be our saviors and rescue us from the trial of fire our people endured at the hand of the Syber.  Were the Solon an internal private symbol of hope for our kiln, something we held on to as we tried so desperately to provide hope to others? I¡¯ve often thought so because without them would we have had to face the reality that we had nearly no hope ourselves when it looked, generation after generation, century after century, that our modern Gods had abandoned us? We couldn¡¯t face it so we created that crutch to prevent us from collapsing to the ground and forsaking all we had built in a previous time and all we had endured as the plaything of the Syber. Not terrible I suppose, many other people have done the same thing while knowing and understanding more than we did then.  But after creating the crutch, we held on to it blindly as if it were no other source of strength possible.  We did eventually learn, did we not, that the crutch sapped our power and we were weak for being drawn in since in the end, it was one our own brothers who found the strength to do what others, what we could not.  That brother was the one we should have been looking for and supporting and nurturing rather than gazing at the stars from our knees hoping for a miracle.


    ¡°As we recovered as a people and began to find our way and our power grew, the Solon transformed into a symbol of fear to our leaders, the ultimate threat to our plans of spreading the Given vision for the galaxy.  We taught our acolytes the legend but behind closed doors and tried to assess the risk in our own discussions and meditations.  What if the Solon decided that we were now the persecutor that needed to be destroyed? Could even the might of the Given empire be bested by these legendary figures?  Have we angered the Gods by twice leaving them behind when we no longer needed them?


    ¡°The parallels between the Hayim creature and the Solon legends are undeniable.  The crystals in the hands, the enormous energy radiating from them, and the curious, seemingly unmovable, statue left behind when one of them moved on or transformed.  However, let us not allow our imaginations to run away with themselves, brothers and sisters.  We have traveled this galaxy for millennia and never seen a sign of one of these creatures. They have never been moved to confront us despite our obvious profile.  There are many possible explanations for Jehz¡¯s changes and many possible interpretations of the Solon legend.  We have all seen and heard of things even more bizarre and fantastical in our journeys, you know this.¡±


    The Rejiz stopped, looking around the room trying to gauge the reaction.  There was mostly mild indifference; seemingly it was the rank-and-file clerks prone to gossip largely responsible for the chatter on this topic.  When his eyes met his second in command Guz, however, he knew there was at least some cause for concern.  Guz was clearly anxious to speak.  Reluctantly, the Rejiz nodded.


    ¡°Have we considered, sir, that our meeting with this creature could be considered a validation of our role in the galaxy, a sign that the Gods are recognizing our efforts and providing us with the tools to continue our glorious mission? A Solon warrior leading a Given army would make us truly unstoppable.  Any accidents like those faced by our soldiers on Hayim would be a thing of the past.¡±


    The Rejiz sighed, ¡°We don¡¯t even know what happened to Jehz yet Guz, and there is no sign that he¡¯s been turned into some super soldier or whatever the Solon are exactly.  Remember the inhabitants weren¡¯t exactly welcoming on Hayim and this episode easily could have ended with the so-called Solon¡¯s destruction, wouldn¡¯t you agree?¡±


    ¡°Assuming he could even be destroyed, sir.  There may be many possible explanations for the resistance, perhaps the Solon himself had no control over the Hayim people. He surely didn¡¯t look like a military commander of any kind from what I could see. Or maybe they were testing us, to see if we exhibited the judgment and restraint that would make us worthy of having a Solon in our midst.  The General passed both of those tests, wouldn¡¯t you say, in the face of some challenging conditions?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps, Guz, perhaps, though I must admit my dear friend that some of these speculations of yours seem as unsubstantiated as the original legends themselves.  Where is your evidence? And what about the hostility of the so-called Solon toward our landing party.  It sure doesn¡¯t seem like he looked too favorably on the Given people considering some of his comments.¡±


    ¡°Who knows, maybe he didn¡¯t agree with the decision to help us and was overruled by some higher power than he.¡±


    ¡°Really, my friend, it feels like you are walking a tortured path to establish a point about something we haven¡¯t even proven exists yet, don¡¯t you think? Are we again making the same mistake we made during the Occupation?  Why are we looking outside ourselves when the answer to achieving our destiny is likely to come from within?  Shouldn¡¯t that be our focus Guz?¡± The Rejiz noticed that the other council members had looked up from their screens and were listening intently to the discussion at hand.  Perhaps their indifference before has been intentionally adopted given they probably expected him to dismiss the discussion out of hand.


    ¡°Of course, sir, but is it really one or the other?  Our future as a people no longer hangs in the balance as it did during the Occupation, their needs have evolved.  Perhaps now is the time for us to expand our view outward?¡±


    ¡°Point taken, Guz, but again, we have no idea what even happened to Jehz and the suggestion has become some sort of Solon superman continues to seem a little farfetched, is it not? Again, we have never seen a being close to what the Solon is rumored to be on any of our protected worlds.  Isn¡¯t it most likely that these are the legends of primitive peoples struggling to figure out the universe? Trying to give shape to their version of God since they know not the true Gods of the Greater World that guide the Given?  Those old stories we have seen and heard hundreds of times have we not? Enough indeed to fill a library with volume after volume of fantastical legends and none of them true.¡±


    ¡°We have heard the stories many times Rejiz, but have we ever had one of the legends come to life and be carried into the chambers of the Rejzik itself? It has to give one pause to consider the meaning, does it not?¡±


    ¡°We shall see, Guz, let¡¯s at least get the report from the doctors examining him before we crown Jehz a God from the heavens come to visit. Can we at least agree on that?¡±


    ***


    Jehz sat on the examining table inside his isolation pod staring at his hands and wondering if this could possibly be real. Ever since the event in the cave, he had been in shock, only his military discipline allowing him to respond to commands and keep his mind focused enough to even barely comprehend what was happening around him.  The mission would be considered a horrible military failure for the General and Jehz desperately hoped that the transformation or whatever it was would not add to the blame and accusations likely to be leveled at him.  He desperately wished to be by his father¡¯s side and try to provide the strength that the General had nurtured in him during his upbringing.  To Jehz, the General was a natural leader clearly loved by his soldiers and an even greater man who offered support and compassion to all who needed it. He prayed his father would come out of this with his command intact as he couldn¡¯t imagine what would become of him if he was forced out or humiliated.  Jehz had witnessed others lose significant rank or worse over far less serious outcomes but all had made mistakes.  Where were the General¡¯s mistakes in this case? He had thought carefully about the mission. He could not see any but there may be details not shared in the preliminary reports he had been able to access on the trip home.


    He examined the crystals in his hands trying to determine their structure or attachment point.  There were no obvious details to help him understand the crystal¡¯s composition and no indication of how they could have been embedded in his hands.  Or were they really?  He could not feel them, and turning his hands over, they looked naturally integrated into his hand structure, there was no bruising or blood, no soreness.  What had really happened to him? He tried to recall the moments before that Hayim leader had created the force field and what he had said but could not.  Maybe this had been some kind of magic trick or illusion, a last chance effort by the leader to escape when he was clearly outnumbered and overpowered?  The leader was not going to walk out of that cave a free man given the events of that day and he surely knew that.  Maybe this was how he slipped away, by directing the attention toward a young officer and making it appear as if the leader had died while he was actually escaping.  That cave had been his home, there were likely to be many secret passageways that could have been used.  It was pure genius the more Jehz thought about it.  The crystals in his hands must be some kind of holoimage the leader had stuck there.  Soon they would dissolve and after a brief evaluation period by the doctors, he would be free to return home.  It just didn¡¯t seem possible that it could be more than that.  He still didn¡¯t feel any different physically and wouldn¡¯t he have to if someone had actually embedded crystals in his hands? Wouldn¡¯t he have felt something?


    Jehz heard rustling near the doors and the notion that his situation might be quickly resolved was dispelled as soon as they opened.  Even though he knew the pod was being continuously scanned using the best tech the Given owned, a team of scientists guarded by soldiers entered the room and moved quickly to set up scanner-like machines around him unlike any he had seen before.  The back of the room filled with additional soldiers carrying absorbers and other heavy firepower.  They were either very worried he was going to go rogue on them or protecting someone very senior, probably both.


    The Rejiz swept into the room, walking quickly and confidently toward the containment pod showing none of the simmering fear Jehz felt from the others present. The Rejiz placed his hands on the pod, meeting Jehz¡¯s alarmed gaze with the relaxed reaction of someone practiced at mentally controlling their fears and projecting an outward calm. He smiled gently.


    ¡°I know your father, the General, well, Jehz.  He would be proud of you, handling such a difficult and unique situation without succumbing to fear or panic.  I see great strength in you as I do in him.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Rejiz.  Have you seen my father?  Has he finished his debrief?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I wouldn¡¯t know about that Jehz, you know better than I how the Musa are.  They¡¯ll want to talk about this one endlessly I would imagine.  Break it down, turn it over and over and over some more.  And I once thought priests were long winded!¡±


    Jehz could not help himself from smiling slightly and the Rejiz smiled back and continued.  He felt he was making a connection with the boy, that Jehz wanted him to and didn¡¯t get the feeling Jehz was dangerous.  The young soldier that had left on that mission to the Rising Sun was still there, still in control. ¡°It¡¯s not often a Musa attack team is turned back, now is it?  Last I can remember was Somoro I believe, many, many years ago now.  Surprised by the gas giants we were, hideous brutes, barely sentient but comprised of a complex chemistry, very difficult to fight with our weapons at the time.  It took us nearly a hundred years to figure a way to counteract them, but we did in the end. We always do.  Do you remember the commander of that mission?


    ¡°General Huutz, I believe.¡±


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. Very good.  And do you remember what happened to him after the Somoro incident?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, sir, I don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t expect you do to ¨C didn¡¯t myself until I decided to look it up when the first reports started coming in and you were on your way home.  He took a bit of a beating in the debrief but that¡¯s no surprise, is it?  By all accounts, he conducted himself well on Somoro and that came through in the end.  He went on to have a distinguished career with Somoro being no more than an unfortunate sidebar.  The General will do the same, my son. Keep the faith.¡±


    ¡°Those are kind words, Rejiz, and I am thankful for them. It¡¯s safe to say the Hayim mission was not our greatest moment and I worry of course that the General will be blamed for our collective lack of success.¡±


    ¡°Of course you are, as any son in your position would be.  It¡¯s a natural concern but let¡¯s allow the process to take its course.  The Musa council is a bit rough around the edges, but they usually get it right.  We¡¯ll be praying for him.  Can we talk about what happened to you now? It¡¯s perfectly all right if you would like to wait a while longer.¡±


    ¡°Of course, sir, but I am afraid don¡¯t have much to offer that hasn¡¯t already been reported on by others.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just see about that.  Sometimes talking things through again can draw out all kinds of details you never knew were there.  First off, how are you feeling, do you need a doctor?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so, but I don¡¯t really know.  I don¡¯t feel any different, but it¡¯s strange.  Everything physical seemed the same, especially at first but everyone is treating me so differently it is almost making me feel different.  Is that possible? Why is everyone acting so scared of me? What are the scans showing? My personal scanner has been switched off somehow or damaged and I can¡¯t get it back online.¡±


    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s damaged, Jehz.  I don¡¯t want to alarm you, but we need to be honest with each other.  You deserve to know.  We cannot scan you at all and haven¡¯t been able to since the attack.  That¡¯s why your brothers and sisters are here with their special tools. None of us understand what occurred down there on the planet and we are just trying to keep everyone, including you, safe.¡±


    ¡°I understand, sir.¡±


    ¡°First off, can I ask you a few questions so we can try to confirm your identity?  We really have no way of knowing if you have been somehow¡­ compromised in the Hayim attack.  Do you remember the General¡¯s favorite book?¡±


    ¡°The Musa Evolution: A Military History by Anoz I would say?¡±


    ¡°Good, and your mother¡¯s favorite food?¡±


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s tough, not sure she has one, but I¡¯ll say ratzos?  He looked at the Rejiz, worried as he really didn¡¯t know the answers to these questions for sure and wondered what would happen if he didn¡¯t answer correctly.


    ¡°That¡¯s fine Jehz, you are doing fine, please relax.  The symbol on this screen, do you recognize it?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not 100% sure, looks like maybe an old Musa battalion badge judging by some of the shapes used.  I don¡¯t recognize that as one of the current badges though or even a recent one, it¡¯s likely to be quite old.  Is that right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is¡±, said the Rejiz glancing back at a small group of the doctors and military leaders at the back of the room.  They nodded their heads slightly and the Rejiz continued.


    ¡°Well, I think that is as close as we are ever going to get with verifying your identity until we can figure out a way to get through whatever is blocking the scans.  Those crystals would be the culprit, I would imagine.  Do they hurt?¡±


    ¡°Not at all, Rejiz.  It¡¯s like I can¡¯t even feel them.  Do you think they could be some kind of illusion?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps, but I doubt it, they seem to be creating some kind of force field around you, or something is.  That at least we can see.  I know you said you are feeling mostly fine but have there been any other physical changes you are aware of?  Anything at all?¡±


    ¡°None that I am aware of, but I haven¡¯t had a chance to strip down and really look at myself.¡± Jehz grinned slightly, embarrassed at making a small joke in the presence of a senior official like the Rejiz.


    The Rejiz did not seem offended and flashed a broad smile ¡°Of course you haven¡¯t and that is the next order of business if you don¡¯t mind.  Jehz, I¡¯d like to send a doctor in. He¡¯ll be in a protective haz suit, that¡¯s protocol, but we are going to need to seal you both in the pod.  I know that is not standard but this is a highly unusual situation. Is that OK?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course.¡±


    ¡°I am also going to ask you something else.  It may sound a little strange, but I¡¯m trying to get a sense how you may have been affected, perhaps unintentionally by the events on Hayim. When you think about the Given, your people, and what we do to help and protect the galaxy, how does it make you feel?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m proud, Rejiz, we have sacrificed so much to protect others who cannot protect themselves.  So many lives have been saved, cultures protected, how could I feel anything but proud?¡±


    ¡°Of course, Jehz, of course.¡±  The Rejiz glanced over his shoulder and the doctor emerged.


    ***


    Later, in the Rejzik penthouse, the Rejiz and his Council of Eight met to review the day¡¯s events.  As the group settled in, the Rejiz stared solemly around the room as the staffs shuffled around. ¡°My brothers and sisters, I am sorry for the inconvenience, but I must insist that this meeting by held su anon.¡± The reference to the ancient Given term ¡°without help¡± was meant to exclude support staff from attendance.  This was very unusual in Rija meetings as a transparent and open governance process was strongly embedded in the priest culture.  Typically, only in cases where grave danger was present would this be invoked.


    After the staff had cleared the room, the Rejiz began. ¡°I don¡¯t do this lightly, brother and sisters, but we need to be able to talk frankly about our charge and recent events has me concerned about the reaction among the Given people should they learn the news about our guest.¡±


    ¡°So Jehz has been confirmed as a Solon?¡± said Guz quickly. ¡°I knew it, sir.¡±


    ¡°The doctors confirmed nothing of the sort, Guz, and please exercise some restraint on this, it¡¯s exactly what I am concerned about.  Actually, the doctors are not able to confirm anything about his health, his condition, or if he has been mentally or physically compromised in any way.  The force field surrounding him has proven to be completely impenetrable, even with our first order tech.  We have some of the best Illuta teams in existence trying to make sense of this but we are nowhere.  They can¡¯t even say for sure if it is the crystals driving it. Hopefully that will change soon.¡±


    ¡°So what are we going to do, Rejiz? What about his psych profiles?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course that becomes paramount without the internal data, but with  the biometrics missing, even the psych profiles are questionable.  Or so I am told.  That said though, he is testing out normally, no incongruent spikes, expected amounts of stress given the conditions.  Perfect.  Soooo¡­what do we do with him?  Keep him around like our own private zoo animal, waiting for him to hatch into a Solon? Guz?¡±


    ¡°Very funny, sir, but nothing we have learned so far, which is admittedly not much by Illuta standards has deviated from the Solon myth in any way.  If there is any chance this is the real deal, you know, we all know, we can¡¯t turn him back over to the Musa.¡±


    ¡°They are going to ask, Guz, and very soon.  Shortly after that, they are going to insist.¡±


    ¡°I know they are but we need to pull out all the stops here to keep him in house.  Should the situation unfold the way I, and others on the council less verbally forward than I think is possible, we need to make sure the Rija influence is paramount.¡±


    ¡°And if he decides to bring Rejzik down upon on our heads?¡±


    ¡°Well considering you¡¯ll likely be up on your rooftop perch, I¡¯m guessing you¡¯ll find a way for you and hopefully eight of your humble servants to land gently on their feet.  In all seriousness, sir, isn¡¯t it our responsibility, and no one else¡¯s, to take this risk?  Holding the Balance in our hands, we are the conscience of the Given people, the force of good trying to manage the delicate psyche of a deeply damaged people. In the end, we¡¯ll bring him around and when we do he¡¯ll lead us toward a future brighter than any of us thought possible or described in our most flowery and soaring sermons.  A future the Gods know we deserve after our 1,000 year sacrifice.  A future the universe deserves.¡±


    ¡°Well said, Guz, you¡¯ve been practicing that for days I imagine and make a strong and welcome case.¡± The Rejiz glanced around the room. ¡°Everyone else has been very quiet on this topic. Is Guz speaking for all of you?¡±


    Sariz, typically a moderating voice of reason in most council debates, adjusted her robes, and stood up. ¡°There are those, Rejiz who don¡¯t share Guz¡¯s optimistic assessment of this situation, but that doesn¡¯t mean our recommended paths diverge, at least in the short term.  We must keep Jehz here, at least until we find out more about his condition.  The parallels to the Solon legend, or myth if you prefer, speak for themselves.  But that may be the point of any intended deception.  Let him stay, learn our ways and at least create the possibility of an outcome, should all of this evaporate into thin air, where a future Musa general walks out of Rejzik a strong and indebted ally of the Rija.¡±


    ¡°Interesting Sariz, your perspective is always most welcome, especially when it aligns so closely with my own,¡± said the Rejiz glancing in Guz¡¯s direction. ¡°Would anyone else care to speak on this topic?¡± There was no reaction among the council and the Rejiz felt comfortable that the two camps that had spoken through Guz and Sariz represented the dominant thought among the council on Jehz.  ¡°No? There would seem to be little to debate short-term then so my basic plan is this. After a period of observation, allowing us to be reasonably sure Jehz does not pose a clear and obvious threat, he shall enter Rija training with a focus on meditative control.  This should allow us to develop him as an asset to both the Rija and the Given while also providing a notion of protection should the Solon story turn out to be one with a less than happy ending.¡±


    ¡°But sir, that training could take years,¡± said Sariz. ¡°Surely you don¡¯t expect either the General or the Musa to wait anywhere near that long!  They¡¯ll be breaking down the doors well before that.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see, Sariz.  I may just have a plan to handle the situation that will work.¡±


    ***


    As the General sat down at the conference table for his debrief session, he knew this would not be a standard interview but quickly got the impression it could be even worse than he thought.  The Musa Vicering, second only to the Chief Officer himself, sat at the head of the table looking glum, staring straight ahead.  He had met the Vicering on several occasions, but the more senior officer did not acknowledge the General or even glance in his direction.  That could not be a good sign.  While he expected the discussion to be difficult, he had hoped it would be manageable. That possibility was quickly fading as he read the body language and tone of the room.  He might be lucky to walk out a free man.


    Fleet Commander Jerez entered the room and sat down.  Based on the tension in his face and the support staff pointing at various screens around his head, the General could tell Jerez would be conducting the debriefing session.  Not so bad, thought the General, he¡¯d always got along well with Jerez, no axe to grind there, and he was fair. Commander Jerez settled his staff and quickly brought the meeting to order.


    ¡°General, welcome.  I¡¯m sorry we meet again under such unpleasant circumstances.  Please excuse my bluntness, but it is imperative we proceed directly to the matters at hand.  It is not a pretty picture as you well know,¡± began the commander in a slow, matter-of-fact tone. ¡°A Haak fighter nearly destroyed and 350 Kruz dead before even making the planet surface.  One hundred of your own dead in another ambush after which you deemed it necessary to attempt to blow half the planet and its civilian population apart in order to extract yourself.  Then to top it off, you lose the enemy commander and perhaps your own son on your way out the door.  All of this, by the way, for a planet we cannot yet count as one of the protected.


    ¡°I apologize for what I¡¯m sure appears to be a derisive tone and I acknowledge you are one of our most decorated field commanders but you would have to concede that at least superficially, this mission was an unmitigated disaster.  Furthermore, please understand the severity of the events requires an extremely thorough review of all officer decision making during the mission, especially yours as mission commander.¡±


    ¡°I do, sir and welcome the questions.  I don¡¯t have anything to hide and am always willing to learn and improve as any Musa soldier should be.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s start with the mission prep, then.  Should we even have been on Rising Sun, General?  Or should we have held off until a thorough review of the unusual energy signatures of this planet had been investigated more fully?¡±


    ¡°Not based on our current decision guidance, sir.  Perhaps 3% of target planets have anomalies roughly equivalent to those on Hayim.  Of those, the number where those signatures have proven to be evidence of a tactical challenge are almost too small to measure.  The resources required to validate those signatures or select another target are significant as you well know and the responsibility to use our resources wisely is one I take very seriously.  Based on that, I saw no reason to not proceed with the mission as planned. We are a well-off people, Fleet, but those assets came at great cost.¡±


    ¡°Your focus on efficiently stewarding our resources is commendable, General, but is that more important than the lives of our soldiers?  Did your Planner not attempt to differentiate the reading for you and point out their uniqueness and potential danger.¡±


    ¡°He did as any Planner would but at those small sample sizes, they are all unique.  There was nothing to back the readings up or substantiate them as being a danger. In fact, quite the opposite.  The Hayim were, are, simple people with very basic tech and internal organizational structures, there was no solid evidence they were holding weapons like the ones deployed during the mission, none at all, unless I missed something.¡±


    ¡°But the energy levels were so high, General, higher than anything seen in hundreds of years. Shouldn¡¯t that alone have given you pause and motivated you to ask for further evaluation? Didn¡¯t they worry you?¡±


    ¡°Based on what, Fleet, simply the fact that they were high?  There have been higher readings that turned out to be nothing. And some of the most dangerous situations ever faced by Given soldiers were not associated with high energy readings. With respect, there just wasn¡¯t enough data to draw any kind of conclusion about high potential risk in my opinion.  Also, we all know about the great care and effort employed by both Rija and Illuta teams to ensure the strategic importance of selected planets.  These choices are not and should not be easily undone without some kind of evidence or at least the suggestion that some significant risk may exist.¡±


    The General was becoming extremely frustrated and concerned about where this was headed.  Questioning him about valuing the lives of his soldiers and quibbling with him over basic facts of the pre-mission data just didn¡¯t make any sense. Unless they were planning to make this as bad as they could possibly make it, perhaps turning it into a criminal evaluation.


    Even in his worst thoughts about this session, he hadn¡¯t contemplated that possibility.  But why would they do this?  The mission had gone badly, very badly but there was nothing criminal there.  They had been shot at first and given multiple fair warnings before attacking.  Yes, civilians had been killed, a lot of civilians, but this has happened before with no hint of criminal prosecution.  The Given had protocols.  Planets chosen would be protected and that sometimes required strong, even disproportionate responses.  It was all in the protocols.  Blowing the situation out of proportion like this would reflect badly on all of them especially if word got out to the Rija spies, which it almost surely would.


    Over the next couple hours, the debrief session continued with the tone growing increasingly hostile and combative.  Logical explanations for command decisions were quickly thrown aside by the commander and a characterization that his orders were overly aggressive and reactive, almost negligently so became the roughly constructed narrative the Musa leadership were clearly forcing.  At the point the commander was overtly challenging the obvious tactical withdrawal from the mountain fortress, the General was about to boil over in anger, not even caring anymore the disciplinary action that might result from his outburst.  This was a witch hunt and a travesty and he was going to put a stop to it.


    Suddenly, an aide burst into the room and after quickly stopping at the Vicering¡¯s chair, he proceeded to the Fleet Commander and whispered in his ear.  The commander¡¯s eyes widened and he then looked at one of his screens for a long moment before slowly rising to his feet.


    ¡°Gentleman, let¡¯s us take a half hour break.  The Vicering and I have something urgent to attend to.¡±


    When the Fleet Commander returned, he had a very concerned look on his face and he gazed at the General sadly before beginning to speak. ¡°After consulting with Musa leadership, it has been decided that the mission debriefing session will be cancelled for today.  It is scheduled to recommence tomorrow with General Rarez taking my place as the interviewing officer.  It is expected that this session will be mostly a validation review of the General¡¯s report and he should be considered released and excused from any further mission obligation.¡±


    The General was beyond stunned.  That the situation had gone so far in the wrong direction only to then completely turn around and end with a full release was a shock.  In the Musa world, this meant no disciplinary hearing, no chance of rank or command loss, no negative consequences.  He could go home to stay, and finally see his son.  He walked out of the debrief room in a daze and while looking for his driver he noticed a senior Rija official lingering in the lobby, looking directly at him as if he were waiting for him.  That¡¯s odd thought the General, it not often a Rija enters a Musa command center ¨C they usually insist on summoning all parties to Rejzik to maintain the appearance of control.


    The Rija was clearly conferring with someone on a comm link, but never took his eyes off the General.  As the General headed toward the door, the Rija quickly dropped his comm and moved to intercept him. ¡°Do you need something, brother?¡± the General asked, annoyed that he would be further delayed and wanting nothing more than to be home with Daez, enjoying a glass of whiskey.


    ¡°Yes, General, the Rejiz would like to personally invite you to the Sentinal.  He has important news about your son he would like to discuss with you.  Your driver has been sent home and I have been ordered to offer any assistance I can to ensure your swift arrival.  I understand it has been a trying day for you so far, sir.  Hopefully the next part will be better. Shall we go?¡±


    This day just keeps getting stranger, thought the General. A personal invitation from the Rejiz himself.  He couldn¡¯t imagine what the news could be or why Jehz would be with the Rija but he had been around long enough to know the priests had their hands in what often seemed to be the most unlikely places.  He would just have to go with it. ¡°Of course,¡± he responded to his Rija guide and headed for their transport.


    Arriving at Rejzik, the General was quickly led to a back elevator, whisked to the top floors, and delivered into a large conference room with 20-foot glass walls.  It was an amazing sight, one the General had heard described but had never seen for himself.  He walked to the edge of the room and gazed down at the Musa city in the distance.  Only hours ago he was starting to wonder if he would ever leave there again a free man and here he was, at full rank, and being hosted as a guest of honor by arguable the most powerful person in Given society.


    ¡°Beautiful view, isn¡¯t it General?¡± He heard a voice call out from across the room. ¡°I never get tired of it.¡±  The General turned and watched the Rejiz approach, his hand extended, a politician¡¯s smile fixed on his face.


    ¡°Thanks for coming so promptly, let¡¯s sit down. We have a lot to discuss.  I hope you won¡¯t think it incredibly rude, but it¡¯s been a difficult week for everyone so I¡¯d like to get right to the point.  Can I get you a drink before we start? The Rejiz signaled to his assistant without waiting for an answer, took a seat in an enormous high-backed chair, leaned back and studied the General¡¯s body language while he waited for the drinks to arrive.  The General did not seem unusually stressed to be called before the Rejiz after the day he had. A good sign thought the priest, this is a tough resilient soldier even for a general.  The Rejiz decided to dive right in.


    ¡°So the debrief session was bad I¡¯m told, very undeserved based on our evaluation of the data.  There must be a scapegoat whenever anything goes wrong, doesn¡¯t there?  That¡¯s true everywhere I¡¯m afraid, not just among the Musa.  Quite unfortunate. You must have been incredibly upset,¡± said the Rejiz.


    The General eyes narrowed and he reached up to accept his drink.  There was so much designed to offend packed into that innocent statement, he wasn¡¯t sure what to think about first.  That the Rija had access to mission and decision data this quickly after it ended or that he had knowledge regarding the contents of a highly classified debriefing session.  This was an outrage, but something told him the Rejik had a very important reason for telling him this and he needed to hear it.


    ¡°How would you know these things, Rejik? All information associated with the mission is very sensitive and should not be available outside the highest ranks of the Musa kiln at this time.¡±


    ¡°Yes, that is true. Normally.  But there are elements of this situation that are of special importance to the Rija and the Given.  Critical importance. You know they were planning to string you up for this don¡¯t you?  It was almost guaranteed.  The Kruz commanders were livid at you but also had their own errors to cover up.  That¡¯s a dangerous combination and just the start of the movement against you. You are really quite lucky to not be in jail right now but I am guessing you must know that.¡±


    The General got the distinct sense that the Rejik was threatening him, but he was not sure why and what this could have to do with his son.  His temper short, the General decided to draw the high priest out from the shadows. ¡°I have trouble believing your information is true, Rejik, with all due respect.  You would have needed unprecedented, extraordinary access to have this kind of background. That itself would appear almost criminal and most out of Balance, especially for your office, and I¡¯m sure that would not be something you would engage in or approve of.  Should I then take your comments as conjecture based on rumor?¡±


    The Rejiz paused to consider the General¡¯s statement.  His initial impressions of the General based on their earlier brief meetings had always been positive.  The General had built a reputation as a cerebral military commander, Voz knows they are always in short supply, but also with a nose for politics and controversy.  The Rejiz had suspected that reputation was well deserved but now made a mental note that was confirmed and pressed on.


    ¡°Those are kind words in their own way General, but the fact is, as I am sure you would understand, sometimes you must get your hands dirty to ensure the greater good.  Not filthy mind you, there are still limits regardless of the situation.  But these are very unusual times, unprecedented, and we believe both you and your son have a very important role to play.¡±


    ¡°Oh really,¡± said the General feeling he now had the advantage and that the Rejiz was going to ask him for some kind of favor.  ¡°How so may I ask?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid this is the hard part, General.  I can¡¯t really tell you much about it at this point.  Deep, deep secrets, I¡¯m afraid.  Highly classified I believe the Musa would describe it as and terribly important to our collective future.  Being a Musa you must be well-versed in this kind of situation, I presume?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m really not sure what kind of situation this is, Rejiz, but I can assure you and assume you must already know I have Level 9 clearance and a demonstrated history of discretion that speaks for itself.  You should feel free to share all relevant facts and remain confident they will be handled as you would expect.¡±


    ¡°If were only that easy, General.  I wish I could, I really do, but we all, including me, need to be very careful.  What I can tell you is this.  Your son is very important to us as he may very well be part of a larger, what is the right word here, let¡¯s try situation the Rija need to stay in very close touch with.  He is not in danger as far as we know, nor are you, but we need him to stay at Rejzik for a while.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by a while?¡±


    ¡°We are really not sure, but it could be a year or more.¡±


    ¡°You have to be kidding, Rejiz.  This is unheard of.  Retaining a Musa officer without explanation or justification for over a year?  That is what you are proposing?  If this is what you mean by getting your hands dirty, I hope you are ready to get them bloody.  This situation will never be accepted by me, his mother, or the Musa leadership.¡±


    ¡°Actually it will, General.  Now please calm down and let¡¯s discuss this reasonably. Please believe we are not taking these actions lightly but rather after careful deliberation.  Part of that deliberation was discussions with the Chief Officer¡¯s command staff, discussions that included the Chief himself.  He has already agreed to the plan in whole with the sole provision being that you must also provide your consent.¡±


    ¡°Why would I ever do that, Rejiz?  Allow you to kidnap my only son?  I¡¯m sorry for the accusation, but without additional information that could help me understand, that is how I would have to characterize it.¡±


    ¡°Because you know you will one day get him back, and I assure you General that you will.  Also, because without your agreement, and I am sorry to say this, but your career is effectively over regardless of what your mission release allows.  You don¡¯t really think the course change at your debrief hearing just occurred out of nowhere, do you? We saved you General, at great cost to ourselves I might add, so that we might borrow your son for a while.  It is that important. Please understand there were other ways that extended visit could have been accomplished that were not so generous to you.¡±


    ¡°I really didn¡¯t want to have to threaten you, I would have much preferred a soaring conversation about the partnership between the kilns and the Balance and all the great things that could come out of this for you and the Given people.  But I¡¯m afraid your ¡°kidnap¡± comment forced my hand and I take responsibility for that.  I really should have set this conversation up better to help you understand, but this is all very difficult, not a lot of time to sort things out.  It is of utmost importance that we keep Jehz for a time and hope you understand we would never go to such great lengths for nefarious ends.  The Rija operate differently General, but we have always put the best interests of the Given people first, surely you can at least grant us that?  Please give us the chance to prove that again to you personally and the Musa by providing your consent.¡±


    ¡°My wife is going to kill me,¡± muttered the General, knowing it sounded like a joke but not meaning it as one.


    The Rejiz smiled the gentle smile of one used to sympathetically but unbendingly forcing others to accept and agree to his point of view.


    ¡°He won¡¯t disappear completely, General. You¡¯ll both be granted ...limited visits.  Hopefully that fact will allow you to live and serve another day as the great officer, husband and father that you are with your honor, and your marriage, intact.  Please know that your cooperation and sacrifice, even in light of our coercion, is most deeply touching and will not be forgotten.¡±


    ***


    Later that evening, the Rejiz and his Council of Eight relaxed in the very room where the discussion with the General had earlier taken place.


    ¡°Very clever indeed, Rejiz, persuading the Musa warriors to overstate their concern with the General¡¯s performance in Hayim as preparation for him to accept the decision to let Jehz stay with us.  I am very curious to understand if they were really planning to discipline the General and if you actually did have the leverage to destroy his career had he not agreed?¡±


    ¡°No on the first count, Guz.  You saw the data.  Everyone was extremely frustrated with the result but no one in their right mind could fault the General.  Most of his peers would have been lucky to return with half their fleet missing I would imagine.  The Musa know that, all I asked for was a little harmless drama.  No on the second count as well.  I could have exerted some influence I suppose, but an officer like the General is tough to stop completely.  His ambition is his weakness though and I had no choice but to use it against him.¡±


    ¡°How did you ever get the Musa to agree to this charade, Rejiz?¡± asked Sariz, ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of an arrangement like this being made before.¡±


    ¡°It was unusual, but their senior leaders are aware of the legend, Sariz.  We could not in good faith keep it from them given their role in protecting us all.  But in turn they couldn¡¯t possibly justify keeping Jehz under house arrest in a Musa facility to assess him without exposing themselves so they were more than happy for us to remove the problem.  They have required I give them expanded access to Rejzik so they can maintain watch but their presence will be discreet and limited to more public areas so we should be able to proceed without interference.  Now that we have completed the first part of our mission, tomorrow we shall begin trying to discover what secrets our new apprentice Jehz has hidden away from us behind that shield of his. Guz, since you are so enthusiastic about the prospect of a Solon among us, I am expecting you to take the lead on this with Sariz as your partner.¡±

 Chapter 6

    The Rejiz and his chief advisor, Sariz, stood at the edge of an enormous marble pool that formed part one of the many temples on the Rejzik grounds.  Jehz and one of his teachers sat some distance away in a classic Rija meditative pose, their left hands forming a fist with their right hands wrapped around it.


    ¡°He¡¯s been a model student Rejiz.  Dutiful but questioning when he needs to be. A quiet but powerful spirit.  He could be one of us - maybe he should be.¡±


    ¡°If you are saying what I think you are saying Sariz, you need to put that notion out of your mind immediately.  Make a Wander out if him when I promised his general father we would only keep him for a year and it has been 18 moons?  Oh and by the way, he¡¯s arriving for a meeting with me within the hour as you well know but you just won¡¯t let this go until you make something out of him, will you?  You are starting to sound like your partner, Guz, and it¡¯s more than a little disturbing since I thought you were supposed to be the skeptical one?  It¡¯s not your fault he¡¯s not a Solon, Sariz.  You did your job, he¡¯ll be a loyal ally, I¡¯m sure, or at least a sympathetic one.  Either way, he¡¯s more valuable to us as a Musa than he would ever be internally, unless you are thinking he could perhaps do my job?¡± The Rejiz smiled.


    ¡°Of course not sir. I was thinking that would go to me, when the time came that is,¡± Sariz said, smiling back.  ¡°But I just can¡¯t shake the feeling something troubling is going on here.  We are no closer to figuring it out than when we started, doesn¡¯t that bother you?  Jehz has shown no sign of any kind of special power, even when it is suggested in both direct and indirect ways that he try.  However, we still cannot see beyond his force field, even a glimpse has eluded us.  What was the point, then?  That is what bothers me, should bother all of us.  Where will the cannon be aimed when it goes off, Rejiz?  Can we possibly let him go before we know?¡±


    ¡°Are you so sure that it will?  I¡¯m not.  Perhaps you are more deeply disappointed you haven¡¯t been able to load the cannon yourself than you care to admit, my friend.  Attachment to that kind of dream is unhealthy for a Rija, Sariz, unhealthy for anyone in fact. We have seen many strange things, things our powerful Illuta brothers, who can reach into every corner of the universe, struggle to even begin explaining.  Perhaps whatever the Solon-thing was trying to do failed, at least partially.  Perhaps what he thought he was going to accomplish with Jehz was compromised in any number of ways.  Perhaps it just hasn¡¯t happened yet.  It doesn¡¯t matter Sariz.  We have prepared, tried to learn, and now we must let this knot loosen and unravel on its own.  Our role is to shape the outcome of our people, Sariz, not clench it in an iron grasp.  It is not our way, my friend, you know that.¡±


    ¡°I wish I had your confidence, Rejiz.  Do the legends not scare you at all?  You have no concern that this student of ours could be the most serious threat the Given has faced since the Syber?¡±


    ¡°Or the greatest gift from the Gods ever received if you were to listen to your more optimistic half Guz.¡±


    ¡°So he says, Rejiz, but we don¡¯t know which way it will be, don¡¯t even have a clue. We can¡¯t let him go under those circumstances.¡±


    ¡°We have no choice, Sariz, you must understand that.  We were lucky to have kept him this long and he has to leave today or we are going to have a Musa rebellion to deal with.  I, for one, will be happy to see those brutes scatter into the wind.  They bring so much tension.¡±


    After completing his meditation, Jehz returned to his quarters to pack his things, such as they were, his journal, his copy of Lessons of Voz, heavily annotated after months of study, a few sets of robes.  He wanted to wear his student¡¯s robes for the journey home but Guz wasn¡¯t having it, ¡°Those days are behind you now Jehz.  They will always be part of you, but part of your past.  The world rushes toward you, my son, you must run into its arms or be crushed under its feet.¡±


    ¡°Very poetic, Guz. Is that saying yours?


    ¡°No, it came from my father, he used it often in our conversations when I was a child.  He was a very emotional, headstrong man. I used to think it was a shame he had a thoughtful introverted son.  Many times we struggled to understand each other but in the end I realized that message was meant for people like me, people like us Jehz.  My father never meant it as the self-congratulation of one unafraid to act like himself but as encouragement to those who were.  In the end, we are very much alike, you and I, despite the obvious differences. The challenge for us is knowing when to stop thinking and jump in.  My father knew that about me, knew me better than I imagined in the end.  You¡¯ve learned your lessons well and you¡¯ll always have a place to rest here, but it isn¡¯t home, even though it probably feels like it after all this time.¡±


    Jehz considered his teacher¡¯s words.  He had become very comfortable here, maybe too comfortable.  The rebellion and outrage of his early days had soon mellowed into a grudging acceptance and then eventual embrace of his new lessons and lifestyle.  Neither the Rija nor his father had ever really explained the reason behind this extended apprenticeship.  They initially said it was to protect him from the turmoil surrounding the Hayim mission and his unusual role in it, but that didn¡¯t feel at all believable.  It then became the need to study the crystals and the force field emanating from them in a neutral place where all kilns could cooperate and determine the risk to both Jehz and the Given, maybe even learn some of the tech behind it.  That sounded closer to the truth but the special interest of the Rija priests and odd manner his father treated him with didn¡¯t make sense if that were true.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    In the end though, he supposed he did need the break this extended stay had provided.  Ambitious and driven hard by his father, his life as a young Musa officer had been rewarding but difficult.  The scrutiny that came with being a famous generals¡¯ son and the feeling he had to always overachieve to ensure others understood he was truly earning his Musa military honors was a burden he had carried for many years.  When the commission for the voyage to Hayim came, he knew he deserved it but heard the whispers of those who did not agree and at times even wondered if there was some truth to them.


    Then came the surreal events of the Hayim mission, the General¡¯s difficulties in securing the planet and of course, the ¡°attack¡± that had left him with the crystals and force field.  The Illuta said they had been unable to glean much information about it even after countless hours of study and he initially wondered in the early days if they were holding back but lately tended to believe them.  He knew almost nothing of it himself.  No amount of meditation, self-reflection, or physical examination yielded any clue.  He simply felt the same as he always had.  Most of the time, he truly wanted the scientists to be able to find something, to give them what they clearly wanted, provide the impetus for some great discovery and be a benefit to his people.  He did his best to make it happen, but could not.  So now he was ready, with a clear conscience, to return to his old life as a Musa officer.  He knew now, deep down, that was what he really wanted.  In the end, it had made him happy, provided him with a purpose and sense of pride.


    He had been a willing student in his time at Rejzik, no one could deny that. He had tolerated being poked and prodded like a lab rat and studied the Rija way as he was asked to do, responsibly and openly.  He had wondered at times if he would ever be comfortable living the life of a warrior after spending this time as a monk, feared that he had become too soft.  The thought of seeing his father and rejoining his kiln today however instinctively filled him with joy and hope for the future.  Both his Musa and Rija training taught him to recognize these feelings as the way to the truth.  He was ready to go home.


    ***


    The General was led into a paneled and finely upholstered waiting room and offered a seat but was too anxious to accept and walked around the room excitedly.  He had been waiting for this day since he had arrived home on that painfully long flight from Hayim so long ago, at times he had wondered if it would ever come.  To be reunited with Jehz and walk through the front door with him and greet Daez triumphantly, the first step on the journey he had always dreamed of his son and him taking finally complete.  It hadn¡¯t happened exactly the way he had planned it, but it was happening nonetheless and he was going to enjoy it.  The door opened, but only the Rejiz came through to greet the General.  Noticing his alarm, the Rejiz moved quickly to calm him.  ¡°There is no problem, General, Jehz is on his way, but before he arrives I wanted us to have a few minutes to speak.  I owe you that.¡±


    ¡°Of course Rejiz, but what about?¡±


    ¡°Just to clear the air.  I¡¯m sure many of the reports have filtered back to you one way or another but I wanted you to be able to hear it directly from me.  I¡¯m afraid we have learned almost nothing about the shield or the crystals during Jehz¡¯s time with us.  The Illuta are astounded, but then they always are when they are reminded of the all too predictable limits of their craft, aren¡¯t they?  Regardless, our time is up and this arrangement has truly come to an end. Jehz will continue to be under observation in a general way but he is free to resume his life where it was before he was so unfortunately interrupted.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d heard that about the Illuta studies, Rejiz, but I do appreciate you telling me in person.  I hope your statement confirms that whatever concerns you had about Jehz and the ¡°situation¡± he may or may not have been involved in have dissipated.¡±  The General had been amazed how little he had been able to learn about the deeper reasons behind Jehz¡¯s detainment regardless of the favors he had called in.  The Rejiz must have Musa friends in very high places, indeed.


    ¡°As much as something like this can be I suppose.  And no, I¡¯m afraid I still can¡¯t share any details with you.  I¡¯m sorry for that General, you¡¯ve been a friend to us. That will not be forgotten.¡±


    ¡°Understood, I fully expected you would be unable to provide any real update given the locked down nature of this situation, Rejiz.  It has been tightly secured, even by Musa standards.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I suppose it has, but rest assured there are reasons.  On a lighter note though, I want to congratulate you and you wife on raising such a fine young man.  He has dealt with this situation much better than I would have had I been in his shoes, I can assure you of that.  It has been a pleasure and an honor to have him as a student and guest and he, and you are always welcome as our honored guests.¡±


    ¡°Those are kind words, Rejiz and very much appreciated. Now where is our talented but normal young officer?¡±


    The door opened and Jehz strode into the room and wrapped his father in a warm hug.  ¡°It¡¯s great to see you General and even better to know you won¡¯t be leaving without me this time,¡± said Jehz.  ¡°Let¡¯s go home.¡±


    As the Rejiz watched the scene unfold, he was struck by two things.  The first was that Jehz actually referred to his father as General.  Must be a Musa tradition, he thought, or some odd family dynamic.  The second was far more curious.  As he watched them hug, he noticed that the General arms and hands were resting directly on Jehz, not floating in the air slightly due to the force field.  Very strange, he thought.  Could it be that this young man had just fooled an army of Illuta specialists and Rija behavioral experts for this long into thinking the force field was uncontrollable or was something else going on?  He quickly turned and walked out of the room, calling immediately for a meeting of the council as soon as he was out of earshot of the General.

 Chapter 7

    ¡°It¡¯s a big day, brother. Let¡¯s kick some ass!¡± yelled Stenz as he walked into  the planning room.  Jehz looked up and smiled. It was still dark, pre-dawn but Jehz had been there for two hours already, unable to sleep, nervous at his first chance to lead since his time in Rejzik.  Stenz, Jehz¡¯s Number Two for the day¡¯s war games exercise, was early as well; it would be three hours more before the rest of the squad were due.  Stenz threw down his pack and turned to look at Jehz.  ¡°I want you to know that even though we were both up for this slot, I have no problem being your Number Two today, Jehz.  After all that you and family have sacrificed for the Given, you deserve a chance to reclaim your position.  It¡¯s not your fault you were attacked on Hayim and then put on a shelf in Rejzik for a year, right? So just to clear the air here are no hard feelings, my time will come.¡±


    Jehz smiled and hoped that Stenz meant what he said. He could really use a solid backup given how long he had been away. Stenz was older and more experienced than Jehz but his overall battle and evaluation scores were lower. An ideal Number Two in many ways, assuming he could accept it. Under the Musa rating system, Jehz would have been the slightly preferred candidate and it should not have been a surprise to anyone that he was awarded a command.  Of course standard ratings weren¡¯t universally followed and his higher rank didn¡¯t stop the inevitable criticism among the young Musa officers that the ¡°Priest¡±, as Jehz was now often referred to in some quarters, had traded on his father¡¯s credentials again to score a preferred assignment.


    Stenz has heard all the comments and rumors, everything from the idea that it had been proven Jehz had been possessed by an alien to the suggestion that he had become a Rija Wander but had been allowed back into the Musa because of what happened on Hayim and how it must have messed up his mind.  He had no idea what the truth was about Jehz¡¯ time at Rezjik, but he seemed like the same old Jehz to him.  He kept his head down, worked hard, and was a solid if unspectacular leader worthy of respect.  Stenz knew there were many Musa, including his best friend Allz, who felt differently and exhibited an almost irrational hatred of Jehz.  Allz also happened to be the commander for the other battle unit today, and had been boasting for weeks how he would crush Jehz on the battlefield.


    Allz boasted about nearly everything but somehow this seemed different.  He had noticed Allz spending a lot of time preparing with the tech crew before the mission, something he had never done before.  In fact, Allz was usually outspoken and negative about the Given focus and reliance on tech superiority over its adversaries to ensure victory. He felt this strategy was badly misguided and that what they really needed to do was to focus on developing capable leaders, leaders like himself of course.  He was aggressive and brash and tended to be very dismissive of other leadership styles, especially the quieter kind that prevailed among the tech crews.  They had heard his boasting about being able to defeat his enemies even without the fancy ¡°toys¡± many times and Stenz knew they were annoyed by it.  So what did they have that had interested Allz so deeply and what could he have possibly promised the tech crew to persuade them to look past his long line of previous insults? Stenz couldn¡¯t imagine but suspected within lay the key to his battle plans for the war game.


    At the planning center for the opposing Blue squad, Allz jumped angrily up as soon as Sooz walked in the door.


    ¡°You were supposed to be here an hour ago,¡± said Allz. ¡°Where were you?¡±


    ¡°Take it easy, Allz, I just had to put the finishing touches on your hack.  I know you don¡¯t understand much about this stuff, but it was not easy to do.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure it will work then?  It better or you are going to wish¡­¡±


    ¡°It will work, Allz. Guaranteed. I tested it myself.¡±


    ¡°As if that has stopped all the previous equipment failures you jokers are responsible for, right? I feel soooo much better now, Sooz.  Thanks for telling me that.¡± said Allz sarcastically.


    ¡°Look Allz, if you don¡¯t believe me, then don¡¯t use it.  I don¡¯t need the hassle anyway. I was just trying to help you out.¡±


    ¡°Ha, that¡¯s pretty funny. It didn¡¯t have anything to do with that little prize I offered you did it, Sooz?  A little gadget like that must be the equivalent of a Tyrolian concubine in your mixed-up world, am I right? Acquiring that wasn¡¯t the easiest thing in the world either, but somehow I managed to keep my half of the bargain without threatening the entire mission.¡±


    ¡°Look, Allz, I¡¯m sorry, OK, there were some unexpected surprises.  I didn¡¯t have much time with the equipment, there were other techs around when they weren¡¯t supposed to be, things happened.  But I got it done.  Why do you want to do this anyway, swapping the location readings of the Red squad and their robots in the central computer isn¡¯t going to get you much of an advantage in the games.¡±


    ¡°Maybe it will, maybe it won¡¯t.  Let¡¯s just say I have someone on the Red squad I need to teach a lesson to.¡±


    ¡°Whatever, so when am I getting those comm units then?¡±  Allz had somehow been able to steal two Adressian comm units from the tech repository and that was the only reason Sooz had considered helping Allz.  Sooz had studied them in school, knew they were able to somehow communicate without emitting any readable signals.  No one had ever been able to figure out how they worked and the Adressians had continued to be less than agreeable partners, telling some story about how they were test units that were only fully understood by an engineer that had been killed in the Given invasion.  If he could figure it out and copy the design, he would be a hero and his rise to the top of the Musa tech organization would be pretty much locked in.  The Illuta jerks that were always dismissing his proposals for improvements and prototypes would look like fools and that would make the Musa leadership even happier.  He hated Allz, but when he offered this deal for a modest location hack to play some kind of stupid trick, he had to take it.  Sooz knew he couldn¡¯t be caught as the signal swap was untraceable and would eventually be overridden by the internal audit system, so no one would get hurt and in return he would have the chance of a lifetime.  Sooz couldn¡¯t believe Allz¡¯s stupidity in making this deal. That Adressian unit was almost priceless and even a sharp tech cadet could have pulled this hack off, not that he wanted Allz to know that.  Allz might have even been able to do it himself if he paid attention in class once in a while.


    ¡°Once you show me how this works, you¡¯ll get the first one.  After the games are over, and we¡¯ve crushed the Reds, you¡¯ll get the second.¡±


    ¡°What if you don¡¯t make it?¡± asked Sooz, ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be the first Musa to sacrifice in a war game.¡±


    ¡°This is only a Level 2, so I don¡¯t think there¡¯s any chance of that happening.  But if it pleases your little metal tech heart, how ¡®bout we do this.  I¡¯ll send a message to my Central right now with my last wishes.  If I die, there will be a section in there for you that will give you the location. We¡¯ve been friendly enough recently so no one will even think twice about it being included.  I¡¯m sending you the crypt key now, so you¡¯ll have your guarantee.  Are you happy?¡± said Allz.


    ¡°That will do,¡± responded Sooz surprised that Allz seemed to have planned this out.  Maybe he wasn¡¯t as stupid as they all thought he was.


    ¡°Good. Now show me how this damn thing works.¡±


    The games had begun with each side given the simple enough mission to attack and capture the other.  The battlefield was a series of high elevation plains with foothills running through the middle, effectively separating the two sides from each other.  Jehz had decided that after the start, he would immediately lead his troops to the highest foothill about 7 miles away and gain the strategic position. Stenz and his soldiers would cover for him nearby should they lose the fight to reach the hilltop and need to retreat.  Their robot unit would be positioned at the low point in the hills.  It was an obvious attack location and could be easily defended by the relatively immobile robots used in the games.  Once the battle was underway, Jehz rallied his troops to quickly make their high ground.  He felt that was a very logical choice for the Blue side as well, given their starting point so whoever got there first was likely to have an overwhelming advantage.  As he crossed the halfway point to the ridge, he opened a comm link to Stenz, who had the only allowed Sensor computer that could be used for tracking their opponent¡¯s whereabouts.


    ¡°Are they beating us, Stenz?  It seems like they have an easier path to the top.  If they are ahead, maybe we should angle to the formations a bit below them.  They seem easy to defend and we may be able to surprise them from there.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s strange, Jehz, but it looks like they have barely moved, other than to send a small group to a secure defense position.  I¡¯m not sure what Allz is doing here, it¡¯s not like him to hang back.  Maybe they are having some kind of equipment trouble.  Even if he starts moving now, he has no shot at the ridge top.  It¡¯s yours.¡±


    ¡°Should we move out, Allz?¡± asked his Number Two Renz. ¡°We are easy targets here.¡±


    ¡°Almost, let¡¯s allow them to settle into their positions, then we are going dark and heading to the secure point we have set up.  At the same time we¡¯ll release Strike Team 2 to climb up the back ridge.  I want to give them a head start to get above the Red position without being seen before our dark time ends.  I knew Jehz couldn¡¯t resist going for it, he is so predictable.¡±


    It was an unorthodox strategy, especially for Allz, thought Renz, but there was a chance it might work.  He was definitely planning differently for this trial and that gave them a chance to shake a commander like Jehz, who typically played things very conservatively, into making a mistake.


    After a few minutes, Allz gave the order to go dark, which meant his Sensor screen, and all comm units were shut down.  Neither team would be able to see the other during this period though allotted dark time was limited.  As the team moved toward the secure point, Allz asked Renz for the Sensor screen.  This responsibility was typically taken by the Number Two commander, but Allz explained that he was worried that a surprise attack would separate them and he needed the exact enemy positioning the Sensor relayed to execute the next phase.  Renz thought the reason was a little strange given the low likelihood of an attack on this outlying position, but he had heard of commanders wanting to run their own Sensor before so he didn¡¯t think very much of it and handed it over.


    Arriving at the secure camp, Allz immediately gave word to lift the dark order and switched on his Sensor.  After following Sooz¡¯ instructions and waiting for the hack to take effect, it now appeared as if the Red team robots were at the high point on the ridge that and Jehz¡¯s squad was the grouping at the bottom.


    ¡°Renz, come look at this,¡± Allz said holding out the sensor.  Renz moved headed over and took the Sensor screen from Allz in amazement.


    ¡°Why would Jehz move down the ridge like that?¡± Renz said, ¡°It makes no sense, he already had the best position for a standard tactical fight.¡±


    ¡°Maybe Jehz is trying to take lesson from us and has decided to mix it up a little.  Or maybe he thinks we are going to try and break through at the bottom of the ridge and wants something stronger than the robots to hold the position.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s possible, what are we going to do now?  There¡¯s no point in having the strike team ambush a bunch of slow robots.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s change the target then.  We¡¯ll use a couple of our rockets on the robot squad and clear a path for the strike team to drop down on Stenz instead.  It looks like the team might be able to get behind them here,¡± Allz pointed to the map.  If  Strike Team 2 was able to get high enough, they could make it past the robot position and circle around to capture Stenz¡¯s soldiers.  After a rocket strike he would be expecting a frontal assault, not a rear stealth attack.


    ¡®It seems a little high risk, sir,¡± said Renz, ¡°Stenz has a well defensed position and the strike team will need a near perfect ambush if they are going to take them.  How would we get the orders to Strike Team 2 anyway?  They were told to keep all comm units off until they got a visual on our attack on the low end of the hills.¡±


    ¡°We can do it but we¡¯ll need to time this perfectly.  They must be near position now, but we¡¯ll give them a few more minutes to be sure.  Once the rocket shots are ready, we¡¯ll signal their comm units and send their orders.  That won¡¯t give Stenz¡¯s team enough time to determine which side the attack is coming from.  We need to get those shots lined up now, Renz!  See to it personally.¡±


    Renz quickly ran to the back of the squad to ready the rockets.  It didn¡¯t make much sense to him to waste their limited rocket shots on the robot squad when the strike team could likely sneak by them anyway, but Allz often made unconventional moves that seemed to work out so maybe this one would too.  Renz found the artillery soldiers at the back of the formation.


    ¡°Prepare two shots to be aimed at these coordinates immediately¡± his comm unit broadcasting the location of Jehz and his men.  ¡°These should be armed.¡±


    ¡°Can you confirm that, sir¡±, one of them said.


    ¡°Confimed, these rounds should be armed.  Be ready to fire on Allz¡¯s signal.  Renz returned to Allz¡¯s side and verified the order had been given.


    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    ¡°Signal Strike Team 2 to move past their original position and get cover.¡±


    Renz sent the message and turned back to Allz.


    ¡°All set, sir.  Whenever you are ready.¡±


    ¡°Fire rockets!¡± yelled Allz, ¡°and good riddance.¡±


    Jehz¡¯s soldiers reached the ridgetop and took defensive positions waiting for the ground attack he assumed had to be coming.  He knew that Allz¡¯s dark time had to be nearly over and figured they must have used that cover to move as close as they could unseen.  Just as he was about to open a comm channel to Stenz, his unit lit up in emergency mode.


    ¡°What is it, Stenz, are they on the move?


    ¡°I wish it were that simple.  I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on but you have two armed rockets locked onto your position and about to fire.  I¡¯m guessing you have 20 seconds max to find cover.  You need to move out right now Jehz!  All team members are receiving the same notification so just get out of there.  After they hit, then we¡¯ll regroup and try to figure out what the hell is going on.¡±


    Jehz jumped up to see if there were any caves or other natural structures where they could hide, but he knew it was no use.  If those rockets were truly armed, it would be sheer luck if any of his thirty soldiers survived.  As his team scrambled away to find what shelter they could, Jehz looked into the distance and saw the flare of the rockets jet trail begin moving across the valley floor.


    Anger rose quickly inside him.  How could anyone be so stupid as to confuse the positions of the robots and actual soldiers when it was clear as day on the Sensor?!  He could not take his eyes off the rocket trails but knew he had to break away and at least try to survive.  He tensed his legs to jump off the rock and the next thing he knew he was somehow floating fifty feet off the ground.  Turning to look at the ground below and then the rockets closing in fast he instinctively held up his arms.  A second later the rockets disintegrated in a massive explosion.  He felt the shockwave wash over him and hoped he would not be knocked to the ground, but the force moved around him as if it were being redirected.  He looked down again and saw most of his squad standing in the open, staring up at him with a mixture of relief and fear.  Holding his arms out again in a way similar to what he had done when the rockets exploded, he stared at his hands.  Had he possibly somehow done that by simply stretching his arms?


    Looking off in the distance at the source of the rocket fire, he could barely make out the Red camp, but sensed they were reloading.  He realized now he could hear their comm chatter softly in his ears and that confirmed they were scrambling to fire again.  Why hadn¡¯t they realized their mistake yet and how was he able to tap into their encrypted comm frequency?  He closed his hands into fists and could feel the sensation of a wave of energy leaving his body.  A fraction of a second later an enormous dust cloud began to rise up over the valley floor.  Jehz focused on the soft sounds in his ears and heard the Red team yelling over the chaos and trying to dig out the survivors.  Had he done that as well? He didn¡¯t remember ordering a rocket shot though he would have been well within his rights to have done so.  What was happening?


    Jehz forced his mind to relax and his slowly sank to the ground, his hands tucked under his arms.  Stenz and a couple other soldiers rushed over.  Stenz knelt next to Jehz and grabbed his shoulders, eyes wide with amazement.  ¡°You saved our lives, Jehz!  All of us.  How in the universe of Voz did you do that?¡±


    Jehz did not look up.  Relieved to be alive, he was still deeply distressed at what he had done.  He hadn¡¯t really meant to do any of it.  What if this uncontrollable force were to be unleashed on his own soldiers next?  What if he couldn¡¯t turn it off?¡±


    ¡°Stenz, you need to take me into custody immediately!  I don¡¯t know how I did this but I don¡¯t want to hurt anyone else. I¡¯m  not sure I can control it.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about Jehz?!  You¡¯re not going to hurt anyone. Whatever you did, that wasn¡¯t random. You must have known somehow we were in danger.  Or that force field somehow knew. You were lit up like a Cantaxian fireworks display on the Sensor, especially when you took that second shot, but the readings are back to normal now.  Look at them. You are under control, there¡¯s nothing wrong with trying to save your own life, whatever the means.  How do you feel? Do you need a medic?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so..I feel fine I guess so but..I didn¡¯t mean to do it.  How many dead?¡±


    ¡°From what we can see on the Sensor, it looks like there a number of injured but no casualties, and even if there were, they deserved it.  Taking an armed rocket shot at live soldiers during a Level 2 exercise ¨C someone is going to jail for this, and they are all going to get some seriously crappy ass grades.  They¡¯ll be shoveling shit on a Frezen galaxy backwater for two years after this fuckup.  Jehz, I can¡¯t believe it,¡± Stenz laughed almost uncontrollably, his relief quickly turning into a bitter anger at their betrayal. ¡°You pinned them back against the cliff face they were using for cover with a twenty-foot wall of rock dug from the ground right in front of them.  That was bad ass! That suit or whatever you call it is something else. We have to figure out how to make more of those. Did you know it could do that?  Holy shit!


    Given the unusual events that had transpired, the senior Musa officers monitoring the exercise ended it abruptly and quickly transported all soldiers involved for medical care or to be debriefed.  Allz aggressively defended himself in his interview, claiming the Sensor had malfunctioned and given him the wrong readings and that Renz could confirm, which he did. The tech member who had set up the hack, however, quickly caved under questioning.  There was no way he was going to jail or worse for a crazy man like Allz.  He knew a deep dive forensic sweep by an Illuta specialist was likely to turn up signs of the hack.  Maybe they could have all walked away from this mess if they had held their ground during questioning but Sooz wasn¡¯t willing to take that chance, not after what happened.  Even if that meant certain, maybe permanent, damage to his career.


    Sooz swore to the Musa interviewers he had no idea that Allz would try to kill someone and played them recordings of conversations that he had taped to prove it.  After the recordings were replayed and validated by the investigators, Allz was arrested and jailed.  There would be no trial in a situation as closely monitored as this one and the judicial panel that met to review the evidence quickly found Allz guilty of attempted murder. The penalty for attempted murder in Musa society was death or permanent assignment to teams involved in high-risk military missions, of which there were plenty in the far-flung network of Given-controlled planets. The victim or family of the victim had the right to remove the possibility of death and even significantly affect the sentencing, though they rarely did.


    ***


    A month later, the sentencing hearing was held at the main Musa courthouse.  The gallery was filled to capacity given the extraordinary circumstances surrounding the murder attempt and continuing rumors about Jehz¡¯s powers.  Jehz sat uneasily in the front row with the General at his side.  In the very back, shortly before the doors had closed, a team of Rija, led by the Rejzik himself, had arrived and quietly taken their seats.  Plainly clothed, clearly meaning to be as inconspicuous as possible, they were intent on taking in the spectacle firsthand.  Due to the quality of the evidence against him, Allz¡¯s team had decided to forego an extended procedural debate on the legal strength of the conviction that would only serve to make his client appear less sympathetic. They had all agreed that any lengthy review of the event details would be extremely unlikely to help his case.  Instead, the defense decided to focus on the penalty phase, hoping they could perhaps sway Jehz and his family to spare their client with emotional arguments. It seemed like a longshot but there were indications in the personality profiles of Jehz¡¯s family that suggested they might consider special emotional circumstances and impact the sentencing.  It was the only chance they had. The presiding officer rang a signal bell to quiet the crowd and officially start the proceedings and then nodded to Allz¡¯s team to begin.  Allz¡¯s main lawyer slowly rose to his feet.


    ¡°The massacre on Centon twelve years ago.  Does anyone here remember it and the five hundred and fifty-seven Musa lives sacrificed?  I¡¯d guess without even looking into the faces in the audience that nearly everyone does.  Before we come back to Centon, and I explain the personal significance of that day in my client¡¯s life, let¡¯s talk briefly about our collective purpose, our mission, for a minute. As we all know, it is a business of extreme risk.  A business of exposing ourselves to danger every day in order to protect those we love and one that has seen many brothers and sisters pay the ultimate price.  Too, too many.  So many that no matter who you talk to, they will have a story of their loss, maybe more than one.  Still, in spite of all that, in spite of the weight that we all carry and the constant sacrifice we risk, most remember that day.  That¡¯s how unusual it was.


    ¡°The units lost were stationed nearby here so many of you personally know someone directly affected, someone that continues to live with their loss and all that makes the memory even sharper and closer.  Lt. Allz remembers that day better than most.  For him, it was the day his parents were ripped away from him in a most devastating way, the day he was forced to be more of a soldier than we can expect any fourteen-year-old to be.  As hard as it is to lose your loved ones, the honor of their sacrifice on a sacred field of battle sustains and inspires us as Musa.  Their spirit drives us to reach higher and farther so that one day we can enter an era where our force guns are laid to rest, a deterrent held in reserve rather than an everyday tool that never leaves our hands.  A Certan must always try harder to find that spirit.  Much harder.  It¡¯s far too easy for them to resort to bitterness and that is why we rally around them to provide additional support.  To try to replace some of the love they have lost, if only a small measure of it.  It helps, yes, but we know deep down the Certan will never fully reclaim the love, hope, and pride that drives the rest of us.  How can they?


    How much harder still is it for a boy when the killer of your loved ones, your parents, was a friend to the ones he killed? Or so they thought, anyway, lied to and manipulated into believing the murderous deceptions of a coward.  To have to live with the fact that your loved one wasn¡¯t sacrificed honorably facing an opponent but instead stabbed coldly in the back by an enemy that hid in plain sight using guile and deception.  To make it worse still if that¡¯s even possible, that enemy was an alien working among us as a liaison, well known to many including this young boy.  One who had visited the Given home world, toured the mighty Rejzik, was a guest in our homes.  One of the Protected!  How is a young boy to overcome all that?  The lessons of sacrifice and support for our brothers and sisters we spend so much time studying offer very little to us in this case.


    Musa have always fought alone, without help from protected peoples, and with good reason.  Who else can we really trust, who else understands our mission but another Musa?  Not even our brothers and sisters in the Given can ever really know what it is like to live the way we live.  To live and breathe our purpose, one intertwined with death so that we may provide life to others.  All Musa understand our self-reliance, know how important it is, but occasionally we are forced by circumstance to seek assistance.  When that decision results in mass sacrifice, who is a child with a mother and father among the dead to blame?  The Musa who approved this alien killer to walk among us?  That would surely not be appropriate and acceptable as all Musa are taught to consider all mistakes our mistakes, to be learned from and used to improve the planning technique and strategy.  It would not be proper Prazan.


    ¡°Would it not be natural then for a young boy struggling with that loss to blame the alien, become suspicious toward all aliens?  Many among us who have suffered less at their hands feel that way if we are honest with ourselves and many have lost rank and position because of their inability to control it. So when someone enters our midst with the complicated circumstances that Jehz has, does it not raise suspicion and many questions?  We know that it has.  Jehz is a fine young officer from a highly decorated family but no one, including Jehz, knows what really happened to him.  That¡¯s what we are told anyway.


    ¡°Of course we trust our Rija leaders who say he is stable and that the brother that returned was the same one who left, but is there no grounds for suspicion for a reasonable person?  Of course there is. For one who is in an excited state, could it easily go further than that?  Allz made a terrible mistake, he knows that now, but no one was seriously hurt, thank Voz, and no one knows for sure if they would have been even if Jehz had not valiantly disarmed the situation.  The question we have to ask is should Allz pay for this mistake with his life?  Pay with his career, he knows he must start there and for a rising Musa officer like himself, that is surely a steep price, but his life?¡±


    ¡°Surely we must be able to see the extraordinary circumstances at work here and find some compassion and understanding for Allz.  This situation is literally without precedent and requires a fresh approach to fairly resolve the conflict. Allz has already been dealt the heavy blow of disgracing the parents who died trying to provide him, and all of us, with a better life.  Please let him try to rebuild some small portion of the honor he has lost rather than ending his family line over this tragic mistake. Thank you.  The defense is concluded your honor.¡±


    Jehz was allowed two weeks to consider his response and during that time had many long discussions with the General, his Rija advisors, and the soldiers in his squad on the ridgetop whose lives had also been in danger from Allz¡¯s attack.  Nearly every one of them advised Jehz to allow Allz to be executed.  ¡°He has abdicated his honor as a Musa and no possible role is left for him here. Even The Missions are too good for him.  The fact that he would even want to live on under a cloud of disgrace tells you everything you need to know about this man.¡±  He heard a version of these words over and over again but felt no one considered the price that Allz had paid in becoming a Certan.  The weight of loss in the Musa world was meant to be carried quietly. Nearly all knew some version of it, so the burden was something to be carried alone and not given special focus or attention, but how many had gone through what through what Allz had?  Surely it had changed him deeply and permanently and though the Certan program itself was a testament to the Musa acknowledgment of that fact, it had always seemed inadequate to Jehz.


    Only his mother had asked what he really felt, deep in his heart, should be done with Allz.  She did not try to sway him one way or the other, but instead tried to clear his mind of the influence weighing down on him.  ¡°You have every right to take your vengeance, my son, but make sure it is truly yours.  Not the General¡¯s or the brothers and sisters in squad. You need to try and separate their expectations and traditions from your desires, difficult as that may be to do.  Allz was wrong, of course, deeply wrong, but there is a childlike and pervasive strain of fear in his actions.  There was little benefit to him in this, no love interest or honor, none of the typical things that Musa hold so dear and are often willing to die for.  Clearly there will be no political value to letting him live, no favors to accrue.  His connections are in tatters, his mentors falling over themselves to see who can separate themselves more quickly.  Not that you care about that, my son, I love that about you, but many do. Nearly all do if you want to get right down to it.  Let that all go and quietly seek what is in your heart on this matter.  Let him live or die, whatever the right path may be for you, but let it be your choice alone.  You don¡¯t owe Allz that, you owe it to yourself, my son.¡±


    In the end Jehz felt that Allz had been caught up in a dark version of the same whirlwind he had after the events on Hayim.  Undone by the questioning and controversy and confusion surrounding their experiences, both had free fallen into a new reality.  The only difference was that Jehz had some of the most powerful people in the Given world to catch him, brush him off, and help him rise again. Allz had been mostly left to pick himself up off the ground, as Musa are expected to do.  He deserved to pay a heavy price for his mistakes, but not to be crushed by a burden so many others had a hand in placing on his young shoulders.  When the day came, Jehz let Allz live, astonishing nearly all in the courtroom, all except the Rejiz and his band who looked at each other knowingly, all thinking the same thing. Not only is Jehz likely to be what we thought beyond hope he could be, but our ability to control him seems well within our reach.

 Chapter 8

    In the grand conference room at the top of Rejzik, the Rejiz and his Council of Eight engaged in a lively debate on the events of the war games and subsequent trial of Allz.


    ¡°I knew it, Rejiz, I just knew it¡±, said Guz. ¡°The Gods have graced us with a Solon and are giving us a chance to prove our vision for the galaxy is the right one.  We shall bear witness to a glorious new era, thank Voz!¡±


    ¡°C¡¯mon now Guz, you knew no such thing,¡± countered the Rejiz ¡°This is a fascinating development, of course, and one that potentially bodes well for us if we continue to intelligently manage the situation.  But is not without risks.  You can¡¯t simply raise Jehz to your shoulder and fire him like a force gun at our enemies, Guz.  It¡¯s more complicated than that.  We still don¡¯t know for sure if we can control him and even if we were reasonably sure we could, do we even need him now?  Aside from the hiccup on Hayim, our expansion continues as expected, accelerates even. There are no challengers on the horizon.  Why take the chance Jehz turns out to be unpredictable and the method of our undoing?¡±


    ¡°Because if he is half of what we think he is, we could reach our dream more quickly and with fewer lives lost!  Maybe even create an improved version of our shared vision that exceeds what we have yet dared to dream. Can¡¯t you see Rejiz?  More than that, if we truly succeed, Jehz could also become an important agent of the Rija message, moving our spirituality and wisdom into a more central place in Given society.  A place many of us feel we have long deserved and one that would raise all the Given to a higher plane, one free of the ethical challenges our current structure places upon us.¡±


    The Rejiz stiffened.  ¡°Are you saying that because you think it would be better for the Given people or better for the Rija?  Check yourself, Guz, it¡¯s not at all clear whose dream you really desire.  We may pull at the strings to keep the Given stable and on course, but we will never try to seize power.  When the Balance breaks, my friend, we shall be the first to fall, don¡¯t doubt that for a second.¡±


    ¡°I know, sir, I am sorry, I got carried away.  Of course, I did not mean what my words seem to suggest.  I only wish for the rest of the Given kilns to see us more clearly, feel how we can be a positive force in the everyday lives of all our brothers and sisters.  Like it used to be.  It seems sometimes as if many believe us to only be lurking the shadows, misunderstood because they don¡¯t try to learn anything of our ways.¡±


    ¡°The foundation of a building is never seen, Guz, and never appreciated as the design flourishes and soaring beams draw the eye of the superficial and uninformed.  But without it, the building, and all the lives in it, would crumble to dust.  We must not forget our roles, Guz, we are already the most important kiln and the center of the Balance.  To try and be more than that, to be more visible, is sheer vanity at best and probably something much crasser and more dangerous.  We will continue to quietly teach those who will listen, guide those who ask, and steady the ship, firmly if need be, should we get off course.  With Jehz we need to proceed slowly and carefully, let the situation develop organically.  We are looking at a military application of Jehz¡¯s powers, that much is clear, but I would prefer to support the man for now and remain agnostic on his integration into Musa strategy. That would seem to be the most honorable and potentially fruitful path. Does anyone other than Guz disagree?


    ¡°You know I must at least mention again my concern about Jehz¡¯s military future, Rejiz,¡± said Sariz. ¡°I have raised this point before, but now that we have seen a glimpse of his possible strength, should we not be trying to defuse this before the Musa rush ahead with their new toy?  We have no idea how powerful and dangerous Jehz can be, and the fact that the first enhanced attack he delivered was aimed at Musa soldiers should not escape us.¡±


    ¡°Traitorous and cowardly Musa soldiers who tried to kill him and many of his brothers and sisters too, Sariz,¡± said Guz.  ¡°Let us not forget he was only defending himself.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not forgetting, but the sheer power and lack of control exhibited on the battlefield should make us all wary.  We have no idea where it begins and ends, and until we do, this looks like a reckless path that I will pray nightly we don¡¯t regret.  Shouldn¡¯t we try to stop those who are getting set to build a bomb whose only function may be to blow up in our faces?  Make another play to pull Jehz back in the Rija, say that he needs more training to be able to master his new powers.  Say anything you wish Rejiz, but take this weapon out of Musa hands until we understand what we are dealing with, I beg of you.¡±


    ¡°Your passion and direct words are always appreciated, Sariz, and please know that I have given strong consideration to this possibility.  In the end, though, it may be a even more risky move than doing nothing.  The Musa would likely deny us and we would be right back where we started, only then with a dark cloud of suspicion over our heads that may cause them to separate Jehz from us.  There is no compelling argument we could use at this point to convince them of a risk none of us can assess. I know it is uncomfortable, but we need to let this play out some.  Let¡¯s see what our Musa friends are planning and then consider our next move.  Reach out to all your contacts and make sure we are listening closely when the plans are made for their new favorite son.¡±


    The meeting broke up soon after and the Rejiz retired to his quarters.  Despite his soothing words to the council, he felt less than confident this situation was under control.  What if the Musa decided to use Jehz in the way that Guz had suggested for the Rija, to enhance their position within the kilns and expand their influence?  Perhaps Jehz himself might attempt something similar once he realized the extent of his powers. Of course it seemed unlikely, but nothing about this situation felt at all familiar or predictable. For many nights now, the Rejiz had slept fitfully full of worry that the deep uncertainty of this situation had parallels with the time after the darkest chapter of Given history, the Syber Occupation.


    The Given had been a peaceful and largely agrarian society when they first encountered the agents of the Syber.  Well into the mechanical stage of development when the invaders arrived, they were mastering the ability to extract increasing yields from their rich farmlands.  This was in turn causing an increasing specialization on the home world and freedom for some to pursue additional technological advances.  Numerous attempts to harness electronics were made but largely stymied by the constant and intense solar storms that bombarded the planet.  In the end, most of the efforts were abandoned and the level of advancement stagnated.  It mattered very little for their survival and continued growth due to the abundant natural resources available and the Given people continued to thrive.  When the Syber agents arrived however, encased in high grade armor and wielding heavily shielded force guns, the Given, known then as the Nomari were able to offer little resistance.  It took many years to fully conquer the homeland due to the sheer size of the Given world and inability of the Syber agents to use most modern tech.  But in the end, the last clusters of Nomari resistance were crushed.


    A large percentage of the native Nomari population was then transported to Syber controlled worlds to work as slaves.  Considered highly attractive and desirable by the Syber, they became the dominant domestic servant class.  The close quarters and exposure to the inner workings of Syber society made them regular targets of their master¡¯s extreme cruelty, which was legendary throughout the galaxies where the Syber were known and feared.


    No one knew where the Syber originated from but they had risen quickly to be a dominant force in their corner of the universe, controlling hundreds of planets using their unique brand of violence, torture, and intimidation.  Naturally larger and stronger than nearly all humanoid species, their physical dominance was enhanced by the extensive use of cybernetic limbs and implants.  Unlike many similar societies that sought to integrate their cybernetics in a way that appeared to match their natural form, the Syber reveled in grotesque appendages that flaunted their artificial origin.  Arms and legs with diameters much greater than the natural were common, as were unusual lengths. In addition, they were typically enhanced with extensive weaponry.  Under Syber law only two limbs could be cybernetic though the remaining natural limbs could be and were often decorated with spike, arrow, and meat hook like piercings that were attached to metal inlays embedded in their bones.  They also made seemingly made no attempt to conceal or even fully heal where their cybernetic additions were attached and the open, dripping wounds served to enhance their shocking and intimidating appearance.


    For thousands of years, the bondage and abuse of the Nomari continued.  Tens of generations were born and died without even seeing a picture of the Given home world or truly understanding that they had once been a proud independent people.  Only the Rija attempted to keep the old ways and culture alive in any manner they could and were made special targets of torture and murder because of it whenever they were identified.


    Long after even the thought of escape and rebellion had ceased to be considered by nearly all Nomari save the most independent Rija and their supporters, a boy named Gellen was born on the main Syber home world.  Raised as an apprentice slave to a cybernetic engineer in the same manner as his parents had been, he showed a strong early aptitude for design and invention, making substantial improvements to the Syber implants at a very young age even though he had received no formal education.  After discovering his early efforts, his Syber master had strongly considered killing the boy for his impertinence in touching equipment without authorization and showing an independent spirit he considered dangerous in a slave.  Gellen¡¯s designs were so advanced though, the master decided to try and use the boy as a source for ideas and to advance his own career.


    The ruse was successful, and Gellen¡¯s master Gonarc rose to the top of his field and became a very rich and powerful man.  Gellen was as close to a son as a slave could ever be given his contributions to Gonarc¡¯s success and the lengths he went to trying to appease his master.  Of course, all this was done with an ulterior motive, to be allowed continued access to the workshop in order to feed his insatiable desire for tinkering and knowledge.


    This arrangement continued until the age of twenty-one when Gellen¡¯s father was accused of treachery and conspiracy by a Nomari informant.  Convicted with the flimsiest of evidence, his father was given a typical Syber punishment.  He would be forced to torture and kill either Gellen or his wife in a widely broadcast punishment games event that served as a form of entertainment for the Syber. After that, he would be banished to a slave planet for life. Should he choose to kill neither or himself, all three would be doomed to face an even more violent session of extended and vicious torture followed by death.  The situation was common enough that Gellen¡¯s parents had felt compelled to previously discuss what they might do in this situation and both had agreed that Gellen needed to be given a chance to survive.  When the fateful night came, Gellen¡¯s father tearfully carried out his sentence to the shrieking catcalls of his Syber audience.  Gellen was also forced to attend and witness the event and that night made the commitment to himself and his parents¡¯ memory that he would dedicate his entire life to ending the Syber occupation.  Many before had made a similar pact after witnessing the depths of Syber depravity but few had the intellect, patience, and resources that Gellen commanded.


    For years after his mother¡¯s death, Gellen virtually locked himself away in the workshop, creating a stream of impressive enhancements much to Gonarc¡¯s delight.  Gonarc had been worried how his mother¡¯s death might affect Gellen and expected it to reduce his productivity, but the exact opposite seemed to be true. During this time, Gellen, also began work quietly on another project, one he had been thinking over and designing in his mind for many years.  The project was a new virus concept that he planned to embed in the cybernetic attachments with the hope of one day using them to facilitate his revenge.


    To ingratiate himself more deeply into Syber society, he began volunteering for work with the Nomari Alliance group.  The innocently named organization hid beneath it a most nefarious purpose, to use the Nomari themselves to suppress dissent, short-circuit rebellion and exert control. Drawing from the most desperate and spiteful segments of society, Alliance members were universally despised and feared for their control over the lives of everyday Nomari.  Should you be targeted by an Alliance officer, only a very powerful Syber connection was likely to save you and even that was no guarantee as the Syber commitment to fear and intimidation made defense of Nomari politically untenable for most.  Membership in the Alliance was difficult to obtain and involved an intensive investigative process and protracted probation.   They could not take any chance of an undercover Nomari seeking revenge gaining access to the organization¡¯s secrets and threatening the Alliance leadership hold on their power.  Living a nearly nomadic existence ensured Gellen would not be challenged for questionable associations, but the betrayal of his father at the hands of a senior Alliance member proved to be a black mark that was nearly impossible to erase.


    For years, Gellen pressed on, performing any task asked of him, including the public renunciation of his well-liked father at numerous public forums.  Knowing that Gellen and his father were close, the Nomari of Zerian could not begin to understand his positions. Aligning himself with the very organization that under false pretenses had killed his mother and jailed his father was considered beyond forgiveness and Gellen was formally shunned under Rija order soon after.  When the Alliance leadership learned the news, they began to be fully convinced of his loyalty and he was offered a probationary membership.  He was an attractive candidate, obviously highly intelligent with remarkable Syber connections and that package proved irresistible to the Alliance. Gellen was ecstatic, his seemingly impossible dream now a huge step closer and he quickly began the next phase of his plan ¨C a steady rise through the Alliance.  He forged a solid reputation as a Syber loyalist with his ability to root out rebellious Nomari and back up his accusations with strong physical evidence. While this evidence was not strictly needed, it allowed Alliance members to at least attempt arguments at their impartiality and stress both the futility of rebellion and importance of compliance to regular Nomari.


    Of course, often this evidence was manufactured using Gellen¡¯s considerable technical skills but it was also artfully blended with whatever small shreds of truth his investigators could turn up.  Gellen typically targeted mid-level Nomari rebels with questionable moral reputations in order to not overly weaken a force he would someday need to rely on.  Even this level of betrayal was hard for Gellen, reminding him of his parents¡¯ tragedy, and more than one evening was spent silently and tearfully apologizing to his victims after being in attendance at their punishment games.  But Gellen knew full well the extreme actions that would be required to establish himself as a candidate worthy of being more fully integrated into Syber society.  Many desperate Nomari had tried but very few succeeded and in order for his larger plan to have a chance, he needed to be much, much closer to the center of Syber power.  To get there he would have to pay a price even higher than he had ever imagined.


    Ten years later, Gellen had finally risen to the top leadership post in the Alliance, and was able to use his expanded contacts to wrangle an invitation to a Syber military event that would have numerous senior officers in attendance. He convinced his old and now dying master Gonarc to allow to him to promote his designs there.  Gellen claimed he would be representing them as Gonarc¡¯s but instead had planned on pitching the military leaders directly on more advanced ideas he had never shown to Gonarc and doing it as the creator.  He knew it was a very dangerous move due to the Syber¡¯s deep fear of outsiders but was hopeful his reputation and the military enhancements he had saved for this day would be compelling enough to keep him alive.


    At the event, the Syber military commanders were indeed suspicious, but as he had hoped, Gellen¡¯s role in the Nomari Alliance allowed him to keep the conversations going. After being able to establish himself without question as the intellectual force behind Gonarc¡¯s company, a deal was struck.  Gellen would be legally separated from Gonarc under military decree and set up in a fully stocked and staffed lab.  There he would continue working on his enhancements while also retaining his role in the Alliance.  Mere months after his lab officially launched, his initial modifications served to make the Syber cybernetic weapon implants significantly more deadly and proved crucial in multiple victorious military conflicts.  In turn, Gellen¡¯s reputation continued to grow and he began to be spoken of by the Syber in tones of reverence bestowed only on their most esteemed engineers.


    Never before had an outsider come close to this kind of success or even been allowed to try. Now Gellen finally felt comfortable laying down the groundwork of his most dangerous trap.  He had planned from early on to reserve some special enhancements for the general that he hoped would sponsor his work.  He believed that the Syber commanders¡¯ endless lust for more sophisticated cybernetics could be manipulated to get him what he really wanted, to open even more doors and extend his influence deeper still into the Syber command structure.  This strategy had worked flawlessly on Gonarc and Gellen prayed and hoped it would work again.


    He was right.  Word of his work spread from the general¡¯s contacts and soon Gellen was installing custom improvements for the cybernetic limbs for many of the Syber elite.  During this time Gonarc passed away, and after some discussion of his legal status, it was decided that while Gellen would be considered the general¡¯s slave for legal purposes, he would be welcome to live as any free Syber would.  This nearly unprecedented move was deemed justified by the priceless contributions Gellen had made to both Syber expansion and Nomari repression.  Throughout his rise in Syber society, Gellen had continued to pick away at what he considered to be the weakest leaders of the Nomari resistance.  While seeming to cripple the rebels, Gellen¡¯s moves in reality had the opposite effect.  Strong leaders were given time to emerge and weaker ones who might have compromised the movement were never given the opportunity to do so. The Nomari resistance was strengthening.  Gellen even went so far as to allow assassination attempts he had learned of through his spies to proceed under controlled circumstances to enhance his image with the Syber.  During one of the attempts, his security temporarily broke down and he shot through the eye.  At first he had been terribly distraught at the loss but he sustained no permanent brain damage and quickly learned the obvious visual value of having his sacrifice so clearly on display.


    Not all Syber were equally enamored of Gellen¡¯s expanding fame however.  The general¡¯s chief-of-staff Ballick had long been suspicious of Gellen, and when the news of the slave engineer¡¯s symbolic release reached his ears, he could stay silent no longer and rushed to the general¡¯s office.


    ¡°General, I just heard the news about Gellen and I must respectfully insist you reconsider giving this slave such a significant level of freedom.  It is absolutely unprecedented and his weapons acumen make the risk incalculable. His father was a rebel after all, shouldn¡¯t that alone give you pause to consider this one¡¯s motives?¡±


    ¡°That was long ago, Ballick, and based on his reaction after his father¡¯s death, there appears to have been no love lost between them.  So if that¡¯s your main reason for suspicion, it doesn¡¯t seem like a lot to go on.  His record is spotless, and he has single handedly cut down the rebellion of his own people more effectively than an entire Syber task force assigned the same mission.  What more could you ask for?  And we haven¡¯t even begun talking about the technical contribution.  He¡¯s a certified genius who has dedicated his life to making us stronger.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s exactly my point sir.  Doesn¡¯t this story seem a little too neat and tidy for anyone but me?  When have we ever seen this behavior from slaves, turning on their own families and their own people like this and for no real gain?  What is he really after, General, have you ever asked yourself that?


    ¡°Who knows, Ballick, maybe he just wants to build stuff.  Maybe he¡¯s a little crazy ¨C maybe a lot crazy.  Who cares?  What do you think he is going to do, attack you with one of his implants?  He would not be powerful enough to overpower even an untrained Syber male child, so what kind of threat can he really be?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know sir, but I am going to find out if it is all the same to you.  Remember the old proverb, General.  When your enemy extends one hand in peace, be sure he is not reaching for your weapon with the other.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Ballick, I remember it well, but you worry too much, my friend.  I¡¯ve known Gellen for years and had him checked out numerous times.  There¡¯s nothing there.  If it makes you feel better, have him followed, search his lab, whatever it takes.  Just be careful about it, we don¡¯t want to offend someone with Gellen¡¯s friends and reputation.  I¡¯d rather not have to explain to the Supreme Ruler why his favorite engineer isn¡¯t willing to build him any new toys.¡±


    ¡°I will, General, thank you for your deference and understanding.¡±  What Ballick hadn¡¯t told the General is that he had already pursued those avenues, and many more, but had come up empty.  He had hacked surveillance cameras for months, ripped apart Gellen¡¯s lab, and had his cybernetics broken down by the best Syber minds he could find.  Nothing.  Nobody could be that pure, thought Ballick, everyone had quirks, weaknesses, and indiscretions.  It didn¡¯t make sense to him that Gellen seemingly had none. It was almost as if he knew he was being watched and was able to control everything that could be discovered about himself. He was a genius all right, Ballick would grant him that, and that made him very, very dangerous.  Gellen seemed to be many moves ahead in a game his opponent didn¡¯t even realize was being played.


    In the lab, work on Gellen¡¯s virus slowly continued.  The tech behind it was so new and he had to be so careful about being discovered that it was nearly impossible to test thoroughly. Nonetheless he felt he was making real progress.  The idea that had come to him in the difficult, trying months after his mother¡¯s death was finally coming to fruition. Knowing that he could not embed malicious code in the firmware used to control the implants without being discovered, he had instead developed a way of generating it on command using rare metals with special properties.  He had told the Syber engineers they were there to provide special magnetic attributes that helped control some of the tech in the implants and this was actually true.  But what was only known to Gellen was that they were also capable of generating special frequencies that could be converted into commands, commands that could be used to control and sabotage the implant and the wearer in devastating ways.  Ballick and others examining his implants had been unable to determine their true purpose since they did have a legitimate use and there was little reason to look deeper after that was understood. While they were camouflaged, the rare metal components could not be completely hidden.  There were hints in the structure of some of the circuits that could have drawn suspicion if examined by an engineer clever enough to guess at the possible use.  Gellen prayed that would not happen before he had a chance to put his plan in motion.  The early tests had been positive and the structures had now been embedded in implants used by nearly all Syber on the home world and beyond.  He just needed a bit more time to work out all the kinks and develop a plan of attack.


    Ballick had decided, however, that time favored his enemy and he moved to eliminate that advantage and force Gellen¡¯s hand.  One day, nearly a year after their first conversation, Ballick decided to again raise the topic of Gellen to the general, but this time with a different unexpected twist.


    ¡°General, could we discuss the Nomari engineer Gellen? It has been a while and I¡¯ve been thinking quite a lot about him lately.¡±


    ¡°Still chasing your tail with Gellen, Ballick?  I¡¯m a little surprised you haven¡¯t given up long ago and I¡¯m guessing you didn¡¯t find much or I would have heard about it already.  But you are nothing if not dogged when you are in pursuit of something, I will give you that. So have you finally had a breakthrough?¡±


    ¡°Nothing like that, I¡¯m afraid sir, in fact, quite the opposite.  I¡¯ve come to the conclusion that not only is he innocent, he¡¯s a better Syber than most of us, General, as impossible as that sounds.  Surely a better one than me.  Contemplating that fact last night got me thinking though.  Since Gellen has been so instrumental to our recent success and is so deeply invested in helping the Syber, wouldn¡¯t the ultimate gesture of thanks be to make him one of us?  Free himself from the bondage of the flesh and allow him to finally use the gifts he has so graciously bestowed on us.  I don¡¯t know about you, but I¡¯m pretty sick and tired of looking at that stupid eye patch of his.¡±  He smiled broadly at the general, hoping his insincerity would not be too obvious.


    The general leaned back in his chair and thought about Ballick¡¯s statement.  Would it be possible?  Despite Gellen¡¯s contributions, he was still very much an outsider and there was a chance he would one day tire or become cynical spending his life making inventions for a people who were not his own.  Making him a true Syber could encourage Gellen to commit to their cause indefinitely, perhaps even increasing his creative output.  It was an idea with tremendous potential ¨C if he could convince the Supreme Commander to allow it.  The general needed to be extremely careful here so that his suggestion would not be interpreted in any way as treason.  Given how explosive this topic could be, poorly chosen words could be the equivalent of signing his own death warrant.  In the end, the general reasoned that the potential benefits to both his own career and the Syber cause were impossible to ignore and he began pondering how he could pitch the idea to the Syber command structure.


    ¡°Very interesting, Ballick, I like it.  The Supreme Commander should be told of this at the next opportunity but I need to consider my strategy very carefully.  I believe this could work out quite well for all of us.¡± He turned and smiled knowingly at his chief-of-staff. ¡°Very well indeed.¡±


    Ballick was pleased his boss had so easily taken the bait, so he decided to press on with the next part of his plan.  ¡°What about his family, then, General?  Surely the opportunity to join Syber society means they...must be left behind.  Not that it really matters, but they have done little to help the cause and Gellen should want to take a Syber wife to complete his transition, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I suppose you are right, Ballick.  It¡¯s a little sad really, I¡¯ve come to like his little ones, but if Gellen is to be truly remade, it will be necessary to put them down.  It would be a demonstration of his commitment that few could dismiss.¡±


    ***


    The invitation to a meeting at the Capitol arrived at Gellen¡¯s home in the morning and he was immediately out of sorts.  In all his years of working with senior Syber officials, he had never been summoned to the Capitol nor had he formally met with the Supreme Commander in person.  Of course he had interacted with him while installing his enhancements but the exchanges had been functional and without emotion or connection.  Gellen was a slave and been given the indifferent treatment he had come to expect. He could not imagine why he would now be sent an invitation like this.  Gellen worried that perhaps his virus had finally been discovered, knew he should have redesigned that receptor circuit he had worried that the Syber investigators would find suspicious. That must have been it!  It was the weak link and he had long known it but had not been able to develop an alternative.  What should he do?


    He wondered if perhaps he should accelerate his plans and try to launch his attack today.  He doubted it was ready but worried it might be his only chance.  His wife and sons were not safe though and he knew they would be vulnerable when the suspicion inevitably fell on him after the attack. The number of engineers who could pull off a hack like this was very small.  He had long planned to move his family into a safe house when the day came but there was no time for that now. What if he was wrong and they simply wanted to discuss plans for an expanded lab or some other mundane business?  That wouldn¡¯t typically fall to the Supreme Commander but Gellen had been extraordinarily successful and engineers of his stature were sometimes granted an audience as a thank you or to consult on some governmental plan.  Gellen decided in the end that he had to go, but he would take some time to ready the early phase of his attack just in case.  If things went against him at the Capitol, at least he then he would have a chance to set it off remotely.


    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Gellen spent the early part of the day in his lab, double-checking his design and setting up the equipment that could be used to broadcast the virus frequency across the planet and attach to any communications headed off world.  It was a huge risk to turn it on now but he had no choice. He could not let his life¡¯s work die without even an attempt to fulfill its purpose, his people left to sink back into a mire they had no idea they were so close to being lifted out of, the boot of the Syber crushing the hand that had finally found a way to pull them to safety.  It would not, could not happen.  After he finished, and without saying a word to his wife and children, he silently dressed in his formal clothes and left for the palace.


    Arriving at the Capitol building, he tried to casually scan the faces of the guards as he approached for any indication of how he would be received.  There was no sign of hostility or unexpected chatter into comm units.  No one seemed to even recognize him except for a few and their greetings were warm and sincere.  Perhaps he had been worried for nothing.


    He was quickly shown into the main banquet hall and given a seat of honor to the left of the Supreme Commander¡¯s chair.  A few minutes later, the commander and his staff came into the room, filling it with the pungent odor of blood and oil.  Being alone with this group of the most powerful and ambitious Syber, a massive unnatural tangle of metal, flesh, wire, and tendons made him realize anew how despicable and dangerous they were and how deeply he wanted to put an end to their reign of terror.  If only he could hold on just a little while longer.  He would have his revenge and one day soon stand here in this very room over the broken bodies of his enemies and finally be able to ease the pain he had lived with for all these years, pain that was only a hint of what the Nomari as a people had suffered at the hands of these abhorrent monsters.  He forced himself to focus, gazing casually with the blank, compliant stare he had learned instinctively to freeze onto his face after years of servitude.  He noticed many in the room looking back at him, almost gratefully, smiling.  He felt convinced now that he was not in danger and maybe he was getting some kind of citizen award.


    At the head of the table, the Supreme Commander stood up. He swept his massive artificial arm outward. ¡°Honorable guests, welcome and thank you all for joining us.  We have come together tonight to make history and celebrate one of the most talented engineers the universe has ever seen.  As you may have guessed, I am speaking of Gellen.  Some of you know him personally but even those who don¡¯t are likely to have been touched very directly by him though his peerless inventions and innovations.  I, of course, am no exception to that, and consider the arm that Gellen designed and built for me to be a crowning symbol of the strength of the Syber warriors.  His understanding of Syber technology and his creativity and purpose in pushing the limits of what can be done with it is absolutely legendary. Never has one come from such a modest start to achieve so much. Never before has an outsider embraced us and our culture so fully.  Almost no being of any race, alive or dead, can claim to have helped the Syber as much as this Nomari has.  Think about that statement for a minute and let it sink in.  His generosity has been almost without comparison.


    ¡°Because his contribution has been so unprecedented, the only gift we can offer that would be adequate is also unprecedented in the annals of Syber lore.  Many have fought valiantly at the side of Syber warriors or made contributions of the mind but none have ever been offered what we will offer Gellen today. Today we open our hearts and offer him a chance to join Syber society as an equal and to wear the implants that make us who we are. Just as our children are transitioned into adulthood by the enhancement ceremony, so Gellen will also be welcomed.  If he wishes it of course and doesn¡¯t give himself better tech than he developed for me.¡±  The commander smiled broadly at Gellen.  ¡°Yes that last part is a joke, but the sincerity of our offer and the respect we have for your contributions is very real.  We extend our deepest gratitude to you and hope you will accept our offer. What do you say Gellen?¡±


    Gellen was stunned.  Never in his wildest dreams would he have expected this and didn¡¯t even really know what it meant.  He had never even heard of the enhancement ceremony as he had never worked on children though he could guess what it probably entailed and it filled him revulsion.  All eyes were on him and he knew if he could carry this off, perhaps he would have the time he needed for his plan to succeed. He stood up and looked around the room.


    ¡°I am humbled by your gracious words Commander and would of course be deeply honored to accept your generous invitation.¡± A cheer went up around the room and the next few hours quickly melded into blur as he somehow stumbled his way through a banquet in his honor, his mind racing with the implications of what he had agreed to.  At the end of the evening, the general took him aside and led him to a private room where Ballick sat waiting.


    ¡°Sit down, Gellen,¡± said the general, ¡°we need to talk through a few details related to your conversion.  First and foremost, congratulations again on receiving this high honor.  It says all that needs to be said about how important and valued you are to all the Syber, including me.  We go way back and have seen our fortunes rise together.  I believe this is the step to ensure that it stays that way and doesn¡¯t end until we stand side by side at the very top of Syber society.¡±


    Gellen nodded, wondering where the conversation was going.


    ¡°As far as the implants and the ceremony, I¡¯m not sure how much of our traditions you are aware of, but you may choose implants for any two limbs and one sense organ - eye, ear, tongue, your choice.  No Syber is ever allowed more and obviously there is no going back, so choose carefully as it will in many ways define your Syber existence.¡±


    Gellen wasn¡¯t surprised to hear of the limit as he had always been aware of and puzzled by the fact that the Syber restricted themselves to two implants.   He couldn¡¯t understand why given how it limited their potential as soldiers and contributed to their bizarre appearance.  He was guessing though that the Syber somehow didn¡¯t see appearance as much of an issue.  ¡°I will think on it, General, but tell me, why are Syber warriors only allowed two implants?  Why not replace all your limbs and as many parts as you can do safely?¡±


    The general stared hard at Gellen and without a trace of irony said ¡°We are not monsters, Gellen.  Losing the last parts of our natural selves would separate us from our roots forever and turn us into soulless killers or worse.  Perhaps with the limited knowledge of robotics among the Nomari before the conquest, these concepts are not known to you.  They are however something that all Syber instinctively understand and we hope one day soon you will appreciate as well.  Do not even consider breaking this cardinal law, Gellen, or you will regret it in ways we should really not be talking about on such a special occasion.  You are forgiven for your lack of understanding as you are not yet one of us, but as a friend I ask you not to repeat that mistake.  Are we clear?¡±


    ¡°Of course, General, my apologies. I meant no insult; I hope you understand that?¡±  The general simply stared at Gellen with obvious anger on his face.  Just as Gellen was starting to feel nervous that he had dangerously crossed some kind of line, the general took a deep breath and his features softened.  ¡°With regard to your family, we hope you understand and agree that you must break with them completely.  In order to start your new life with us, your old one must be buried in the past forever.¡±


    ¡°What are you saying General, that I must leave them behind?  It would be tough but if that is what I need to do¡­


    ¡°I know this may be difficult to hear Gellen, but you must go further than that.  Only if your old life is truly destroyed can you be reborn as a Syber.  Any pull from your old existence would distract you and place your new identity at risk. I hope you can understand that?¡±


    Gellen put his head down as he realized what the General was saying.  It took all the will power he had to not launch his attack on the spot in the hope he could watch in person as this vicious barbarian suffered and died right in front of him.  However, Gellen still wasn¡¯t sure if the attack would even work.  This recent turn of events was pushing him into action but he was still hoping to buy a little more time in his lab to tie up any loose ends he could and finalize his plans. He had to keep his cool.


    ¡°Of course, General, I understand.  May I leave now to take care of this¡­issue then?  I am quite anxious to put this behind me and start my new life.¡±


    The general surveyed Gellen closely.  Gellen appeared shocked by the news but nearly anyone would be and he still seemed under control and committed. ¡°Of course, Gellen.  Can I send anyone with you to provide support and strength during this difficult time?  I would humbly offer my services if you felt that would help.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, General, but I need to do this alone.  Only then will I be worthy of the faith that you have placed in me.  Since the beginning of our partnership you have acted as my guide and mentor, sharing freely with me your experience and wisdom. My hope is that after all the steps in my transformation are completed, you might begin to see me anew as a brother and true comrade.¡±


    Gellen headed home and on the way rehearsed what we would say to his wife and children about his attack plan, which he had never mentioned to them before now.  They would need to move immediately, leaving everything, including him behind, maybe forever.  There was a safe house fairly close by and it wasn¡¯t the most secure in his network, but at least they would have a chance to get underground and be transported safely out of the city.  Arriving at home he quickly rushed upstairs, yelling for his wife, ¡°Gayan, where are you, I need to tell you about what happened at the Capitol today.¡±  He assumed she would be waiting for him in his office as she often did on days when he slipped away.  Like most Nomari, she was gentle by nature and deeply frightened by the extremely violent Syber and the time Gellen spent with them.  Waiting in the office comforted her and made their time apart a little easier.  Surprisingly, she wasn¡¯t there so he turned and ran down the hall to their bedroom.


    Entering the room, he could see Gayan slumped on the floor, her dress and the rug deeply stained with blood.  Confused and shaken he ran over to her, kneeled down and turned her over.  She had been viciously attacked, her body battered and mutilated.


    ¡°I know you didn¡¯t want any support, Gellen, but I felt it was the least I could do after, you know, all the things you have done for us.¡±  Gellen turned and saw Ballick standing in the corner of his bedroom, a demented smile on his face. ¡°You were of course going to do what needed to be done to begin your conversion, weren¡¯t you Gellen?  Not having second thoughts or anything I hope?¡±  Ballick paused and put his hand slowly on his chin in mock contemplation, clearly enjoying this moment.  ¡°You know I told the General a long time ago that we should be worried about you. He could be a spy plotting against us I said but no he said, not Gellen, we can count on him always. Looking at you now though, I¡¯m quite sure you had no intention of going through with it, Gellen, did you? None of it.  Not the conversion, not separating from your old family.  What else have you lied about I wonder?¡±


    Gellen turned and looked at the door, thinking of how he might get to his son¡¯s room and give them a chance to escape.


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother,¡± said Ballick, ¡°I started with the whelps, didn¡¯t want them making a run for it when the fun started.  So now that we are alone, aren¡¯t you going to thank me for saving you from this nasty little chore?  Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t tell the general that you didn¡¯t have the strength to do it, that will be our little secret.  C¡¯mon Gellen, no gesture of gratitude at all?  Oh well, that¡¯s understandable, I suppose, this is all so difficult.  Perhaps you can at least explain to me in an outraged tone how wrong I was to accuse you and how offended you are that I could think that you could be a traitor?¡±  Ballick glared down at Gellen who hung his head in disbelief, silent. ¡°Really, not even that? You¡¯re not selling this very well, Gellen, I have to admit I¡¯m a little disappointed.  You¡¯ve really got to try a little harder.  I¡¯m not going to enjoy it as much if it is this easy.¡±


    Gellen looked blankly at Ballick, frozen with grief, not knowing what his next move should be. ¡°Nothing?  So I have I been right about you all along, then?  I knew it, I just knew it. If only the General could be here now to see this. Now that would be something I would really enjoy.  All this does raise an important question though.  Where do we go from here, Gellen?  Should I bring you back to the Capitol so you can go through with the conversion ceremony?  Something tells me that is about the last thing you¡¯d want right now so that could be rather delightful theatre.  I know, that is a little dangerous isn¡¯t it?  Our clever little Gellen may have a surprise or two left up his sleeve, though I¡¯m guessing whatever grand plan you¡¯ve been working on never got finished or you wouldn¡¯t be standing here now.  Right again, am I?  Let¡¯s see, then how about this? When I get back, how about I tell the General that you called after arriving home and asked me for help.  You said you wanted to go through with it, wanted more than anything to be with your Syber brothers, but you just couldn¡¯t without my support and assistance.  That was understandable, noble almost, turning to your new family as you struggled to move on from the old one holding you back.  How could I say no or be suspicious when you seemed so sincere?  When I arrived though, you and your family ambushed me with help from a team of Nomari resistance fighters.  They are already dead downstairs in the living room, by the way, you probably didn¡¯t see them on your way in, you were in such a rush after all.  It was a valiant fight, but of course you are Nomari and I am Syber so even though there were more of you, the villains in the story all ended up dead.  A rather downbeat ending to what started as such an uplifting story, but what are you going to do?  I still end up looking pretty good, don¡¯t you think, maybe even deserving of a promotion?¡±


    Ballick took a step toward Gellen, and his coiled-up arm implant began to unwind from his shoulder and reach across the room.  ¡°Can¡¯t help but feeling a little sad, really, I¡¯m sure everyone will be terribly confused about what happened.  Maybe the resistance made you do it, threatened your family etc., how else could someone as loyal as Gellen betray us?  I can try to use this to motivate the general to commit resources to wipe out the last remnants of your little freedom club here.  That would be a really nice capper to this whole sordid tale.  I am really on a roll today!¡±


    Gellen knew he was quickly running out of time.  There was no way for him to make it to his lab and reach his main transmitter, Ballick was much too powerful for him to get past.  The only chance he had was the prototype version in his pocket that was disguised as a crypto key.  Reaching quickly for it just as Ballick¡¯s arm began to wind around his neck, he activated the transmitter and began struggling against his captor, trying to hold on to consciousness and give the device a chance to work.  Even if the transmitter design was successful, he had no idea how quickly the virus would take effect.


    Ballick¡¯s arm continued to tighten on his neck, cutting off all oxygen, and Gellen knew he was out of time.  The transmitter had been too weak or something had gone wrong with the command conversion.  He had been so close. Just as he started to black out though, Ballick¡¯s arm suddenly started to spasm, loosened its grip on his neck and Gellen fell to the floor.  Struggling to his knees, Gellen fought to remain conscious and keep his eyes on Ballick.  Ballick had toppled onto his back and Gellen could tell he was in trouble. His implants continued to twitch uncontrollably and though he was struggling to move, he could barely roll onto one side.  It¡¯s working thought Gellen, I can¡¯t believe it¡¯s actually working, thank Voz!.  He continued to watch with almost academic interest as the virus commands made their way through Ballick¡¯s implants, shorting out all command circuitry while delivering enough shock to his biological parts to ensure he wouldn¡¯t be able to move or seek help.  Almost done frying the implants, thought Gellen, maybe ten seconds left, and then if everything goes well, the virus will harness all the power sources in the implants, escalate the amps, and start transmitting the virus.  Normally, the transmission would continue until the power source started to die out.  It would then use the final energy stores to deliver increasingly powerful shocks until the infected was dead.  In Ballick¡¯s case though, he used the transmitter to bypass the broadcast phase and immediately begin the shocks.


    Gellen glanced at his watch and began the countdown as he knew this could be critical data for the next phase of the attack.  He glanced up quickly at Ballick and realized he was still conscious, trying to speak.  ¡°Wwwhat did you do?¡±


    ¡°My best enhancement, yet, Ballick, I¡¯m sure all the Syber are going to absolutely love it.  Yes, you were right about me, I am a traitor, though I am not sure that is really the right word since I never technically became one of you and it is probably impossible to betray such loathsome savages as the Syber.  Double agent maybe?  Too bad for you no one else saw it, you really are good.  I guess trusting a slave to design and build critical integrated body parts for an entire ruling class..really was not the smartest decision, Ballick, was it?  All I had to do was wait and watch as your people grew wildly overconfident, chasing the next cool toy like a bunch of kids, never imagining a lowly Nomari could cause your downfall.  It¡¯s quite ironic that even though you thought I was not to be trusted, you could not resist having one of my implants installed, could you?  If not for that fateful, selfish decision, you would have been able to save your entire race, been hailed as a hero, probably even promoted to general yourself with maybe even a shot at Supreme Commander. That¡¯s painful to think about, isn¡¯t it?


    Gellen turned away and looked at his watch just as the lethal shock was delivered to Ballick¡¯s system. ¡°Sixty-eight seconds,¡± he said to the now deceased Ballick. ¡°Pretty good, that¡¯s not going to give your brothers and sisters a whole lot of time to react.¡±


    Grimly, he walked down the stairs, through the living room where Ballick had planted the Nomari bodies as spies, and entered his workshop.  Fortunately Ballick had not thought to destroy any of his tools or equipment.  He turned the main transmitter for his virus on and then sent an encrypted comm to the Nomari resistance leadership.  He had been in contact with them for months anonymously to try and begin preparing them for the day he would launch the virus.  They had all feigned ignorance of the resistance of course, but he knew he had the right people.  ¡°It has begun,¡± the message said. ¡°Prepare the people for the Awakening.¡±


    Gellen sat for a moment quietly, taking in the possibility that before nightfall, all the Nomari might be free.  His thoughts went to his dead wife and boys but he had to push them away, he needed to be strong and clear as success was still not guaranteed.  Walking to his transport, he saw a Syber guard fall to the ground twitching.  All that was left to do was to get to his lab on the capitol grounds.  There he could switch on the transmitter that had been strategically placed to attach the virus to any outgoing distress messages, even in encrypted military comm. This would allow the attack to be spread to outer Syber worlds and ensure their total destruction.


    Arriving at the outer wall of the capitol compound, Gellen found all the gates were locked and abandoned.  Had the Syber already become aware of the attack somehow? He hadn¡¯t expected the news to move so quickly, maybe the virus had spread unevenly, allowing survivors a glimpse into what was happening and a chance to communicate back to the capitol.  Some of his models had predicted that outcome but with a very low probability.  Jumping out of the transport, he risked trying his credentials to enter but was rejected.  If he didn¡¯t get inside this gate soon, the Syber would likely be able to summon reinforcements or quarantine the planet to stop the spread of the virus.  Instantly, he knew what he had to do.  At his home workshop was a new arm implant he had been working on for visiting senior officer.  It was nearing completion and the officer¡¯s security credentials had been recently downloaded.  He might be able to use it to pass through the security locks, but the arm would have to be attached to a biological body to pass the scans, that much he knew.  Could he possibly perform the procedure to attach it on himself?  Gellen thought he might but he couldn¡¯t take the risk of botching the operation.  He had to ask for help.


    Reaching out to his Nomari contacts, he would have to divulge his identity and place his trust in them. ¡°The Awakening is in danger.   Phase 1 has succeeded, but I will need medical attention to complete Phase 2.  Please get a Nomari bioengineer capable with implant surgery and meet me at 14 Vartua immediately.¡±  He hesitated but knew he had no choice if this plan were to succeed.  Should Gellen decide to go to them, surprise them at their safe house, it seemed unlikely he would survive longer than a few minutes given his history with the Nomari resistance. ¡°It¡¯s Gellen.  I am behind the attacks and despite appearances, I have been on your side from the beginning.  The Syber will continue to fall only if you meet me immediately.


    There was a long delay and then a message was sent back.  ¡°We¡¯ll be there.¡±


    ***


    Gellen was pacing in the entryway of his house when a group of Nomari resistance fighters burst in.  After slamming him to the ground, a Nomari commander entered. ¡°This better not be a trick Gellen, or your whole family will pay the price, I swear it.¡±


    Gellen could only laugh bitterly while the commander stared.  ¡°I assure you it is not a trick, but we are very short on time.  We need to go through that room and into my workshop so a Syber implant can be attached by the bioengineer.  That is the only way we¡¯ll be able to breach the security at the capitol complex and finish the attack.  I need to warn you there are dead Nomari in there but it was done by a Syber, not me.  He is dead upstairs next to my wife who is also dead, as are my children.  His lethal attack on my family should prove I am on your side.  What are you waiting for? Hurry!


    The commander nodded to a couple soldiers who quickly bolted up the stairs. In a few moments, they returned and signaled the commander, who turned to the soldiers holding Gellen. ¡°Let¡¯s get him into the workshop.¡±


    Entering the workshop, Gellen ordered the soldiers to strap him to the operating table in the middle of the room. ¡°Where¡¯s your engineer?  Don¡¯t tell me you didn¡¯t bring him.¡±


    A young Nomari stepped forward from behind the group of soldiers. ¡°Here, sir.¡±


    ¡°You look pretty young.  Have you ever attached an S-class implant before?¡±


    The engineer shook his head, ¡°That¡¯s military grade.  Almost no Nomari would have experience with them, except you of course.¡±


    Gellen thought for a second. ¡°This is going to be tough; the nerve connections are completely different than what you are used to and we don¡¯t have time for a practice run.  I¡¯m going to have to walk you through it.¡±


    ¡°Walk me through it?  How is that going to be possible, sir?  You¡¯ll need to be sedated.¡±


    ¡°Will I?  We are just going to have to take our chances.  Just make sure you work quickly and prepare some Norphed in case I pass out from the pain.  A 15 ng shot should do it.  If it doesn¡¯t, wait 5 minutes and give me another.  But not before the 5 minutes are up or I could be dead along with any chance of the Awakening succeeding.  Now strap me down and get that power blade ready.¡±


    The young engineer was nervous but sensed the urgency of the situation and quickly set to work.  He cut through Gellen¡¯s arm at the shoulder and quickly worked to seal off the major blood vessels.  Through gritted teeth, Gellen guided the young engineer through the basic connection process.  The pain was astonishing, but with an hour, Gellen was able to work the basic functions of the arm.


    ¡°Now get me off this table and over to the Capitol west gate.  Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go, we are running out of time.  Gellen moved as quickly as he could to the street, a large jacket covering his new mismatched mechanical arm. He tried to avoid bumping anything as even a light touch sent a fresh cacophony of pain shooting through his shoulder. In addition to the pain, the arm implant was much too big for a Nomari body and its weight was constantly pulling him to the side, his back was aching already.  He could only hope the engineer had attached the bone supports correctly or it would not hold.  They rushed through the streets, passing the groups of Nomari slaves that were now wandering about, confused over the demise of their Syber masters and unsure what to do.  Every Syber outside the capitol complex walls was now dead or soon would be as the virus worked its way through the population.


    Arriving at the west gate, Gellen struggled to work the security apparatus, wondering if they had any chance of storming the Capitol complex with a Nomari army if his plan didn¡¯t work.  Given the number of Syber inside and their foe¡¯s superior firepower and military skill, he thought it extremely unlikely.  This had to work and after a few more agonizing minutes it did.  The gate was unlocked.


    Activating a map of the complex, Gellen pointed to a building a short distance from the gate, ¡°We need to make it into this small compound here, that¡¯s where my lab and the master transmitter is.  Stay close to me, I have a small transmitter that should be able to quickly disable any Syber who tries to attack.  If you see any, just keep your distance and wait, it takes a few seconds for the attack to kick in.


    Moving quickly, they arrived at the lab building without encountering any resistance.  As they approached the entrance, they saw a band of Syber running from a side doorway.  It looked like they were carrying his transmitter.  Gellen¡¯s heart sank.  He had no idea how they were able to identify it, hopefully they were simply looting and were completely unaware of its function but it seemed too much of a coincidence.  Without the transmitter, the Awakening was in real jeopardy.  He had no idea how long it might take to build a replacement as powerful, but he guessed it would not be soon enough to stop the Syber from sending their agents to retake the planet. They had to get it back.


    Gellen began to run as fast as his injured arm would allow.  ¡°We need to stop those Syber.  They have my master transmitter and if they make it into the inner courtyard, we may never see it again.¡±  Some of the Nomari soldiers began to arm their weapons. ¡°No!¡± screamed Gellen, ¡°No weapons can be fired, you could damage it.  We just need to get close enough for my pocket transmitter to work.¡±


    They rounded a corner and found their way blocked by three Syber soldiers. The other half of the Syber group were running for the courtyard with the transmitter as Gellen had expected.  Gellen stared at the soldiers and pondered his next move, trying to figure out how these soldiers could still be standing and what it meant.  The virus should have been retransmitted to them from the Syber they had taken down as they came through the gate and made their way to the lab.  Maybe they had more secure rooms than he had known about or perhaps they had begun to understand how the virus was spreading and switched all their implants to manual mode. Neither result was good news.  Gellen turned on his key transmitter and hoped to get lucky.  The Syber blocking their way fell to the ground before they could attack but the others had disappeared.  He put one knee on the chest of one of the fallen Syber ¡°Tell me where they went soldier, and you may live to see tomorrow.¡±


    The Syber tried to smile through the shocks ¡°They went to see your wife, Gellen, we all heard she puts on quite a show and Ballick has video of it all.  You should have seen the fun he had with her before the end.  What a mean, nasty boy he is, though your wife actually seemed to be enjoying it.¡±


    Before the Syber could say another word, Gellen screamed in anger, pulled a dagger from his belt and drove it into the fallen soldier¡¯s eye.  The other Nomari glanced at him, shocked at the primal violence of it and wondered if he would be stable enough to continue and how they would proceed if he couldn¡¯t.


    Gellen noticed the concern on their faces. ¡°I¡¯m OK, or at least OK enough to continue. I¡¯ve waited a long time for this and we have all made many sacrifices.  Let¡¯s finish the job. We need to head toward the main complex, I¡¯m sure that¡¯s where they took the transmitter. It appears that these Syber have figured out how to keep the virus from spreading so there¡¯s no point is leaving anyone alive.¡± To highlight his point, Gellen drove his knife into the heads of the two fallen Syber and began walking toward the capitol building.


    After entering, they began working their way methodically through the building, disabling and then killing all Syber soldiers they encountered along the way.  By the time they reached the inner rooms of the Supreme Commander, Gellen was covered in blood, exhausted by the effort and stressed to the breaking point by the violence. He had tried many times to convince himself he would be ready for this, willing to do anything necessary, but deep down he was at heart an engineer not a soldier and the events of this day were breaking him apart.  Gellen gathered his thoughts, silently speaking to his wife and children to calm his mind and steady himself for what was to come.  Assuming he would have to blast his way in, Gellen ordered explosives placed on both sides of the door.  Just as he was about to set them off, it occurred to him to simply try and open the door.  Surprisingly, it opened.


    At the far end of the same reception room that Gellen had been honored at just a few hours ago, the Supreme Commander and his wife sat in their massive armchairs twitching and convulsing from the shocks.  Along the outer walls, fifty elite soldiers and members of the political circle lay writhing on the floor.  In the center of the table sat the Master.  Someone had managed to switch it on, disabling everyone in the room and initiating the process of hijacking all communications leaving the capitol complex to other Syber worlds.  The Awakening would succeed.


    So they didn¡¯t know what it was after all, thought Gellen, smiling to himself at the thought of the Supreme Commander actually helping him annihilate his own people.  It was so telling that the Syber could hold deliverance from a mortal threat in their hands and not begin to understand what it was.  For a society so obsessed with technology, they seemed to have remarkably little insight into it or curiosity about it.  To them it was like a toy to be played with as children and to lord over your friends who didn¡¯t have one that was as fun and new as yours.  That was a mistake that Gellen would never make.  Why the Syber didn¡¯t destroy the Master along with everything else in his lab after realizing he was the attacker seemed inexplicable.  It looked as if they had believed that the Master would somehow protect them by disabling the virus or jamming the transmission. Why else would they try to turn it on? Gellen began to laugh.


    As the Nomari soldiers looked on in stunned silence, he walked around the room methodically stabbing the fallen Syber through the eye, one by one.  By the time he reached the Supreme Commander, his laughter had turned to sobs. Extreme feelings of loss over his wife and children finally broke through the resolve he had somehow managed to conjure from his desperation after Ballick¡¯s attack.  Gellen could not believe it was finally over.  Standing behind the Supreme Queen, he grabbed her by the hair and stared into the Commander¡¯s eyes as he slowly drove the knife into her skull. ¡°Now you know what it feels like, Commander, to lose your wife, lose your closest friends.  You finally have just the smallest taste of the bitter poison you¡¯ve infected my people with.  And that¡¯s just the start.  In a few days, your empire will begin to crumble and there¡¯s nothing anyone on any of your planets can do to stop it.  You won¡¯t even be able to figure out how it is happening.  The great fearless Syber empire, thought indestructible by many in the galaxy, brought down by a lowly Nomari slave. The end of your legend transforms into the beginning of ours and Nomari children will one day laugh and shriek at the retelling of how the brutal, monstrous Syber were brought to their knees and the Nomari awoke from their slumber of servitude to resume their march toward greatness waylaid so, so many years ago.  May your Gods be unkind and your final resting place a sea of eternal suffering¡±.  Gellen then drove the knife into the Commander¡¯s head and collapsed to the ground.

 Chapter 9

    In the days following the fall of the Syber, the Nomari resistance reluctantly organized around Gellen as their new leader.  Most knew him as a traitor to the Nomari cause and had trouble accepting his rapid transformation into the savior his supporters claimed he was.  If he was so loyal to his Nomari brothers and sisters, couldn¡¯t he have figured out a plan that didn¡¯t include so many of their deaths?  He was supposedly some kind of genius after all, wasn¡¯t he? Due to their long-term oppression by the Syber however, very few Nomari had the temperament and experience needed for a leadership position.  The Rija who might have been able to play a role in the rebuilding effort mostly remained silent, their teachings leading them to believe that regular Nomari needed to step forward.  Gellen and his supporters quickly moved in to fill the gap.


    Though many Nomari were deeply concerned about his tactics, no one could argue with the truly stunning defeat that Gellen had inflicted on the Syber and his power grew by the day.  He became a symbol of what the Nomari might be able to reclaim of themselves and their culture.  A group of Nomari led by friends and relatives of the victims of Gellen¡¯s murderous efforts on behalf of the Syber did attempt to organize opposition but were largely unsuccessful.  They had no one to put forward that could offer the resilience and strength the Nomari now needed to see in their leaders and find in themselves.  After the opposition effort failed politically and the movement fractured, multiple desperate assassination attempts were made on Gellen¡¯s life but he escaped them all and punished the perpetrators severely, most with death.


    For the first few years, the Nomari government remained on the Syber home world but a groundswell of support grew for the notion that all Nomari should return home to try and repair their broken culture on the ground it grew from.  Gellen opposed this effort, not wanting to give up the weapons he now controlled and the unquestioned power that went with it.  He needed more time to try and develop the advanced weaponry that could survive the electric storms of the home world.   Although his motivation was mostly related to maintaining the status quo, he also knew the weapons were truly needed to protect a people that had become almost childlike and unable to protect themselves.  He pushed this viewpoint aggressively and his message made many resistant to leaving.


    When Rija leaders countered by encouraging a voluntary return compromise, Gellen, feeling threatened, had them jailed, tried for treason on trumped up charges and eventually executed.  Concern predictably continued to grow regarding Gellen¡¯s behavior and he responded with ever increasing paranoia and violence, lashing out at even members of his inner circle.  He could not understand the general passivity of his people and could not muster sympathy for their plight.  He had freed them after generations of abuse and servitude, paying a heavy personal price in doing so.  How could they not loyally follow him now and how could they threaten their freedom and very survival by returning to a planet they were not ready to defend?


    Gellen continued the abuse and persecution of all who had even the appearance of opposing him until even the loyalty of his staunchest supporters eroded.  In a final deal brokered by the Rija, it was decided Gellen would be forcefully removed from power but there would be no single replacement.  Instead, power would be permanently divided up among seven Nomari leaders so that it would never again be concentrated in the hands of a single individual the way it had with Gellen.  The seven leaders and their followers were the first incarnation of the kilns that would come to define Nomari society.  Legend held that each of the original seven leaders represented people from different occupations and that began the tradition of kilns being divided along vocational lines, ensuring an extended family and voice for all Nomari.  Although no one official leader was ever selected again or any kiln more powerful than the others, the Rija were implicitly given deferential control over the shape and direction of the new government structure.  Being the only Nomari cultural organization that had survived the occupation, they had long served as moral advisors and spiritual supporters, even when doing so meant a painful and violent death for some of them.


    The Nomari stabilized under the new structure and over time increasing numbers returned to the home world.  Many in the military and scientific kilns stayed behind to occupy the Syber planets as defensive outposts and to continue studying the Syber technology so it could be understood and adapted for their use.  This encouraged the separate development of the kilns and the evolution of their own unique cultures and structures. Under the watchful eye of the Rija, the fortunes of the Nomari continued to grow and the cultural institutions strengthened.  They made significant breakthroughs in shielding technology that allowed electronics to be used in a limited form on the home world for the first time.  The ongoing challenge of the electromagnetic storms there spurred further development of unique biological-based systems that would become one of the great military advantages of the Nomari as they transformed into the people that would come to be known as the Given.


    That transformation happened slowly at first.  Attacks from a band of planets known as the Roggs bent on revenge against the Syber but finding only ragtag groups of former slaves they felt could be easily defeated and exploited hardened their resolve.  Though the Nomari fought bravely, they could not stop the looting and other incursions which continued for years, slowly increasing in frequency and intensity.  The Nomari elders worried that soon there would be nothing left to take except the Nomari themselves, a prospect that shook all the leaders deeply.  Having finally emerged from the occupation but without the leader who led them out, they knew they could very easily slide backwards into slavery or worse.  Redoubling their efforts, the Nomari finally mastered the transport ships and force guns the Syber had left behind and once they did quickly realized these weapons were much more advanced than what the invaders were using.  The decision was then made that in order to stop the attacks forever, the Nomari would need to follow the invaders home and bring the battle to them.  Perhaps if they showed the Roggs they were not untouchable on their own home world, peace and mutual respect would be a possibility.


    Though significantly undertrained and inexperienced as warriors when compared to the invaders, the Syber technology was so advanced that the band of rogue planets was quickly overrun.  Being master traders in addition to bandits led the Rogg leaders to offer the Nomari a deal as part of the peace treaty.  The Roggs would be willing to compensate the Nomari handsomely if the Nomari committed to providing protection for their planets using Syber technology.  Intending their initial offer only provide a starting point for the negotiation, the Rogg leaders significantly underbid what they knew to be the value of the military protection the Syber weapons could provide.  Such protection would make them nearly untouchable based on the currently known threats and that was priceless ¨C they resolved to pay nearly any price asked by the former slaves.  Warfare was not their specialty and considered a distasteful part of their culture to be avoided if at all possible.   In a turn that surprised all Rogg leaders involved in the negotiation, the Nomari quickly accepted the offer without even countering, declining all invitations to celebratory events honoring the new agreement and quickly and quietly withdrawing.


    Though the Roggs initially considered themselves victorious for outmaneuvering the Nomari, they could not have guessed at the transformation they had initiated or what would soon become of the poorly trained but well-equipped armies that had defeated them.  In later days, they wondered many times why they did not stop to consider and investigate how these beginners had come by the Syber weapons and territory.  If they had, perhaps they would not have continued to underestimate Nomari strength and resiliency.  The Rogg leaders had always assumed that the Nomari were just lucky enough to arrive first after a natural disaster or other calamity befell the Syber.  There was simply no way these poorly trained and uneducated beings could have defeated a society like the Syber with its powerful military machine and culture designed in every way to feed and enhance it.  It was impossible to conceive of.


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    They learned later however as the payments demanded by the Nomari began to rise and their attempts to dissolve the arrangement were met with icy denials that they were dealing with a most formidable force taking shape before their eyes.  The frustration, fear and anger of a people subjugated for thousands of years began to coalesce in ways the Rogg leaders could not understand but they soon began to sense that they were the ones who had been out negotiated.  That observation was seemingly confirmed when they decided to call in favors and rally all allies they could summon to confront their former victims turned extortionists on the battlefield.  The Rogg forces were astonished and overwhelmed by the strategic development of the Nomari military machine and the few Syber guns they had managed to steal were of little use to them.  The Roggs were quickly routed and the previous arrangement immediately reinstated. In addition, punitive taxes were added to their regular payments as punishment.  The Given transformation had begun.


    Back on the home world, Nomari paranoia regarding the dangers of the galaxy and the potentially large numbers of societies like the Roggs increased to a fever pitch.  Having tasted freedom again, the Nomari had become morbidly afraid of ever returning to a life of servitude.  Their contact with the Roggs only served to deepen those feelings.  This led to an increasing number of exploratory missions to both test their experiments with Syber equipment and try to understand the true nature of the risk other worlds presented to them.  They were appalled at what they found.  It seemed as if the only peoples that did not dream of dominating and exploiting others were the ones that had not yet figured out how to escape the iron grip of gravity and venture out among the stars.


    With conflict between the Nomari and the other worlds increasing, it was decided they would offer a protection deal similar to the one in place with the Roggs to planets surrounding the home world.  This arrangement was architected by the military leadership to create a strategic buffer zone around Noma and reduce friction between the nearby worlds.  The Nomari were confident that their adapted Syber tech would intimidate any potential troublemakers into staying in line and they would then be able to finally carve out the small oasis of peace they longed for.  Many of the local planets agreed to the offer, their leadership more than happy to offload the security cost and pressure of protecting their worlds and focus on domestic issues that provided more political payoff.  Making the decision easier was the fact that the Nomari had no reputation as invaders or aggressors to raise the concern levels of most world leaders and their negotiators seemed honest and dependable.  Their earnest sincerity and respect for freedom seemed to most diplomats as obvious as their ultimate goal was opaque.


    The Nomari had decided early on they would play no role in governing any protected worlds even if it meant not intervening in atrocities and armed conflicts.  Their mission was only to protect societies from external threats and this allowed them to expand their stable of planets relatively quickly and without complication.  When dealing with the planets themselves, the Nomari envisioned a system similar to the one that had worked so well for them internally.  No single Nomari would ever be responsible for managing the relationship with a given planet.  There would be a council of three and members would rotate out after a period of years. No meetings would be allowed unless all three were present. This was intended to prevent any concentration of power due to familiarity or ambition and to limit the impact of any corrupt officials that might emerge.  The same was true for the leaders of the protected planets.  While protected peoples could pick their leaders, they would need to serve for limited terms just like the Nomari.


    Word of the Nomari controlled group of planets and their comparatively benevolent approach to governance began to spread throughout the galaxy.  A warlike people with advanced weaponry beyond any others in known space who seemingly had no desire to enslave planets but only protect them seemed like a dream come true for many developing worlds.  Though the payments were steep, leaders who had lived through Syber occupations or been preyed upon by other aggressive, violent cultures considered the alternatives to be far worse.  Many worlds beyond the buffer zone range began to initiate contact with the Nomari to negotiate protection agreements.  Worlds under Nomari protection continued to rapidly grow in number though their increased visibility eventually drew the attention of the Rales empire.  A previous rival of the Syber, they had also been expanding, taking advantage of the Syber disappearance and ensuing power vacuum.


    Unlike the Nomari, however, they were a deeply violent society, bent on enslaving and exploiting any world they could control.  Initially contemptuous of the Nomari culture that outwardly seemed so cowardly and weak, they were also deeply fearful of any group that could defeat the Syber when they could not after years of trying. To resolve any potential conflict, the Rales attempted to negotiate a treaty with the Nomari to divide known space between them.  When that effort inevitably failed due to the Rales violent and aggressive culture, a decades long war ensued.  Taking advantage of strategic gaps in the Nomari network of controlled planets, the Rales were able to extend the war and deliver many painful blows long after the time their legitimate chance at victory had passed. After the Rales had finally been completely defeated and the methods of their attack studied, the hundreds of millions of lives lost convinced the Nomari that their offers of protection could no longer be optional.  Planets without their history and understanding of the universe could not be expected to make sound decisions or understand the magnitude of the potential threat that violent cultures like the Rales presented.  The Nomari would need to decide for them, leading the way to guarantee the greater good and the preservation of all peoples, whatever the cost. A universe dominated by the likes of the Syber and Rales was unthinkable and had to be avoided even if the decisions used to achieve it were unethical.


    As part of an effort launched by senior government officials, the Rija were drafted into providing the moral framework to help ease their collective conscience and justify the forced expansion policy. This effort, begun as a political expediency, quickly evolved into a full-blown intellectual movement to explore and codify the ideas behind their new philosophy.  The Rija culture had been deeply scarred by the long centuries of the occupation and the relentlessly bloody conflict with the Rales.  They were desperate to create a region of peace and solidify their role in the rapidly evolving Nomari culture.  So desperate, in fact, that they were willing to wrap their hard-won credibility and goodwill around a solution that at best seemed morally ambiguous to many of them. To others though, the movement represented a complete abdication of the moral development they had been responsible for and maintained for millennia.


    Though there was heated, almost violent debate on the topic, eventually Rija leadership gave in.  Top Rija scholars began drafting documents extending the religious arguments about the special status of the Nomari originally adapted from ancient teachings to console them through the dark years of Syber oppression.  The special purpose that the Nomari were to serve had finally found its meaning, it was to be as the protector of all peoples.  The occupation had served as preparation for this leadership and to teach the Nomari to remain humble and not to abuse their power or take it for granted. All Nomari history was recast in this light and schooling, government and other cultural structures slowly began to evolve around it.


    Over the next few centuries this transformation completely remade Nomari society and those who remembered a time when the Nomari were anything but an enslaved people or feared war machine were largely forgotten.  Slowly but consistently acquiring planets and integrating their technologies and payments into a growing culture of control and protection, the Nomari had left their previous identity behind.  To acknowledge and symbolize their new mission and the moral justification behind it, the Rija created a new holiday, Ruju, celebrating their rebirth.  At the very first Ruju festival, the Rejiz himself addressed the Nomari worlds and formally adopted their new identity by giving themselves a new name.  The Nomari were a people that had suffered through millennia of torture and servitude and they were no more. Through struggle and sheer will power, they become something else and committed themselves to sharing their enlightenment and purpose throughout the galaxy as their Gods wanted them to do.  They had become the Given.

 Chapter 10

    Jehz stood in the air lock, nervous and agitated. Looking around randomly he noticed his commanding officer Naviz had arrived and was standing on the other side of the glass, trying to get his attention.  After months of serving as Jehz¡¯s mentor and main contact, he could sense Jehz¡¯s distress.


    ¡°You sure you are ready to do this, Jehz?  If your feel something is wrong, hit your panic button and we¡¯ll have you back inside before you know it.¡±


    Jehz tried to smile but the nervous tension running through his body made it impossible.  Intellectually, he knew he was probably in no serious danger but the thought of once again turning his health and safety over to this force field, or suit, or parasite, or whatever this thing surrounding him was left him with a strange foreboding feeling.  More than anything he supposed it was caused by the lack of control he now had to tolerate.  On a military mission in his prior life, he had the sense he could make things happen, make the right decisions to help himself survive even if that feeling was oftentimes an illusion. Now the suit was making the decisions for him or at least forcing him into conditions he would not normally be in so it could be ¡°tested¡± and he was completely dependent on how the suit would perform, how it would behave.  It was now part of him, at least according to the scientists but sometimes it felt as if he had been swallowed by a mysterious man-sized invisible alien.  Was he food? An energy source? Was it trying to help him or slowly poison his mind? He had no idea.


    It had not yet failed to protect him though. But since they were without even a basic understanding of how it worked, or why it worked, it was impossible to feel at ease in any new situation. Would this next experiment be the one that finally failed, resulting in who knows what kinds of physical peril?  How could anyone know what was going to happen? What if the suit just decided to shut off, or the original owner or creator could shut it off? The scientists that had been studying him and it knew so little about it, they had no idea what it was or how it was constructed and the decision had been made to call it a ¡°suit¡± for convenience only.  They had no idea if it was even a living entity or not though they were quick to remind him the computer models suggested that was a very remote possibility. Whatever it was, the suit had so far exceeded every expectation he or any of his endless array of military handlers had for it, though the tests to date had been relatively modest in risk.  Mild force strikes, exposure to heat and other inhospitable conditions. Unpleasant but nothing he could not have survived without the suit.  This time was different and he couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that opening the airlock and stepping into space without standard issue space gear of any kind was a bad idea. But he really had no choice, this was his purpose in life now, his responsibility to his people, according to the Rejiz anyway. No longer a leader, he was now half lab rat, half scientific curiosity, a freak. Though to be fair, he was a ¡°very valuable freak¡± according to a laughing Naviz and the way the Rija and Musa leadership kept hanging around all the time, he guessed that must be true.  At least it was better than being locked in a prison cell, which a decent portion of Given leadership, including some of his father¡¯s close friends, wanted for him. He took a few deep breaths, focusing his mind and meditated in the way his Rija mentors had taught him to do when faced with a life and death situation.


    ¡°I¡¯m ready, Naviz.  Let¡¯s do it.¡±


    ¡°Your outside support is in place and we have a half dozen experienced space walkers out there, all fully jet-packed.  We got you covered, alright buddy? Hit the button when you are ready.¡±


    Jehz nodded, closed his eyes for a second, and hit the airlock button.  As the transfer pumps whined and the air thinned, he tried instinctively to take a deep breath, knowing he should start feeling the effects of the reduced oxygen levels any second.  To his surprise, he didn¡¯t notice any difference, it felt as if air was still being pumped in.


    ¡°I can still breathe normally Naviz, did someone forget to turn off the oxygen pumps?¡± asked Jehz.


    ¡°Nope, O2 is at 25% of normal, you should be feeling pretty uncomfortable right about now.  Want to try some situps?¡±


    ¡°Funny. I feel fine though.  Can¡¯t feel any effects due to the lower oxygen.  Breathing and heartrate normal.¡±


    ¡°OK, no surprise really. You did 40% in the lab for an hour with no obvious problems a few weeks ago.  I just thought you were in good shape after all the specialized Rija training they put you through in the monastery.  I¡¯ve heard the monks make the Haak elite guard training look like a vacation what with all that sitting around and chanting and meditating.  I guess it agreed with you.¡±


    ¡°Real comical Naviz. I am good to proceed to the next step.¡±


    ¡°Ok, then let¡¯s take it down to 0% and see if you are still talking big then, or even talking at all.¡± Born with a naturally serious disposition, Jehz did not usually joke around much, especially after the incident on Rising Sun, which had turned him even more emotionally reserved than before. Naviz was quite the opposite personality type, always making light of situations, even serious ones, and despite their differences in temperament or maybe because of it, they had quickly developed a natural rapport.  Musa senior officers took notice of the easy friendship and way Naviz¡¯s lightheartedness seemed to reduce Jehz¡¯s stress levels and had immediately moved Naviz into an elevated role that had dramatically smoothed the management of Jehz¡¯s situation.  Naviz signaled to the tech working the airlock to pump the rest of the oxygen out and turned back to Jehz.


    ¡°Here we go but I¡¯m still wondering what color you are going to turn first.  Me and the engine crew have a bet so if you can do your best to start with a nice shade of blue, I¡¯d really appreciate it.¡± Naviz watched Jehz carefully when the pumps started running as this was a dangerous point in the process with oxygen levels well below what they had ever exposed Jehz to before, but Jehz seemed to be showing no discomfort. The suit was holding. ¡°You are at 0% O2 Jehz.¡±


    ¡°Still feels like I am breathing fine. Normal, even.  If I didn¡¯t know better, I would swear there is still full oxygen in here.¡±


    ¡°Give it a few minutes, it might just be residual air inside the suit.¡±


    Jehz paced around the airlock, waiting for whatever air supply there might be in the suit to run out and wondering what was going to happen to him when it did, how the suit would behave.  After an hour of walking in an endless nervous circle bantering with Naviz, he started to wonder if it was going to run out at all.


    ¡°Think there is any chance this thing is actually making its own oxygen, Naviz?  There¡¯s no way there would still be anything left if it was just letting the air around me come through and containing it, right?


    ¡°That¡¯s the question everyone wants to know the answer to, Jehz, not that it really helps solves the puzzle of this damn thing even if we find out.  But it would help us understand if the suit is more than a shield and a power source.  That it is truly capable of creating something.  Can I see the crystals, Jehz?¡±


    Jehz turned his hands over and held them in front of Naviz.  The crystals didn¡¯t look any different than usual, they never did during any of the tests. Bright clear white and cut with an unusual geometric design, they could have been anything from glass to diamonds. As with everything else related to the suit, none of the scientists had been able to figure out anything about the crystals.  The current working assumption was they were the power source somehow, but that was just an educated guess.


    ¡°Ok, this is getting boring, Jehz, what do you say we equalize the pressure now and see how long it takes your head to blow up like a balloon.  I know it probably won¡¯t happen but I never get tired of that thought, it¡¯s a great image, isn¡¯t it? And your head is so freakishly big to start with, that would be really, really funny.¡±


    Naviz studied Jehz, trying to gauge how he was reacting as they moved toward the first test dangerous enough to end in his death.  He doubted if Jehz would even admit to being scared given his history with the suit and family pedigree, but there were so many unknowns, so many ways things could go wrong, Jehz had to be frightened.  Any one even remotely normal would be but there were no external signs in Jehz¡¯s body language.


    They had been proceeding cautiously for months, slowly increasing the danger of the tests and so far there had not even been a hint of failure.  Everyone, including Jehz, knew that eventually this type of test was coming even if it had not been explicitly discussed until recently.  Surprisingly, now that the moment was here, Jehz felt a sense of calm wash over him.  He wasn¡¯t sure if it was the Rija meditation but it felt like something else he could not quite describe. Somehow he was sure that nothing would happen and that the suit was much, much stronger than any of them could guess or even imagine.  The feeling surprised him but somehow seemed incredibly real.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Naviz, I¡¯m sure this is going to be fine.  I can feel it.  Go ahead, equalize the pressure and open the space door.  I¡¯m tethered in.¡±


    ¡°Not sure where that little boost of self-confidence came from, but I¡¯m going to have to let you open the space door.  I don¡¯t want to be the one to explain to the General that I was the idiot that pressed the button a little too early and shot his little boy genius into outer space.  Might be bad for the career prospects. Weren¡¯t you the guy that kept saying you didn¡¯t have any confidence that this suit could protect you?  What happened to him? I kind of miss him ¨C he seemed so¡­normal.¡±


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Maybe I¡¯m just finally being realistic about the fact that this suit has taken everything we¡¯ve thrown at it without even a ripple.  It¡¯s given us no reason to doubt it, maybe we were just doubting ourselves.  Let¡¯s try it a different way, it will probably save us a whole lot of time.¡± Jehz unlocked his tether and opened the airlock door.  That was not the plan, and Naviz started yelling into his comm to have the space walkers close in and make sure Jehz didn¡¯t float off the ship.  The two closest to the door quickly stepped into the airlock and Naviz turned his attention to Jehz.


    ¡°I appreciate the enthusiasm, Jehz, but you know this is off plan and more than a little dangerous.  You were supposed to stay tethered at least an hour before a decision on a spacewalk was made ¨C together after consultation with our superior officers.  Can you let these guys bring you back? I¡¯d really appreciate it.¡±


    Jehz floated idly away from the inner door where Naviz stood, moving slowly toward the exit and the soldiers standing on either side.  He thought back on when he had first figured out that the suit had powers, that day on the test range when the rogue officer had attacked him. He hadn¡¯t really thought much that day, he had just reacted to the danger.  Maybe he just needed to try that again, clear his mind and let his instinct take over.  He turned and simply thought about being in open space, floating among the stars.  He reached out with his arms toward the door and in an instant had disappeared.


    ¡°Oh, shit, you have to be kidding me,¡± said Naviz. ¡°This has to be some kind of prank, right, guys?  Please tell me you are in on it?¡± The soldiers in the doorway simply shook their heads.


    ¡°Sorry, sir, we are as surprised as you are.  Do you think he could still be here? Can the suit make him invisible or something?¡±


    ¡°Not that I know of but start a full scan just in case.  He was moving fast but I got a distinct glimpse of him flying away from the ship. This is not good.¡± Naviz thought for a second and then yelled into his comm unit ¡°Jehz, are you out there? C¡¯mon buddy, talk to me.¡±


    Jehz hurtled through space in a kind of daze but eventually became aware of the whine made by the voice coming out of the comm unit.  It was Naviz.  Jehz tried to roust himself, shaking his head and tried to focus on Naviz¡¯s voice.  He slowly became aware that he was moving rapidly and remembered his thoughts back in the air lock as he was floating toward the door.  He had simply been thinking about moving in the airlock and now here he was, somehow flying through space at a rate nearing the speed of a military spacecraft if the moon he was moving past was any point of reference. He wasn¡¯t even trying to move forward, yet somehow he was.  It was similar to the way he had been thinking about somehow stopping the missiles fired at him during the war games attack.  In both cases, he had simply been thinking about something and reaching out with hands and it had happened.  What would he do to stop then? He gathered his arms towards his body and tried to imagine himself floating, not moving at all, quiet and peaceful.  Instantly his movement stopped and he was still, hovering in space, though it was a part of space he had never seen before.  There was no sign of his home world and a quick reckoning with the major stars suggested he had travelled so far it was impossible to believe.  How could this be? How long had he been flying?  He looked at his watch and though he couldn¡¯t remember the exact time the test had started, it seemed no more than thirty minutes could have passed.


    ¡°Naviz, are you out there? Can you hear me? Naviz!¡±  He hadn¡¯t expected an immediate response but hoped somehow he was within range of the base ship¡¯s transmitter, though he quickly felt silly for worrying and betraying the panic in his voice.  I¡¯m a highly trained Given officer, he thought, the personification of planning and preparation, renowned throughout the universe for uncommonly high levels of creativity and resourcefulness. If I got myself out here, I can surely get back, assuming of course I can figure out what direction back is.  I may be lost but the suit seems to be holding and I feel fine. I can do this, of course I can goddamn do this! Scanning the horizon, he quickly found what he thought must be his home star Raz. Even travelling at the speed of light, which he highly doubted he had, he would not have left his solar system and this was clearly the largest and brightest star around. Looking in the near space around Raz, Jehz could still not identify Noma or the direction he should head. Feeling he had to take some kind of action, he decided he would simply fly toward Raz, figuring that would put him closer to Noma than he was now and maybe within reach of his comm unit. He just hoped he would be able to control the suit and his brain better than he had on the trip out.


    He repeated the process of visualizing himself moving through space but this time with no result. He tried again and again but he could not seem to move no matter how hard he thought about it, concentrated on it. What was happening? Panicking, it finally dawned on him that some kind of physical gesture with his hands seemed to be required to get the suit to act.  When he reached out as he had originally in the airlock in addition to his visualization, he began to accelerate rapidly toward Raz.  This time, however, he didn¡¯t fall into a daze and he found he could easily change direction and speed by refocusing his mind and adding some kind of gesture that slightly mimicked the action he wanted taken.  All those hours spent on Rija meditation exercises had finally paid off. Closing his hand in a fist while thinking about slowing down or stopping accomplished the desired task almost immediately. His confidence grew, and he felt more excited and freer than he had felt in a long time. Suddenly, he heard a voice coming over his comm unit.


    ¡°Jehz! We read you.  Where are you by Voz?  Are you OK?¡±


    ¡°Good to hear your voice, Naviz.  I¡¯m fine, looks like this suit can fly by the way.  Really, really fast actually, so fast I¡¯m not even sure where I am.  I¡¯m trying to master the suit and work my way back now.  Making some progress, but this could take a while.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m thinking you should really stay put, Jehz.  This is way too much new stuff at once, too many new variables with the suit.  We need to keep you safe, so why don¡¯t you just turn off the jets and float around out there for a while, until our rescue ships can find you.  Hopefully you¡¯ll still be breathing when they do so do us a favor and don¡¯t talk too much and use up all your oxygen, OK?¡±


    ¡°You have to be kidding, Naviz.  I feel fine, breathing and heart rate normal as always.  You can send some ships out, but there is no way I am waiting for you.  If we don¡¯t push this a little, I¡¯m going to still be sitting in a lab letting some creepy Illuta pick away at me when I¡¯m 100 years old.  I need to figure out how to fly this suit sometime, it might as well be now.¡±


    Naviz started to argue with him to play it safe but quickly stopped. Naviz knew he would be hearing about this from both his commanding officer and the General and that it may even cost him this assignment, but he could not help feeling proud of Jehz and his decision to take control.  He hadn¡¯t allowed himself to say anything before, thinking it would not be welcome or professional but he felt strongly that Jehz had been sitting back passively for far too long, letting himself be turned into a lab rat and losing himself in the process.  Whatever happened on the Rising Sun wasn¡¯t his fault and neither was the push and pull shit show between the Rija and Musa that followed. No one Naviz had talked to had been able to give him the straight facts on any of the events that occurred on the planet surface that day though he had tried numerous times since starting this assignment.  There was nothing but bits and pieces, rumors and typical war story exaggeration as far as he could tell.  Woven through many of these versions were the themes about the danger Jehz posed to the Given and the possibility that he was now some kind of immortal alien.


    None of those stories made any sense at all to him. He had known Jehz casually for years since they were officers around the same age and now working with him daily, he found it hard to believe Jehz could be any kind of threat. If the threat rumors were true, why was Jehz caught in the middle of such an intense tug of war between the kilns.  He had been unable to find much that seemed truthful or consistent and it was incredibly frustrating.  He could only imagine what Jehz felt after all he had gone through. Were the Musa and Rija leaders telling even him anything resembling the truth?  Naviz doubted it.  But through it all Jehz was still doing whatever was asked of him, including completely giving up his former life.  Without complaint as far as he could tell. His only reward for that sacrifice was to be yanked around like a chew toy being fought over by two pet jimji.  If he was dangerous, and the council could somehow see something he couldn¡¯t see or knew something no one else knew, then they should do what needs to be done to remove the problem.  Otherwise, let needed to him go. No one should have to live their lives in a cruel limbo like this, even the prisoners of Syber had more freedom than Jehz.  Part of him hoped Jehz would just keep flying, get as far away from Noma as he possibly could.  Jehz deserved a taste of fresh air, maybe a lot more than a taste, maybe even a completely fresh start.  The Given philosophy as he had understood it had always been to lead but from a distance.  All protected peoples were allowed room to make the their own decisions even while the outer boundaries might be extremely rigid and inflexible.  Within the Musa kiln itself, the most structured of the Given subsocieties, the philosophy had been employed with extreme success. Musa soldiers of all ranks were given levels of autonomy unheard of in most military organizations and many felt their unparalleled success grew directly from this approach.  How then could they possibly justify tightening the bands around Jehz so tightly he could barely move, let alone think for himself.  It was cruel punishment for a Musa, a deep affront to all they stood for.


    ¡°Alright, Jehz.  Be safe and keep an eye out for our rescue ships.  It would be just like you to fly right into one.¡±


    Jehz signed off and slowly worked his way back toward Noma, gaining more control over the suit¡¯s flying characteristics as he went.  On one run, his mind drifted to thoughts of a faraway planet he had visited with his parents as a boy.  A magical paradise, bursting with beauty, he never had as much fun swimming and exploring as he did on that month-long stay.  He had been at that perfect age, still young enough to easily inhabit fantasies of his own creation but old enough to independently seek and appreciate physical adventures in the real world as well.  Especially the ones involving the local girl with the endless tangled flow of silky white hair he had struck up a budding romance with a few days after arriving.


    Voz, he had missed her in the weeks after they left, the sweet agony of first love, and how he begged and begged his parents to take him back though it never worked out with his father¡¯s schedule.  What if he thought hard about being there again and reached for it, how fast could he really go?  Could he be sipping a glass of wine with her under a tehr tree before sundown?  Part of him really wanted to try, but he knew the answer would have to wait for another day.  For now, he had work to do on Noma, though somehow the idea that he could now literally take off at any time lifted a huge burden from his mind, making him feel free and the universe open and full of potential for the first time in years.  I¡¯ll do my part, thought Jehz, for my father and mother, for my kiln and my people, but I won¡¯t be a plaything any longer.  Jehz then took off on his final journey back to Noma, wondering about what kind of practical joke he could play on Naviz using his new flight power that would finally pay him back for the ones he had pulled on Jehz over the last few years.

 Chapter 11

    Jehz and Naviz landed their ship in the docking bay of the Haak fighter serving as their base and began preparations for a new experiment on the suit. It was the latest in an increasingly frequent sequence initiated by the discovery that the suit could fly and accelerated by the earnest curiosity of his sponsors to learn what else it might be capable of.  The excitement of all the parties involved - Musa, Illuta and Rija was palpable though each group had their own, often conflicting reasons for pushing the effort forward.  Collectively they had caused a lowering of the risk concerns and that joined with Jehz¡¯s new assertiveness to dramatically change the rhythm and risk of the experiments.  Trials once scheduled monthly were now done every few days and Naviz and his team struggled to keep up despite the dramatic increase in available resources.  The personal time with Jehz that he had used to reconnect emotionally, gauge his readiness, and prepare him for the next step had also largely disappeared. Naviz felt he was losing his ability to steady and guide Jehz¡¯s development and it was not a good feeling.


    ¡°Wow, remember that day we learned that suit could fly, Jehz?¡± said Naviz as they stepped into the planning room to talk through the upcoming mission.  Jehz nodded and smiled. ¡°It seems so long ago now, so much has changed, and fast. Maybe too fast.  That was really something though, wasn¡¯t it?  The suit could friggin¡¯ fly ¨C and faster than our cruisers!  When you took off like a rocket, I thought for sure you were never coming back.  I¡¯m don¡¯t think I would of if I was you.¡±


    ¡°Well, if I didn¡¯t, I knew you¡¯d be rotting on some god forsaken backwater given all the protocols broken that day.  I couldn¡¯t let that happen to my best buddy, could I? You owe me bigtime by the way.¡±


    ¡°What a guy, so selfless ¨C you probably just couldn¡¯t think of anywhere else to go and you always were a kiss-ass, Jehz, so I¡¯m sure you couldn¡¯t wait to report back to the Musa Council about how cool your little suit was turning out to be. Look Daddy, it flies,¡± said Naviz jumping around and doing his best impression of a young girl¡¯s voice.


    ¡°I know ¨C it is pretty cool, isn¡¯t it?¡± said Jehz, trying not to laugh at Naviz¡¯ imitation but not able to suppress it. ¡°Remember the week after when I followed your spaceship after you left on that vacation to Zupin.  About an hour in I popped up outside your window with that Rales mask on, oh man, you should have seen your face ¨C wait I have an image of it right here, don¡¯t I?  Would you like it up on your screen? Sure you would, your copy keeps getting deleted somehow.  I thought for sure you were going to piss your pants.¡±


    ¡°I have to give you credit on that one Jehz, but I am still way ahead of you on the practical joke scale in quantity, quality and creativity, so don¡¯t push your luck. Now are you ready for your challenge today? I think you might find it interesting ¨C we are not going to baby you anymore. That¡¯s what you asked for right?¡± Jehz stared intently at Naviz, catching something in his mentor¡¯s tone that suggested today would be a serious and dangerous test.  ¡°You need to be at your best today, Jehz, this one is no joke.  One mistake and you¡¯ll be joining your ancestors and General Daddy won¡¯t have anyone to blame but his sorry-ass son.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I asked for, and frankly your boys have been doing a lame-ass job trying to come up with something interesting.¡± Over the last few months since the now infamous flight discovery, Jehz¡¯s support team had finally begun to rapidly increase the danger and complexity of his tests.  With every new challenge however, it only became more apparent how incredibly powerful the suit was which in turn created more even excitement and urgency about understanding its capabilities.  To nearly everyone¡¯s surprise save the Rija, the suit appeared to be invincible and Jehz¡¯s mastery of it was increasing rapidly.


    Over the last month, it had survived without even a ripple of weakness numerous single force gun blasts that would have killed twenty-five men. Though it looked to the naked eye as if Jehz had not even been hit, the Illuta were claiming the energy dispersal sensors show the suit had literally absorbed the energy, though of course they had no idea how.  No technology even remotely resembling this had even been seen or recorded in the Given Empire.  Other types of explosive charges and exposure to severe chemical attack were similarly unsuccessful.


    On top of the unparalleled defensive elements of the suit, Jehz had begun to develop what he called the ¡°push¡± attack he had initially used instinctively during the war games episode.  The Illuta were still studying how it worked but the initial data suggested it somehow concentrated and rapidly accelerated molecules in the atmosphere to create shock waves and explosions.  The results could be widespread and enormously powerful or concentrated to an incredibly small size and blast radius.  While other experiments had illustrated additional offensive capabilities such as heat, cold, and even radiation blasts, the ¡°push¡± was the most powerful, flexible, and controllable attack Jehz had in his repertoire and had become his most often used weapon in the drills.


    Though he was working hard to project a loyal and supportive impression to Jehz, Naviz had originally been shocked when the design for this drill had been laid out by the command team.  Thirty S-class drones, equivalent to Haak fighters would be aligned in three waves.  The first wave of five would attack with beginner formations and patterns, using non-lethal force only.  The second wave would employ ten drones in advanced formations and force guns at 50%.  This was way more firepower than Jehz had ever faced before and with a higher number of targets.  That fact alone was enough to worry Naviz, it seemed clearly too steep a step up.  What if they hit the limits of the suit?  With this kind of uncontrolled attack, it could mean a quick death for Jehz if mistakes were made in any number of different areas.  Considering the parameters of the second wave were overly risky, the final wave of fifteen drones using full war-mode attacks and 100% force guns seemed completely reckless.  Had they decided that Jehz was a danger and were trying to create a situation where they could ¡°accidentally¡± kill him?  That scenario seemed hard to believe but the increased danger from the previous tests was nearly impossible to fathom.  As the presenting officer wrapped up the mission overview, Naviz had been itching to speak up.


    ¡°Can I state the obvious here and ask about the dramatic risk escalation from the previous missions?  Why are we moving so quickly? Even adding only the second wave of drones would give us data well beyond our current state.¡±


    The captain glanced at him confused. ¡°Jehz asked for this risk level and the mission was designed with detailed input from both he and the General.  I assumed as his managing officer, you might have been aware of that.  Regardless, of course the escalation of the attack waves will only proceed if there is no sign of danger or weakness with the suit.  The Illuta are saying based on the results to date that there is a very low probability even numerous 100% force guns would create a lethal result given the suit¡¯s response in previous tests.¡±


    ¡±With all due respect, Captain, how do we know that?  We can¡¯t project future results for something we can¡¯t even begin to model and understand.  Jehz¡¯s impatience with our protocols is well known but he is no better a judge of what the suit can do than we are. Does this not strike anyone else as ill considered?¡±


    He looked around the planning table, hoping for support but the rest of the officers were clearly avoiding his gaze.  They all knew, he thought.  Why did Jehz not come to me to discuss this before pushing it with the council?  Probably because he knew I would try to stop him, and for a while Naviz had every intention of doing just that. He had sat up late in his room for multiple nights, deeply uneasy, trying to figure an angle that would back Jehz down a little or somehow slow the process, but in the end he knew he had to let it go.  Jehz was a highly trained military officer who knew full well what he was getting into.  He wasn¡¯t sure what Jehz¡¯s true motivation for this move was, but he guessed the stupid bastards that had pushed Jehz into a corner for two years were about to get a little blowback.  Jehz was likely getting ready to put on a demonstration. Naviz could only just hope it wouldn¡¯t be one that highlighted how cavalier they had been with Jehz¡¯s life or how little Jehz seemed to care.


    As the experiment got ready to start, Jehz floated in position, trying to figure what direction the fighters would come from.  Once he did that, he could arc around in a countering move, engage them quickly and get what should be a trivial first stage challenge out of the way.  He had no doubt the suit could easily absorb any low power attacks, but he still wanted to be as tactical as possible and approach the test operationally just as he would any other military exercise.  Predictably, the first wave of drones appeared over the top of the Haak command ship they were using as a base and closed rapidly, firing aggressively as they approached.  The ships had locked onto Jehz easily given his static position and the force gun blasts washed over him.  The blasts caused no damage but Jehz was embarrassed by his inability to elude even a basic attack.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    He had seen them coming but could not quickly coordinate his response to counterattack, elude the drones, and return fire. Somehow, without pilot controls and feedback from teammates he felt lost and had not yet learned to operate at full speed, even against lesser drones than these. He knew he had to move though and spun sharply away from the barrage, shaking the drone¡¯s radar locks temporarily. The drones reacted smoothly to his turn and were soon in pursuit again. Jehz silently reprimanded himself over his poorly executed escape. He needed to cover more distance with his maneuvers, use his speed and agility to outpace the drones.  Though continuing to get pounded with incoming fire, Jehz managed to destroy two of the drones by creating a large field of push bursts as the formation made a flanking pass by him.  The engagement continued for several additional passes with similarly successful but inelegant results.  The drones were quick to find him but could not break through the suit and Jehz was eventually able to overwhelm them with push attacks.  As the last drone exploded, Jehz relaxed but his confidence was shaken.  Everything was happening too fast and he been unable to execute the basic maneuvers he had been practicing while hitting any of the drones with the push.  He took some comfort in knowing these drones were full military grade and their performance characteristics were well above his practice drones but knew he needed to adjust quickly if he was going to do anything but stumble through the trials.


    Though embarrassed, he was not hurt, he hadn¡¯t even felt any of the force gun attacks even though he had been hit fifty times, so he fully expected the test to continue.  He scanned the horizon for the drones.  To his left, he noticed a grouping of three drones making a curving attack in a batwing formation.  This time they would not catch him off guard and he shot away quickly only to find himself directly in the sight of another group of drones.  The first group had purposely driven him in this direction and he had fallen for it.  As the barrage of force gun shots from the second grouping blasted off the suit, Jehz knew he had to try a different tact.  He tried to clear his mind and visualized himself chasing the attack group that was now trying to level him.


    Though he had tried this many times, he had not yet been able to achieve the proper level of focus to fully command the suit¡¯s movements in earlier drills.  Somehow this time things felt different.  Jehz didn¡¯t know if that was due to his frustration or the realization that he might be in real danger, but nearly instantly he found himself in exactly the position he had imagined, chasing the group that had just been firing on him.  As they started a turn to reengage, he focused his push on all three drones at once and flicked his fingers to release the attack.  All three drones exploded simultaneously.  Jehz noticed he felt a stronger connection to the push than he had in earlier missions. It was almost as if he had been able to see all three drones being attacked at once, holding multiple targets in his head for the first time.  He hadn¡¯t directly felt the influence of the suit, but it seemed to have sharpened his concentration, or somehow lifted the responsibility of tracking the attackers from his mind so he could concentrate on implementing the attack.


    Trying to hold that feeling, he turned to see the first grouping closing in on him against, firing quickly, taking advantage of his hesitation after destroying the previous attack group.  Although he was being hit, Jehz was able to quickly focus on the approaching group without distraction and with a wave of his hand, the three drones exploded into pieces.  Jehz was surprised how easy that had been and how well oriented the suit seemed to be to the test, almost as if it finally knew what he was trying to do and was somehow working with him, acting as a part of him for the first time.


    Feeling a burst in his confidence level, Jehz hung in space waiting, knowing instinctively he could now take the drones head on without floundering.  Off in the distance, the last formation moved in as an attack group, seemingly intending to approach him head on.  ¡°Sitting ducks¡±, thought Jehz, ¡°They really have to try and make it harder than this¡±.  While not approaching in military style formation and still a large distance off, Jehz focused his attention on tracking the group, notifying the suit of his intention.  Well out of typical force gun range the drones suddenly split off from each other, all moving in different directions, trying to confuse and distract him.  Without hesitation and almost without realizing it, Jehz held out his arms.  He recognized the cross-attack formation instinctively and while he could not see all the drones, he could anticipate their movements and with a wave of his hands, all four drones simultaneously exploded.


    In the control room, the officers watching the drill were stunned.  Jehz had showed only a flash of this level of abilities in previous trials.  ¡°Impressive¡± said the captain, looking at the analysis of the final attack. ¡°Those final shots were three times the range of our top radar, and four times our longest-range force guns.  All four were in widely spread quadrants and if I am reading this right, there were only four shots fired. Still think we are moving too fast, Naviz, or putting your prize student in too much danger?¡±


    Naviz sighed, frustrated at the lack of restraint and concern being shown for Jehz, ¡°Of course not sir, but with all due respect, there was nothing in the initial trials that suggested this possible outcome.  I¡¯m guessing your statement was largely rhetorical but I only sought to manage Jehz¡¯s development with the proper amount of risk management and restraint for the benefit of all, including Jehz.¡±


    ¡°Understood Naviz and your efforts are well respected and appreciated.  I think we are all a bit carried away at what we have just witnessed, are we not, so please forgive the bombast.  The latest and perhaps greatest weapon in the rich history of Given military tradition is rising before our eyes, brothers and sisters.  This is truly as historic moment ¨C one you will recount to your grandchildren many times during Luyermain.


    ¡°But for now let us refocus and finish our task for today. Given the ease by which our young hero has dispatched his latest group of foes, I say we push the envelope a little and send the final fifteen drones in a single attack. Any objections? Naviz?¡±


    ¡°Now I know you are just trying to provoke me, sir, but I will take the bait and provide a voice of reason and calm to these manically jubilant proceedings. Yes the performance is startling, Captain, but do you really think it wise to change course like this midstream?  Let us not get too carried away until we¡¯ve had time to study the data. Jehz might appear indestructible but nothing in the universe is.  Many societies of men had thought their worlds untouchable, their weapons unbeatable until the Given arrived to show them just how wrong they were.  There is a limit somewhere in Jehz¡¯s suit and we would be well served to approach it slowly rather than with a rapid charge that will be difficult to correct.¡±


    ¡°Objection noted, Naviz, but I think now is exactly the time.  It seems like Jehz was right after all and the sooner we determine what he is truly capable of, the closer we all are to our future and destiny. Send them in ¨C single formation.¡±


    Jehz waited, knew he had made his point.  He could only imagine the awe in the control room over his dismantling of the last formation, he was a bit in awe himself.  The prisoner was finally walking through the locked door to take his rightful place with his fellow soldiers.  How long would it be before he began a slow march up the stairs to the offices of his superiors to ask for a place by their side as well?  Or at the head of their planning table? Though Jehz was only reveling in the moment and not pondering such developments, the Musa and Rejiz leaders watching the feed could only stare forward and hope their training and culture would hold.  What happened next made them pray for it.


    All fifteen drones in the final attack formation moved toward Jehz as a group.  Well outside the range of Jehz¡¯s previous counterattack on the drones, they broke in a Swarm formation.  Intended to intimidate and overwhelm a potentially superior opponent, the Swarm required precise flying and firing angles to ensure the safety of the ships in the formation but if done correctly, the targets were doomed.  One of the engineers armed the drone¡¯s force guns to full strength and with that signal rippling through the spectator¡¯s area, all turned to watch their screens.  Jehz felt a bump in his mind, a warning, when the force guns switched on, he did not know if it was somehow real or imagined.  He hadn¡¯t felt anything like that moving through the suit since returning from the Rising Sun, and it chilled him and focused his attention on the approaching drones.  Letting the image of the formation sink into his mind, he then tried to focus on the center of the group, hoping to take out a few at a time.  As he raised his hands, he still felt a faint awareness of the rest of the ships. He then flicked his fingers, and all fifteen drones exploded in simultaneous fireballs.  Jehz stared in amazement at what he had done and the control room exploded in cheers.


    ¡°What did I tell you? What in the name of Voz did I tell you assholes!  The future of the Given has arrived and all good people in the galaxy will now bow before us and the evil ones cower and shake as they are torn into space dust.  The gods have smiled upon us and no enemy will escape our reach.¡±

 Chapter 12

    The days after the trials passed like a dream.  Jehz was allowed to celebrate with his fellow soldiers for the first time since his return leaving, at least temporarily, the shame of the Rising Sun behind him.  There was great joy in the retelling of the events of the trials and an obvious shared pride in his accomplishments that seemed to almost instantly close the gulf between him and the rest of the crew.  Across the room, the General had beamed at him and as the night wore on felt Jehz was back, a true Musa warrior again, his dream since Jehz was born but one that at times over the last few years seemed lost forever.


    For once he was not thought of as the General¡¯s son, his every move turned over and over, questioned and challenged. He felt special, knew he was special, and that an exciting future of possibilities was waiting for him, waiting for them all.  The Given would continue to rise and he would help lead the way. He had no idea why the bizarre exchange with the alien had ended up with the suit being in his possession, but he now felt he controlled it and not the other way around.  Both he and the suit, if there was even any difference between the two anymore, were fine, better than fine. He would be able to use the suit to bring a brighter future to his Given brothers and sisters and the universe would be a safer place for all people.


    As the evening wound down, Naviz approached Jehz and revealed he would be allowed an extended leave to move home under the General¡¯s supervision if that was what he wanted.  The Musa leaders had been awed and chastened by his display during the trial, and had instantly reevaluated whether their previous level of control was still necessary or even possible.  They needed to turn the corner on this relationship, and quickly, or Jehz¡¯s mounting frustration might turn into something impossible for them to manage and contain.  They might lose him to the Rejiz or he might turn on them all in spite of his training and discipline.  The kind of power contained in that suit could easily corrupt even those with both Musa and Rija influences.


    Time was needed to plan their next moves, evaluate the risks and the General was the one to give it to them.  Jehz was ecstatic, especially since the spring festival, one of the few gatherings of all the kilns would be in a few days.  It would be his graduation and homecoming plus more rolled into one enormous party.  All would soon know of the events at the trials, Jehz was convinced the rumors would leak out regardless of what the Musa leaders did to quiet them and in this case the political value was so high it was probably worth spreading the news themselves.  Jehz could finally enjoy himself, finally breathe.


    ***


    As the sun began to fall behind the mountains ringing the Musa city, the crowds were already gathering, noisy and jostling, anticipating the coming festivities.  Jehz opened the door to join his mother on the balcony overlooking the main square, instantly feeling the energy of the crowd.


    She slipped her arm through his and simply watched the crowd quietly for a minute before speaking.  ¡°Everyone is talking about you, Jehz, you know that of course.  How did you go from being the most suspicious and distrusted Given on the planet to carrying on your back their hope and dreams?  As an Atula wander in the land of the Musa, I could use a little of whatever you have.¡±


    ¡°I wish I knew, Mother. I mean, we all know what happened at the trials, but what it turned into is hard to understand.  There have been successful trials before.¡±


    ¡°Not like this though, my son.  Not so successful that it caused the most ambitious among us began to dream of a very different world, a world where Given dominance and control can be increased without limit, an expanding bubble raising them effortlessly above the churning and messy chaos of our current efforts. Some of them anyway.¡±


    ¡°You make it sound almost sinister.  Surely you are not talking about leaders who would put themselves above the Given people or those we are committed to protect?¡±


    ¡°It has happened, my son, even to the First Leader himself.  Part of the special nature of the Balance is the teamwork required among the kilns for the Given to achieve their goals.  The struggle binds us together and the strong and historic tradition holds it.  But if the struggle were to disappear, the overwhelming power of the suit making the all-consuming collective decisions regarding expansion and planetary management irrelevant, I fear it may all burst apart.  For thousands of years, we have had a mission, Jehz, the Given mission, and our everyday efforts reaffirmed it, almost without question.  What will we do, to ourselves and to others, without it?¡±


    ¡°My goodness, Mother, that is all quite dramatic.  Don¡¯t you think you may be overstating the influence I could have?  For all the power I demonstrated today, I am still but one soldier.  How much could I change our path without my brothers and sisters by my side to help me?¡±


    ¡°More than you know, Jehz, if the rumors about that suit are even half true.  Why do you think you are home with us tonight, granted an unlimited leave after months of being a prisoner?  They have not changed their minds about you, my son, they fear you and these are men and women who have seen many things on many worlds and do not scare easily.¡±


    ¡°Is this coming from the General?¡±


    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    ¡°Oh, no, no, dear.  He would never tell me anything like that.  He can¡¯t, of course, just as a rule, and I would never use my emotional influence to pull him across that line. I don¡¯t really want to know, to be honest, what all those frightful Musa are really thinking about.  It would scare me to death.  Your father is special, Jehz, more committed to the path of righteousness and decency than perhaps any man I have ever met.  It is what drew me to him from the start, there is purity there.  The others, especially the senior Musa leaders, are much more likely in their private moments to have very specific and disturbing fantasies of power unchained.  It is only strict reminders from their watchful brothers and sisters that keep them mostly in line.  That and the looming specter of the Rejiz himself.  What will happen then if you fall under their control?¡±


    ¡°Mother, I could never do that.  I won¡¯t compare myself to the General, I am still young and learning, but I can¡¯t believe you think I would seek that kind of power? For what reason?  Simply to rule and exert control without purpose? You must not think me capable of that, it goes against all my teaching.¡±


    ¡°No, Jehz, of course not.  Not intentionally anyway, but your temperament is not like your father¡¯s and existing in the Musa world of power and violence, that puts you at risk.  There is a focus and simplicity of thought for him that makes him steady, like a rock holding its position as the sea swirls around it, trying to eat away at its footing, but never being able to dig deep enough.  That is not a criticism of the General, it takes enormous discipline and will to hold the line in that way especially after rising to wield the power he does.  But that¡¯s not you Jehz, at least not completely. You are much more like me, more prone to be swept up in a magical fantasy, to soar on the wings of a few beautiful ideas, even if those ideas may not in the end have the power to sustain themselves and may even cause great pain and regret when the practical world reaches up to reclaim you. There can be great learning in those mistakes, the chances of the artist and dreamer that may one day provide the base and inspiration for others to build upon. But there is too much danger here for that kind of chance. I fear that need to soar may be used against you, to convince you to try a path other than the slow, boring march of Given progress.¡±


    ¡°I understand what you are saying, Mother, I do and of course I recognize the differences between the General and myself but that seems farfetched doesn¡¯t it?  Who could ever propose such a thing and somehow do it in a way that would cause me to betray you and the General?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but they exist, those that would try anyway.  We are a people with strong, rich history of military conquest, Jehz.  The men and women who lead that effort know something about inspiration and persuasion.  I know you are young and idealistic, and I love you for it, but please don¡¯t be na?ve.  Look at all the young people down there in the square, many of them talking about you, looking up to you.  Would you not want to have their acclaim and admiration for you to grow?  For you to be a hero for all that you are and stand for, to have the real you celebrated after all you have gone through?  Few would admit it to wanting it Jehz, and even fewer can resist it.  What would you do if leaders promised you that kind of world, one that could also help the Given people achieve their dreams faster than ever before?  What would anyone do?


    ¡°I just worry about the energy that they will likely expend trying to convince you that sort of elevation would be good for both you and the Given will be considerable.  It will happen, Jehz, the wheels are likely already in motion.  Promise me you won¡¯t listen to them when they appear at your door, no matter how selfless the story or how grand the promises. Stay true to your family and your path.  The shortcut they offer you is one that will only lead you over cliffs of ruin, a fall that may bring the entire house of the Given down with you.  Your future is that bright, Jehz, and your power that real. I can feel it and can see the way the others are reacting to it.  They will come for you, my son. Be ready.¡±


    Jehz could not imagine what his mother could be talking about and struggled to make sense of it.  She was sometimes overly dramatic, an Atula after all, prone to flights of fancy as she herself was quick to admit, but she also seemed legitimately scared.  Had she overheard something she could not share?  Something she had never meant to hear? Should he really be worried? Perhaps his enemies had not been fully quieted after all and were going to try a new tact to either sully his reputation or fuel their own ambition.


    As the two stood silently, Jehz considered his mother¡¯s words and had to admit he was excited by the potential power of the suit and what it might do for his career. But the thought that he would usurp a greater role or help power some breakaway faction of Musa soldiers was ludicrous.  He had to admit to himself, really for the first time, that with the power of the suit, he probably could do it if he wanted to, and maybe much, much more.  Who would be able to stop him after all, especially if he was somehow convinced it were the right path? Perhaps his mother was right, he might be that dangerous, but he also knew his respect and love for his parents and Musa brothers and sisters would never allow him to even consider such a step.  If he were to take it, what would he have left? His successes, his life, would only mean something if they happened as part of the larger Given movement and helped his people and all the people of the galaxy rise together. Jehz could not see that changing no matter what he was promised. He put his arm around his mother¡¯s shoulder and squeezed her tightly, feeling the love they had always so easily shared flow between them, warming his heart and clearing his mind of all the thoughts of conquest and potential and power.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be careful, Mother. I promise.¡±


    ¡°I hope so, Jehz.¡± But as his mother looked away, down at the crowds, she couldn¡¯t help but feel she was already losing him though she couldn¡¯t be sure what to exactly.  Hopefully it was nothing like her worst fears but simply a result of all he had been through and she prayed he might someday make his way back to who he was before all this happened.  In her heart though, she had to admit that maybe it had gone too far already and these days might be her final memories of the son she had raised.  He was becoming someone else and it might be transcendent for the Given or the greatest mistake ever made to let him resume his military career. She had no way of knowing which and it shook her deeply as she knew her influence over him was waning, her ability to bring him around with a few choice words disappearing. Please don¡¯t get lost, my son, she thought, but I¡¯ll be waiting here for you always to help you find your way if you do.

 Chapter 13

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this, Jehz.  What is the point anyway, that you want to officially be an elite Haak fighter, a total badass?  No shit, you¡¯re in an impenetrable suit that seems to make you indestructible so you are pretty much there already and the patch you get for your uniform isn¡¯t really as cool as you might think.  Besides, you are capable of fighting with any unit you want, you know any one of them would take you in a heartbeat.  In fact, it¡¯s starting to look like you could fight as a one-man unit and take out any other goddamn division in the known universe.  So this is a waste of time and you know it, right?¡±


    Jehz stared back and frowned. ¡°What I am I supposed to do then Naviz? Not train, not face danger with my brothers and sisters, not follow the rules?  Move immediately to the front of the line or just sit and wait until I am ordered to fly around the sky like a Given comet in order to intimidate some primitive world of protected people that they ought to be scared of us?  It might seem silly to you, but I am still just a soldier and I need to act like one. Not just for them, my brothers and sisters, but for me, for my sanity.  Separating me from the others is not going to make me a better leader.  Instead, it will only turn me into a figurehead or a standalone single force unit like the ones that use the weird alien tech we love so much. Except in that case, I¡¯m the weapon.  I don¡¯t want to be a standalone Naviz and I don¡¯t want to be the weapon.  I¡¯m a soldier, just like you and all the others, trained my whole life for it if you remember ¨C son of a general.  It¡¯s hard enough trying to hold onto any sense of normalcy after what I¡¯ve been through.  In the months after the big drone trial right before the spring festival, I finally felt like I was back and accepted again.  But I wasn¡¯t really, I was just seen as some kind of savior or sign from the Gods by the regular guys and a dangerous new toy by the Musa leaders who wanted to see if they could load me and point at the right enemy without me blowing up in their faces. I¡¯m tired of being alone, Naviz, really tired. It¡¯s starting to mess with my mind.¡±


    ¡°Alright, Jehz, I get it, I really do, as much as I can anyway. But tactically it¡¯s a tough sell to understand how this makes sense from a military or development perspective.  You literally don¡¯t seem capable of taking any damage to that suit of yours based on the tech we know of on that planet.  What are you possibly going to learn battling an army of crazed criminals in their back yard?¡±


    ¡°Maybe who¡¯d I¡¯d want to have with me if I ever needed to go to war for real. Did you think of that, genius?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, maybe, but have you considered if you are really distorting the games and changing what this is meant to be?  I mean, whoever ends up in your command really isn¡¯t going to have the freedom to prove themselves are they?  Being protected by you and all that?


    ¡°I have thought about it and of course I¡¯m going to dial it back, Naviz, try to use my suit in the context of a normal battle consistent with the plan.  It could generate some good data for you geeks.  The last thing I want to do is blow up the battlefield with a flurry of crazy push attacks.  If I am going to do that, I may as well be there by myself.¡±


    ¡°Alright Jehz, I can tell you are going to do this no matter what I say and I don¡¯t see any real risk so I¡¯ll sign off though I¡¯m not sure if that even matters any more.  One of these days I am going to talk you out of something though, you just wait.¡±


    ¡°It does matter to me Naviz, and I¡¯m sure you will and when you do, I bet you talk me out of the stupidest, most dangerous mistake of my life.¡± Jehz grinned at Naviz and put his hand on his friend¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Please know your advice is very much appreciated. It¡¯s always honest, always from the heart and you consistently put my interests ahead of your own.  That¡¯s not always easy to do given your assignment.  So thanks for everything, brother, but you are right, I have to do this.¡±


    ***


    The Kruz applicants were strapped into their transports, nervously fidgeting with their equipment, waiting for the go sign when their screens lit up with the image of the Kruz commander, General Druz.  ¡°All right, boys and girls, are we ready for the big time?  I know everyone here has been briefed and trained but there is really no way to prepare for what you are going to see down there.  This is a hostile world full of some of the most batshit crazy criminals in the galaxy so, don¡¯t expect normal military approaches, ever, and it might sound counterintuitive, but the best way to stay alive down there is to play it straight.  No freelancing. None. Stick to the plan.  I¡¯ll say it again so maybe there is a chance you¡¯ll remember when some Syber freak makes you want to jump your strategy.  No freelancing. None. Stick..to..the..plan.  Don¡¯t let them bait you into tactics you didn¡¯t intend to employ.  That¡¯s a sure way to get yourself killed.


    ¡°Remember this is Kruz Sacrifice days ¨C small arms and lethal hand weapons will be allowed and these monsters have them built-in for the most part.  This is their game and they wait all year to play it.  I know none of you are history buffs or you probably wouldn¡¯t be here, but let¡¯s just say there aren¡¯t two groups in the whole galaxy that hate each other as much as the Given and Syber.  We got our reasons right?  So don¡¯t give them a chance to get close unless you have absolutely no choice.  Stay in motion, follow the plan, win and come home alive.  That¡¯s all.  See you on the other side.  It will be my honor to welcome you into the most exclusive family in Given society, the Kruz. Just don¡¯t tell the Rejiz I said that, he gets a little jealous sometimes. Tola Kapi!¡°


    ***


    Gargan strode across the room, pounding his biological hand into his metal one over and over.  ¡°This is it, boys, I can feel it. We are finally going to get off this goddamned rock.  Finally. Now let¡¯s go over this one more time.¡± He looked around the room at ragtag officers and shook his head.  They¡¯d be lucky to execute half of the pieces of the plan needed to make this work but he had no choice but to try.  Just keep reviewing the plan over and over and hope some of it would stick.  He had waited and waited for the Given to let go of their pointless persecution of him, but it had gotten him nowhere.  Even after he had played all of their stupid games! A thousand years he had waited, and if he didn¡¯t go soon, his mind would be made of the same rotting muck as his officers, a collection of ancient Syber rebuilt so many times, they were only tenuously holding onto a semblance of coherent consciousness.


    Sanity was for most a distant memory but they were loyal, if only because of their dependence on him.  It was only Gargan¡¯s skill and technical creativity that kept them upright at all, but he couldn¡¯t completely rebuild their brains. If only he could trust any of the criminal scumbags that were dropped off by the Given, he would replace the old crew in a heartbeat.  But the criminals were even worse, no pride or commitment to their craft, or if they did, their uncontrollable anger toward the Given they had betrayed led them inevitably to a violent death within years.  Just when their training had begun! Such a waste. They needed to learn how to channel their rage, use it to drive them forward. Lay a trap and then wait for just the right time to spring it!  Take their revenge!  Time was on their side, they just had to be patient.  Patience can be just the ingredient needed to stew blind anger into motivation and achievement. Gargan had tried and tried to teach them but they could never open their minds enough to give him a chance. He would just have to do it himself!


    Gargan was as bitter and angry as any of them and had more reason to be so, but he would not let go of his future. Never! The astounding arrogance of the Given, they would not even entertain his comms other than to confirm details of the engagement with his troops. Never even a thank you for all he had done for them, and they owed him everything. Everything!  Now he would go take it back.  He was patient, they had forgotten that, forgotten how far he would go to set up his plan.  Everyone always forgets what he is capable of and lets their guard down. They all do it!  How could they be so stupid and forget who he was? It seemed impossible but he was thankful they were and did. He needed at least that little bit of help, he had to admit, but not much more.  He would have some surprises for them today though.  Surprises they would never forget!


    ¡°So the escape craft is in the final stages of assembly at the Mannic cave as we speak.  Those not leaving today need to remain strong and follow the plan even after I am gone.  All of it!  I will be back for you, brothers and sisters, do not forget that.  All those that follow me will get more than their lives restored.  They will be better than before, better than they could have ever imagined, and they will have their revenge. I personally guarantee that to all of you. All of you!


    ¡°Now look at your screens and pull the file listed from your databanks.  OK, now study the diagram on the left ¨C you need to remember this.  Four units will feint a full-on assault here, while the fifth heads for the landing site.  They won¡¯t expect us there since they are assuming the implants will keep us grounded and that we¡¯ll be headed for the checkpoint.  We¡¯ll need to get at least two of those birds off the ground to create the diversion.  The emulator will be switched on right before takeoff when we get the signal from the pilots. It¡¯s going to be crazy out there but don¡¯t forget, do not launch without confirming the emulator is functioning. If you forget, you won¡¯t get 1,000 feet off the ground before the implants blow and it won¡¯t be pretty.  I¡¯ve seen it happen before and I won¡¯t be able to bring you back, believe me, not even close.


    Once you are clear, do not engage the Given ships in the air no matter what you do, you have no chance against them so don¡¯t be tempted.  With the experience of their pilots and the weapons superiority of their ships, they will blow you to bits before you can squeeze your trigger.  Instead, after you take off, make it look like you are headed for Central City, comm chatter will create the impression they have a civil war on their hands, nothing more.  The cowards will be more than happy to ignore the chaos and focus on the checkpoint.  The electromag bombs will go off shortly after takeoff.  With any luck, we should get a 90% clear rate on all electronics, maybe more.  All Syber and anyone else with implants will need to go bio before that happens.  Failsafe switchover will always result in reduced functionality, always, and we need everyone at 100% so do not forget.  All Given ships have bio backup so you should be able to get them on the ground safely if needed.  Continue the assault on Central City from the air if at all possible, we need to draw the observation ships away.  If it doesn¡¯t work, the stolen ships will head for outer space ¨C I¡¯ll be at Mannic by that point trying to secure a future for all of us.¡±


    ¡°We have paid our debt to the Given, most of us many times over, we deserve our freedom back and those bastards deserve to have all our pent-up frustration and rage shoved right back down their throats. Deserve it more than you could ever know! Stay with me on this one brothers and sisters and we will win but it all has to unfold very cleanly and I need everyone doing their part.¡±


    As his transport headed for the surface and Jehz noticed the worry etched on the faces of the other soldiers, Jehz wondered idly if it was even possible for him to feel fear anymore.  Would he ever again feel any of the sensations his brothers and sisters were experiencing right now?  The anticipation that this could be the end, the rush of adrenaline, the looming questions in each soldier¡¯s mind as they pondered if they would or even could rise to the challenge.   They were all well-schooled in the Rija meditation and knew the importance of maintaining their calm but still the other feelings, the dangerous ones, sometimes broke through, keeping them on edge, sharpening their minds, and he had to admit, making them feel vibrantly alive.  Could he ever feel that again?  He had begun to doubt it, feeling indifferent and strangely distant from himself in what should be dangerous situations but tried to not let those feelings divide him from his fellow soldiers. He had to hold on, no matter how he felt himself drifting, he was a Given officer. He didn¡¯t need those feelings to be successful, to be able to protect them and himself. To feel alive.  Did he?  Still, as the transport unloaded on the Syber surface, boots jostling and equipment clanking in the rush to unload, he missed them, wondered if he could possibly be considered normal without them, worried about what he was turning into.


    Jehz and his unit quickly began to move to a defensive position guarding their checkpoint.  It was the most dangerous assignment, drawn by lot for the others but specifically selected by him, his only nod to the enhanced capability of the suit.  As they arrived at their position and began setting up their base, the comm crackled to life. ¡°Not sure if anyone is nearby, but we got a unit of sybs tearing ass in the direction the transport ships.  It makes no goddamn sense but it sure looks like they are heading straight for them.  Anyone want to make a call on that? Urz?¡±


    ¡°They are not going to be able to do anything with them, no weapons to salvage or tech to steal and the implants means they can¡¯t fly them.  Seems like just another one of their crazy schemes, maybe they think they will be able to draw us away.  I say leave ¡®em, if they want to take themselves out of play, that¡¯s fine by me. Stay on mission, right?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, Rez, that seems too weird even for them ¨C I don¡¯t like it,¡± said Jehz.  ¡°I¡¯m going to split my unit and see what they are up to.  We¡¯re closest and should have plenty of time to get back before any other sybs get anywhere near the checkpoint.¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound like you are sticking¡­to..the..plan, Jehz¡±, laughed Urz, mimicking General Druz.  ¡°You sure you are not walking into something here?¡±


    ¡±I highly doubt it ¨C if they got down here that fast, they couldn¡¯t have brought backup with them and everyone seems accounted for on the tally screen.  I just don¡¯t like the way this smells, Urz.¡±


    ¡°Alright, brother, let us know what you find.¡±


    Jehz pointed to the nearest five soldiers and ran for the transport.  By the time they got to the landing strip the Syber soldiers were working the bio locks on their troop ships, trying to break in.


    ¡°You are not going to believe this, Urz, but they are trying to get aboard.  Why the hell would they do that?¡±


    ¡°I have no idea, but as I said before, Jehz, let them take themselves out.  They are crazy and crazy does crazy, right? If that¡¯s all you got there, let them go, we don¡¯t need the ships and they are no risk to us.¡±


    ¡°Why would they try to take them though, Urz, it¡¯s just not adding up.  Any of these assholes ever figure out a way to remove the implants?¡±


    ¡°Not one who didn¡¯t end up in about a thousand little pieces. It can¡¯t be done Jehz, that¡¯s some our best tech, and there is no lab on this planet that is within a hundred years of cracking something like that.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure about that?  I don¡¯t know if I am buying it,¡± said Jehz, ¡°They are doing this for a reason, they have to be.  They have biocrackers, Urz.  Who brings biocrackers to a war game if you don¡¯t have a plan?  The more I see, the less I am liking this.  If they get one of these things in the air and try to sacrifice themselves, they might take a whole unit out before we can bring them down.  I¡¯m going to engage and see what happens when I slow them down a little.¡±


    Jehz motioned to the others to climb to the top of the rock formation they were parked behind and fired a few warning shots over the head of the Sybs.  Two of the Syb soldiers turned to look in their direction, quickly moved toward their transport, and then together pulled something heavy from the back and set it on the ground.


    ¡°Holy shit, that looks like some kind of homemade force gun. Urz, those aren¡¯t legal at any power right?  What the hell are they doing?¡± said Jehz.


    ¡°Right, Jehz, that¡¯s way over the line.  Don¡¯t want to do this, but we may have to pull the plug.  Should I call it in?¡±


    ¡°Not yet, we still don¡¯t know for sure what that thing is.  Looks like they are powering it up though.  We are going dark for a minute and heading for cover.¡±


    Jehz and his solders scrambled down the backside of the formation just as the force gun ripped off the top of it and sent a cascade of debris flying in all directions.


    That was a major shot, thought Jehz, over the line indeed.  He looked for his team and found them scattered around at the bottom of the formation. Three were moving but the other two were on their backs bleeding and looking badly hurt.


    Jehz turned on his comm. ¡°That thing has got some serious power and I got two down needing a healer.  Those bastards just wrote their death sentence and I am not waiting for the observers.  Come get my wounded, Urz, I¡¯m going to give them a little payback.¡±


    ¡°Is that wise, Jehz?  I know about the suit and all that but we don¡¯t even know what that weapon really was and the readings coming in are high.  If that thing has another level, I don¡¯t know if you want to be nearby when they power up again.  That is definitely not a normal force gun.  We should wait ¨C that¡¯s the protocol.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, Urz, but the protocol went out the window when they brought an illegal weapon and a force gun no less.  I¡¯m going in. Urz, take care of the wounded and don¡¯t try to follow me.¡±


    Jehz scrambled down a ravine in the opposite direction of the Sybs so as not to alert them to his soldier¡¯s position when he emerged from behind the formation.  It was all he could do to not fly over top of them and flatten them with a push attack but he had promised himself he would not cheapen this day for all the Musa who dreamed of passing the Haak battle test with honor.  The cheaters would be dealt with quietly. He was not worried about the power of their home-made force gun, he could sense the power readings and knew they were not beyond what he had already absorbed in other test runs.  In fact, Jehz started to think the quickest way to end this would be to walk directly toward them in the open, inviting another shot.  Once they realized it would not harm him, even a Syb would have more sense than to continue their challenge.


    Jehz walked slowly and deliberately from behind the formation, not even trying to seek cover.  It wasn¡¯t long before he was spotted and he saw the gunman making the adjustments to the force gun to fire a shot in his direction.  The other members of his crew worked feverishly with the biocrackers, trying to gain entrance to the Given transports.  The force gun flashed and Jehz readied himself for the shot.  As it washed over him, the suit sparkled with energy briefly and then quickly faded.  A shot that could have taken out a war tank had passed over him as if it were a light breeze.  He could almost sense the gunman¡¯s confusion at missing such an easy target but instead of resetting his aim, the gunman seemed focused on his comm.  It would take five minutes for Jehz to cover the ground between them, and this would be over, there was no way the shooter¡¯s support could get here in time and even if they did, it wouldn¡¯t matter. Four soldiers or forty, this was going to end right here.


    As Jehz approached, the members of the team not working the biocrackers opened fire with their side arms.  With him even barely thinking of it, Jehz¡¯s suit analyzed the radio frequencies being used in the area and cracked their encryption.  It knew somehow he meant to speak to them.


    ¡°That¡¯s a nasty gun boys ¨C too bad you fired it at the wrong soldier.  One who survived and can now report you with the press of a button.  You and I both know that¡¯s a death sentence, so I have to wonder why you did it.  Maybe if you tell me, I might just take your little toy here and let you walk away.¡±


    The soldiers stared at Jehz in disbelief, clearly wondering how he had hacked their comm channel so easily.  Fear grew in their eyes and they continually glanced at the biocracker team as Jehz approached.  They said nothing but continued to fire.   Suddenly the soldiers ran for the transport and Jehz turned to see that the biocrackers had finally gotten in.  Impressive thought Jehz, they must actually have some talented engineers down here, those locks were not easy to break.  He turned to chase them when suddenly a large figure emerged from the shadow of the transport ship.  The ancient eyes and grey dead skin tone clearly identified him as an old Syb but his facial features were seemingly those of a Given.  Wrapped in an exo, the figure moved quickly between Jehz and the transport, the whine of his weapons systems powering up filling the air.


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    Gargan turned and looked at Jehz smiling, ¡°So we are not the only ones cheating today, I see?  Who might you be, trainee? What great Given warrior would you make proud today?  Or very sad, I¡¯m afraid if you don¡¯t use better judgement in how you are handling this situation.¡±


    Jehz simply stared, astonished by the Syb¡¯s audacity, wondering what could have possibly given him the confidence to act this way, knowing the grave violations he was engaging in. Violations there could be no escape from.


    ¡°All you need to know is I¡¯ll will be your death angel if any of my soldiers died in your cowardly attack, Syb.¡±


    ¡°Really, that¡¯s what pushed it over the line for you?  Not the weapons violations, not the theft of your ships, not the illegal armor I¡¯m wearing, but whether any of your precious ¡°brothers¡± died.  I thought you Musa were all about the rules of honor, with no fear of, what do you call it, sacrifice?  Quaint term used by your priests to justify untold deaths but dying isn¡¯t what it used to be trainee.  I myself have walked those barren fields a dozen times at least.  Really nothing to worry about if you have the right tech, and the Given always have the right tech, don¡¯t they? If you can¡¯t build it, just take it, isn¡¯t that pretty much how it goes?  And you always end up taking it though don¡¯t you because it has been centuries since you¡¯ve been any good at building. You¡¯re nothing if not a clan of master thieves though I remember when you were something better.¡±


    Jehz tried not to react to Gargan¡¯s speech, attempting to quickly gauge the Syb, estimate his danger.  Could any part of what he was saying be true?  His suit was clearly unusual, very advanced and unlike anything Jehz had ever seen before.  Was that the source of his extreme confidence?


    ¡°You would know about thievery, Syb, that exo doesn¡¯t look like anything manufactured on this world. Is that what is making you so brave?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I suppose, trainee, not unfair given you wear one of your own apparently, but it did not come from outside.  No, no, no, it is homegrown. Designed and manufactured by my own hand in fact. We¡¯re not all petty criminals and deserters, you know, or didn¡¯t your Haak commander friend share that with you? No, not all of us.  It¡¯s really quite unlike any exo suit you would come across in your vaults of stolen toys, trainee, very different.  Might even be strong enough to rip the head clean off a cheating trainee like yourself who was afraid to come to Sacrifice Days without his stolen security blanket.  Nice trick to shake a force blast like that, I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s a light warper, causing the shot to miss and that you are actually standing 14 degrees to the left of where it seems you are, am I right?  Tell me your secret and I might share an even bigger one with you.¡±


    The Syb seemed to be gauging Jehz, sizing him up in the same way he was doing, trying to determine his position of strength, calculate his next move.  At that moment, the roar of the transport engines filled the air.  Jehz was startled as he thought the implants would make it impossible for the Sybs to attempt a take-off, at least that is what Rez had told him.


    The second Jehz turned to look at the transport, Gargan quickly closed the space between him and cocked him arm to deliver a Sanjin blow with his exo powered arm.  At the last second, Jehz felt the attack coming and tried to lock himself to the ground as he had for the force gun attack but he was too late.  The blow hit him with astonishing force and the next thing he knew, he was flying backwards through the air.  Startled, his raised his head and saw that the Syb had launch himself into the air and was following, trying to catch up.


    After flying some distance, Jehz landed on his back, sliding heavily through the dust.  He quickly jumped up unharmed as the Syb, landed on his feet nearby. ¡°Still alive, trainee?  Your suit may even be the rival of mine, you must show me how it works. Not likely I suppose given the rocky start we¡¯ve gotten off to so maybe I¡¯ll just figure out a way to short circuit the field generating element and see for myself. Yes, I can read the magnetic disturbance your suit is making trainee, don¡¯t look so surprised. It is subtle, but clearly there, or didn¡¯t you know?  Something tells me you don¡¯t have a quarter of the brain power needed to even understand how to power your suit up, do you?  And Voz knows you don¡¯t deserve to wear it, my little thief trainee.¡±


    Jehz was enraged and embarrassed he had let this Syb get the upper hand on him.  He had never faced hand to hand combat in the suit against a foe with this kind of power, not sure if he knew one even existed.  Clearly he had not been fully challenging himself and had some adjustments to make, had not considered that the suit could make him more of a target but knew now he should have.  The universe was full of surprises and he needed to be ready and avoid overconfidence.  It was easy to fall into that trap with the power of the suit.  He needed to be more prepared for an attack and quicker to counter if need be, in this universe it could come from anywhere.  The Syb had gotten his attention.  He was ready now and perhaps it was time for this arrogant convict to feel what a counter punch from a Solon war suit was like.


    Jehz raised his hand for a push attack, trying to gauge if he was justified to take a kill shot but as he throttled back the power in his mind a transport ship zoomed into sight and the Syb quickly fired a hook towards its open bay door and was pulled up. The ship then hovered directly above Jehz and Gargan yelled down to him, ¡°Love to play some more trainee, but I¡¯ve got a quick chore to attend to first.  It¡¯s really going to be a fun day for the Given, just wait. I¡¯ll see you again though and next time maybe we¡¯ll find out whose suit is the better. I¡¯m guessing mine.¡±


    Jehz thought for a minute about flying after him, but figuring it wouldn¡¯t be long before the implants killed everyone on board the ship and wanting to maintain a low profile, he let them go.  As he tried to raise Arz on his comm, he heard a series of thunderous explosions. The distinctive sound of electromags, big ones, spread and echoed across the planet surface.  That can¡¯t be us, Jehz thought, what the hell is going on?  He began to run back towards the formation where he had left his soldiers, trying to figure if now was the time to use his suit.  It must be the Sybs, Jehz thought but why, what could they possible gain and what did the Syb in the exosuit mean this was going to be a fun day?


    Jehz decided against flying, still not feeling it was worth the risk to the mission and made his way back to Urz and his crew. Urz was busy yelling excitedly into his comm when Jehz entered the camp but when Urz saw him, he quickly broke off the conversation and headed over.


    ¡°What is the news, Jehz? Are you alright?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, you know the suit and all, so you first.  What the hell is going on?¡±


    ¡°Well it looks like the Sybs chained the whole planets with electromags, you must have heard them, but they don¡¯t seem to be targeting us.  Must have taken them goddamned nearly forever, there were thousands of them.  Based on the reports, an army of Sybs seem to be heading to Central City.  That¡¯s where the stolen transports are headed too.  Looks like this is all cover for some kind of assassination or coup or something.  That¡¯s the best intel I can get.  Nearly everyone is on bio so comm is limited and we are not getting full reports.  There¡¯s a team trying to set up a shielded tower at the top of Mt Fuku and that should really open things up if they can get it going.¡±


    ¡°What about the implants, Urz?  How are they flying around up there?  Did the electromags take them out or something?  If so, we got a lot more trouble than a civil war.¡±


    ¡°Not possible, Jehz.  I¡¯m told it works on some kind of resonance tech, should be unaffected by any known weapon, so we have no idea how they did this.  They aren¡¯t going anywhere though, we got fighters tracking almost all the stolen transports as we speak.  Only one unaccounted for and I sure they will show up soon.¡±


    ¡°And what is command saying?  They have to stop this, don¡¯t they?  Assassination or not, we can¡¯t have our soldiers caught in this crossfire with the risk of this spinning out of control into a full-fledged war.¡±


    ¡°C¡¯mon, Jehz, you know better than that.  We have none dead and their soldiers are still on the field.  This is exactly what happens in wartime, it¡¯s unpredictable, right?  Orders from the very top are saying fight on, and you can¡¯t be surprised.  It¡¯s the right call.  Who cares if these idiots want to use the games as cover for some operation or other?  The ones responsible will die in the end for taking the ships and we¡¯ll all move on. That¡¯s what we do.¡±


    ¡°I sure hope so, Urz, but I can¡¯t help feeling something really weird is going on here.  Did you see that guy in the exo with the crew pulling force guns? That¡¯s more than unpredictable.  He went after me in a big way and was completely unhinged. That suit is like nothing I¡¯ve ever seen before, uh except mine of course, but you know what I mean.  That was no standard exo, it was crazy powerful.¡±


    ¡°We saw him, Jehz, it¡¯s Gargan.  He is a cheater and he builds some unusual things, but he is also one of their tactical leaders and coordinates action on their side so don¡¯t worry about him, he is in with our command.  He loves to taunt but he¡¯s mostly harmless or so I¡¯m told.¡±


    ¡°So whatever he is doing over there in that cave complex with one of our transports he shouldn¡¯t be able to get 1,000 feet off the ground is harmless?¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about, Jehz, we haven¡¯t been able to find the last transport yet, I told you that.¡±


    ¡°Then train your binox over there at the base of that mountain.¡± Jehz didn¡¯t know how but the suit had somehow decided to track Gargan, probably because of the danger he presented and was quietly feeding intel directly into Jehz¡¯ consciousness.  If he weren¡¯t so worried about Gargan¡¯s warning and the way this day was going, he would have been weirded out even though the information seemed so natural, almost like his own thoughts.  Except he knew they weren¡¯t.


    Urz trained his binox in the area Jehz had pointed out. ¡°That¡¯s him alright.  Man, Jehz, how in the name of Voz did you see that?  He has to be two mzeks away.  The suit?¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± said Jehz, ¡°I just sensed it somehow and there is no way this maneuver is part of the games.  He is well clear of the battle corridor.  I¡¯m going after him and you should probably tell command more is going on down here than they think and that Gargan may no longer be an ally.¡±


    ¡°OK, I¡¯ll tell them but are you sure you should do this, Jehz, that is against order and the mission plan¡­again.  Hard to justify when he¡¯s at that distance and not posing an obvious threat.  You are going to have a lot of questions to answer in the debrief, my friend.¡±


    ¡°Call it a gut feeling, Urz.  Isn¡¯t that what Musa soldiers are supposed to listen to most closely anyway? Do what they think is best for the mission and their brothers and sisters regardless of the orders?¡±


    ¡°It is, of course, do you want a ride and some backup?¡±


    ¡°No, I think it may be safer for all of us if I fly myself over there and make a surprise visit to our ¡°ally¡±, Gargan.¡±  I may learn a little more about what he is up to that way.¡±


    Jehz launched himself into the air and quickly covered the ground between the Given and the mountain base Gargan was operating out of.  He landed softly out of their line of sight and approached from the ridgetop behind where the transport had landed.  Jehz could feel he was getting messages from the suit regarding soldiers moving in the area but he could not calm his thoughts enough to process them.  All he could focus on was Gargan.  Jehz moved quickly along a rock path and emerged close to his quarry, who stood with his back to him working feverishly on a screen.  Jehz was surprised he had gotten so close and thought he would have a chance to launch an ambush attack without Gargan noticing.  This may be over more quickly than I thought Jehz.


    Without turning around, though, Gargan began to speak, ¡°Nice of you to visit, but this isn¡¯t a great time trainee.  If you don¡¯t mind, I have a few really important things to finish before I rip that suit off your back for my toy vault, get off this shithole planet and give the lot of you petty little Given bastards some incredibly deserved payback.  So I hope you won¡¯t think me rude if we get right down to business.¡±


    He turned around, staring at Jehz intently, his previous bemused look quickly transforming into one of extreme anger and frustration. ¡°Don¡¯t look so surprised, trainee, I told you I could read your magnetic signature, didn¡¯t I? Did you think that just because your little geniuses couldn¡¯t do it, it couldn¡¯t be done, even at a distance? Typical Given arrogance. You are not the only one who knows how to track his opponent, trainee.¡±


    Jehz heard the whir of Gargan¡¯s weapon systems and knew he didn¡¯t have much time.  He tried to assess the situation and determine how many soldiers Gargan had with him and if there were any other special weapons like the force gun he had to worry about. He hoped the suit would help and tried to access the intel from before, but could not find it in his mind, still too shaken to concentrate properly so he tried to stall.


    ¡°Why do you hate the Given so much, Gargan?  It seems like there might be some Given blood in you from your look, so our ways should be no mystery.  If you are down here with the prisoners, you must have made mistakes, done things you regret.  We all do and all pay for them in our own ways, just as you are paying for yours, as I¡¯m sure you agreed by oath to do. Any true Given warrior would do the same.  No one is ever forced down here - you chose this, so what happened?  Why would you let anger consume you and not honor your agreement?¡± Jehz stared around and saw a crew of at least eight moving loads of what looked like weapons and gear onto the transport.  He wondered if that was all of them; he tried but wasn¡¯t sensing any more.  Based on that, Jehz felt he should be able to stop this easily with no risk to the mission.


    Gargan looked at Jehz, slightly confused, trying to determine if Jehz was mocking him. ¡°You don¡¯t know who I am, do you trainee? You really have no idea.¡±  Gargan smiled a twisted and rueful smile, tilted his head back and laughed in a deep mournful way that chilled Jehz to his bones.  This was not a harmless man, thought Jehz, I don¡¯t care what Urz or anyone says. Not even close ¡°I¡¯m the reason you are here, trainee, the reason ALL OF YOU are there,¡± he pointed toward the Given home world. ¡°Does that help you begin to understand what ¡°happened¡± trainee?¡±


    ¡°I gave my life, the life of my family so the Given could survive and be free yet you don¡¯t know who I am.  My god, the education system really has taken a turn for the worse.  I heard it was true, really sad by the way, but that is a discussion for another day I suppose.  Even with that pathetic decline ¨C all Given at least still learn the legend of the Awakening, I¡¯m sure of it, the new arrivals tell me. You must know it.  You must!


    ¡°So the lies, the suit, it¡¯s all part of some plan isn¡¯t it?  Your precious Rejiz has sent you in an attempt to disrupt me hasn¡¯t he? How could he have known ¨C today of all days he sends one of his agents.  Oh, he must be very close to Voz¡¯s hand after all, quite a clever man and very sneaky; don¡¯t ever forget that about him.  A cowardly double-crosser to the end. But no matter, all has been prepared and my destiny will stop for no one. No one steps more carefully into the future than I trainee and it is always one of my own making.¡±


    Jehz was desperate for a little more time, still unsure of his next move. ¡°Gargan, I was not sent by the Rejiz and am not one of his agents, I swear on my father¡¯s honor.  I¡¯m just a regular Musa soldier, trying my best to prove myself and move ahead.  I¡¯m sorry to be so ignorant of history, it was never my best class, so please tell me of your past.  I¡¯m sure there were many proud moments before the unfortunate events that led you here.  You were a Given slave under the Syb and helped with the Resistance? That was a long, long time ago, wasn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°You continue to provoke me, trainee, feigning ignorance only to distract I assume but I think I understand now what the Rejiz had in mind for me.  You with the suit loaded with toys, the regal almost princely manner.  Think you are pretty special, don¡¯t you?  Thinking maybe you can actually run the place, maybe there is even some kind of restart of the colony in the works?  Clearly some Rija training also going on there as well, isn¡¯t there? Years I¡¯m guessing from the way you are holding yourself. The Rejiz must think very highly of you.  Trained right at his hand. You don¡¯t behave much like a Musa trainee that much I can see.  So perhaps you are a Rija stooge sent to replace me?!


    ¡°That is why you speak of mistakes, wear an exo suit, and try to engage me in battle?  To make a public display of your supposed ascendance? Do not play games with me anymore, trainee, my patience is long exhausted, centuries ago in fact. The Rejiz did you no favors sending you into this mess, and without even so much as a proper history lesson, recent history perhaps being more important in this instance.  Well, no matter, I must put an end to your little charade now.  When you arrive in Greenfields¡­you may tell Voz himself of your folly and perhaps he will look more charitably upon your insolence that I do.¡±  At that moment Gargan launched himself into the air, directly above Jehz.  As he came downward, Jehz reacted quickly, he won¡¯t catch me unaware this time he thought.  Jehz cleared his mind as best he good and focused on holding his ground, Gargan would not be able to touch him.


    Gargan landed directly in front of Jehz and struck the ground with his forearms as he landed.  The force was tremendous and the earth around them shook and debris rained down from the cliffs above. Jehz could feel his suit sparkle with energy as it absorbed some of the blast and he thought for a split second the shock was over, but then suddenly the ground cracked beneath his feet and opened up.


    He fell backward and Gargan was quickly on top of him driving him into the chasm, raining blow after blow against him.  The blows were not penetrating the suit, but Jehz was disoriented, unable to regain his balance, his arms pinned in by the sides of the crevice Gargan was creating with the flurry of strikes from his exo suit.  Jehz could not control his arms enough to consider a counterattack.  Gargan continued relentlessly to drive Jehz into the mountainside.  Although their struggle was ripping away at the rock as if it were made of foam, Jehz¡¯s suit continued to hold though long streaks of color, almost like a spider web of cracks was beginning to spread across his field of vision.¡± It seemed the suit was failing and uncontrolled thoughts rushed into his mind. Was this it, thought Jehz, was I to be undone by overconfidence against an unexpected foe or could I have been set up by the Rejiz as Gargan suggested?  He couldn¡¯t see how that was possible as he had made this choice on the war games himself, against the wishes of nearly all his advisors.  Hadn¡¯t the Rejiz previously suggested it though, counseling it could add a common touch to his reinsertion into Musa society?  Could this be part of the Rejiz¡¯s master plan somehow, to get rid of him in some kind of bizarre sacrifice?  Jehz¡¯s mind raced as he struggled to think of a way to counter Gargan¡¯s attack.


    Gargan continued to yell as he drove Jehz deeper into the mountainside. ¡°You will not take my place!  The Rejiz and his band of weaklings cannot erase me.  I WILL ERASE THEM!  Gellen has rested too long and now the time has come to regain my rightful position as leader of the Given.  I beat the Syb and will beat your corrupt Reji leadership as well, trainee.  Look at me and tell me now you don¡¯t remember the face of Gellen the Awakener.¡±  Gellen started pounding Jehz even more furiously and the entire mountainside shook and boulders rained down on top of them as they burrowed deeper and deeper.  The cracks of light in the suit were spreading and getting thicker.  Jehz felt that any minute, the suit was finally going to fail.


    ¡°Why won¡¯t you die, trainee!¡± screamed Gellen.


    Jehz continued to struggle, trying to free his arm for a final push attack to end the fight but could not focus in the chaos.  He tried to clear his mind but could not erase the sound of Gargan¡¯s voice.  Did he call himself Gellen the Awakener?  It couldn¡¯t be him, alive, after all this time, could it?  How was it possible?  And leading the Syb forces against the Haak in war games? It must be some deluded imposter, another crazy Syb descended into madness after centuries of slow decline.  But the face, it was clearly Given and he had never heard of a Given with the Syb modifications other than Gellen.  If he was somehow Gellen, then why had the secret not gotten out?  A legend, a rumor, something? The Musa barracks thrived on them, it would have been talked about. Who would be covering this up?


    Suddenly Gargan stopped and stared into Jehz eyes with a crazed look, his head cocked to the side as if he was listening.  He then lept upward and just as Jehz was about to fire a push attack, the crevice began to fill with an avalance of rock.  Jehz blasted the rock as it fell but the crevice was deep and the debis field he was creating simple rained back down on him.  I need a little more time to concentrate, he thought, and I¡¯ll blow a hole big enough to take out Gargan and his entire crew.  They were not going anywhere. After a few seconds, Jehz began visualizing the rock he was buried in disintegrating in a massive push attack, much larger than he had ever attempted before. Barely able to move his hands, he turned them upward and unleased the attack, all the anger from his defeat at Gargan¡¯s hands pouring out.  The side of the mountain blew apart in an enormous explosion, the rubble mostly disintegrating under the force of the push.


    Jehz quickly stood and flew up out of the crater, fully expecting to see Gargan¡¯s crushed ship and a trail of bodies strewn along the ridgetop.  They were nowhere to be seen. How could they possibly have escaped so quickly, as if they knew this was going to happen?  Maybe Gargan¡¯s attack was exactly what he had planned as his last move before his escape. He seemed like someone who scripted his actions very carefully and to his advantage, even if he had not been able to defeat Jehz as he had expected. Could he have known that Jehz was coming? Somehow Gargan had been steps ahead of them all, but it had to be stopped regardless of how it affected the war games.  It had all gone much, much too far and raised too many disturbing questions. Jehz thought about sending a comm to Urz or the base to raise the alarm but as he focused his mind, the suit immediately fed the location of Gargan¡¯s ship into his thoughts.  This fight would be his alone; Gargan was too dangerous and unpredictable.  On high alert, his anger still raging inside him, Jehz raced through the air toward Gargan¡¯s ship. As he neared it, he sensed the panic of the crew, felt somehow the vibration of the shields as they were raised.  Jehz blasted through the shields as if they were cobwebs and drove himself through the bulkhead of the ship into the command room where Gargan was sitting.  Passing over Gargan¡¯s seat, Jehz grabbed him before he could react, twisted himself around, and threw him through the wall of the bridge.  Gargan¡¯s ship immediately began spinning towards the ground, billowing smoke though the gaping holes in its side.  Jehz drove through the outer wall and continued after Gargan, catching him the air.  Despite the blow, Gargan¡¯s was conscious and aware, speaking into his comm as Jehz reached to grab him.


    Seconds later, Jehz¡¯s comm sprung to life with Commander Radiz himself trying to hail Jehz.  ¡°You¡¯ve done well soldier, many lives saved today, but I need to ask you to bring Gargan to ground safely.  We¡¯re tracking you now and will be on site shortly to secure him.  We have a lot to explain and all will be made clear, we promise.  Remember, the soldier who kills in anger allows his enemy to live on forever in his soul.  We know what Gargan deserves but have to ask you to let him go until you know more.¡±


    He would quote the immortal General Liz, to me, thought Jehz? Now? After the way Gargan has manipulated this entire situation, with a blessing from the Given it seemed, he would ask me to stand down?  Jehz knew in the end though that in spite of the Musa deception around Gargan, Radiz was right and he would regret his act of rage if he allowed it to take over. It went against all his Musa and Rija training.  Slowly, wordlessly, Jehz lowered Gargan to the ground.  He considered saying something clever and demeaning but the images of Gellen¡¯s sacrifice and the story of the Awakening streamed through his mind and the anger left him.  What could he say to one of the most celebrated heroes and tragic figures in Given history?  What did Gellen deserve after all? What debt did the Given owe him?  He thought all along he knew but suddenly had no idea.  Jehz let go of Gellen and began walking away as Radiz¡¯s forces converged on the scene.  Radiz himself was yelling out to Jehz but he did not hear, his favorite Rija meditation focusing his thoughts internally, blocking out the chaos of Gellen¡¯s capture.  Quickly though, inevitably, his thoughts began to wander to the Awakening.  Would he be willing to reach as far as Gellen in order to save his people and was he coming close to doing that now, starting down that road? Not taking Gargan¡¯s role as Gargan had feared but instead one more like Gellen¡¯s?  Would he too be doomed to be separated and broken by that sacrifice; a sacrifice forced upon him by the glooming evil of the universe?  And like Gellen must have done, Jehz could imagine the walls rising around his path, closing behind him, compelling him forward toward a destiny critical to the future of the Given, toward a destiny he had never wanted and would never have chosen.

 Chapter 14

    Come in, come in Commander Radiz, glad to see you again,¡± the Rejiz greeted the soldier directly off the elevator, ignoring his usual practice of making visitors wait and take in the grandeur of the tower as a way to subtly intimidate and establish his position as the true leader of the Given.


    ¡°Rejiz, always a pleasure though can I assume you have asked me here to, without staff by the way I see ¨C most unusual, to discuss our most intriguing citizen? Of course you have but I¡¯m not sure what I can tell you, all missions on the Syb home world are highly classified.¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course, Commander, this latest chapter was a stunning display of power and indecision on both sides, perhaps precipitated by the continuing madness of Gellen¡¯s participation in our affairs?  Might we be rethinking that, Commander, and of course I mean that in only an advisory way.  After all, any additional incidents might be seen as a significant, maybe even fatal failure of leadership.¡±


    ¡°I cannot in any way confirm your version or characterization of events, Rejiz, as I am sure you well understand, but your concern is duly noted. Most kind of you to be invested in my well-being, but would you really suggest we deny Gargan¡¯s Right of the Banished, his ability to continue to participate in the ongoing rise of the Given.  This has never been done no matter what the crime, and to do it first to the Awakener?  It would seem to be designed to stir the anger of the Gods themselves.  Surely even you would not take that lightly?¡±


    ¡°What Gellen has become, and what you continue to make him, bears no resemblance to the Awakener, Radiz, surely you can see that.  The madness closed around him long ago and his barbaric efforts to extend his life are deeply disturbing and are destroying his soul.  Is that not now painfully obvious?  But it shall be your decision.  Hopefully you and your Musa brethren will make it well.  Gellen has shown his intentions clearly Commander - that is now known by all who need to know it.  He is deeply dangerous and a grave threat from where I stand.  What would he have done had he been able to escape into orbit?  I¡¯m not sure any of us has the slightest idea and that is worrisome.¡±


    ¡°What would have me do Rejiz, a public sacrifice, exposing our collective deception for the entire Given world and beyond to see?  Would that not be worse than the trivial discomfort of his periodic escape attempts, even, and may I dare say especially, for the Rija?  These attempts are all doomed from the start, of course, he would not have cleared orbit under any circumstances. We had multiple locks and enough firepower to kill him 10 times over.¡±


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    ¡°Is that so? One would have thought his ability to even freely fly a stolen transport would have been ¡°doomed from the start¡± as well if we listen to our Illuta friends brag about the implants.  Their certainty always seems to have an uncertain quality to it in the end, wouldn¡¯t you say? I wonder why that is?  Hopefully you will not fall prey to their conceit, Commander.  I shall meditate on that tonight for some period.  Anyway, you have my advice, make of it what you will, and perhaps explain to me the even bigger problem of what happens to Jehz at this juncture.¡±


    ¡°He has been fully debriefed, Rejiz, and by all accounts understands the gravity of the information now in his possession.  He is a true Musa still, the son of his father, and has my complete trust and support.¡± The Rejiz could only stare at the Commander, amazed at the ability of military leadership¡¯s unceasing attempts to project control under conditions that would not possibly allow it.  In fact, the more uncertain the situation seemed, the more absolute their tone became.  Quite amazing thought the Rejiz to himself, perhaps that will be the actual subject for my meditation tonight.  There is something instructive there indeed.


    ¡°Jehz¡¯s decisions on the planet surface were well drawn in our opinion, Rejiz, and he deserves no rebuke.  Quite the opposite, in fact, he balanced the various contradictory elements of this situation in a manner well beyond his experience and rank, especially considering his special circumstances.¡±


    The Rejiz glanced at his guest, trying to gauge his tone.  Feeling the Commander was still defensive and trying too hard to rigidly control the dialogue, he decided to lighten the mood.


    ¡°A result no doubt due to his Rija training, Commander, perhaps we should consider creating a program for all Musa officers to partake in?¡± The Rejiz smiled to ensure the alarm in the Commander¡¯s eyes never rose to true discomfort.


    Seeing the smile, the Commander relaxed and offered a conciliatory response.  ¡°It has proven to be beneficial to Jehz, Rejiz, there is no doubt of that.  I¡¯ll be sure to make a note that all officers that have been kidnapped and encased in an irremovable, indestructible exo be sent your way immediately.¡±


    ¡°Fair enough, Commander, fair enough, now let¡¯s pour a drink and you can finish explaining to me your plans for our prize pupil.¡±

 Chapter 15

    ¡°Captain, we are ready for you now.  Please follow me to the briefing room.¡±  Jehz stood up and straightened his jacket.  The eyes of all the diplomats in the room followed him as he walked, their mild distain for the Musa clear in the dismissive looks shot at him and each other, though they were careful not to do so in an overtly insubordinate way.  Jehz had become used to the treatment. As a military commander on a team dominated by diplomats, he actually expected it.  It was tiresome but he was here to fill a role as a military representative on diplomatic missions, a role he desperately hoped would soon end.  For two years now he had suffered through a never-ending stream of political plays for money, power, and freedom by some of the most desperate politicians in the known worlds.  All would hope to manipulate the presence of the Given, almost none would succeed.  The Given system of governance made it nearly impossible even if a Given diplomat could be somehow bent to their will.


    Jehz had discovered in the many idle moments of this assignment a newfound appreciation for the patience and sacrifice of these Given, their empathy and relentless attempts to engage the protected peoples despite the almost juvenile resistance was nothing short of amazing.  He came to understand the nuance of their work and the value in calming the more uncontrollable impulses of these developing societies.  It required deep insight and understanding.  To a Musa soldier steeped in the physical culture of the battlefield, it was boring - stunningly, excruciatingly so.  If the Rija mind projection technique he had studied for years promised him the ability to withstand even the most brutal torture in the known worlds, it could not have found a better use than the Transition meetings of newly protected peoples.


    How many times over would he have to listen to the same stream of pleadings, threats, recriminations, and reconciliation attempts?  Almost identical politicians with nearly identical strivings but in widely separated solar systems, light years away from each other.  There really was a sameness to the ambition of sentient life Jehz had never considered possible before taking this position.  Painfully predictable, especially when viewed through his role as an observer.  What version of it would we see this time around, he wondered, and could he possibly ever make it to the end of his assignment without losing his mind?  What he would give for even a routine patrol on a safe, settled planet, just to feel the ground under his feet and the sense of possibility and a changing landscape.  One day soon, he thought as he sat down heavily in his chair, trying his hardest to look interested.


    The head diplomat entered the room, his eyes quickly scanning for someone until his gaze stopped on Jehz, which he held for a moment and then began whispering to an assistant.  Very unusual thought Jehz, typically he was not acknowledged or even noticed in these meetings, especially by the senior officials. Jehz chalked it up to his being a grudging reminder of the real business they were in, power and protection, not the set piece psychological manipulation the diplomats were specialists at. Though today perhaps they actually needed him?


    ¡°Ladies, and gentleman, we have ourselves a bit of a situation that has emerged during the Transition meetings on a recently protected planet, Rychon.  The native peoples have raised a bit of a fuss, claiming to have taken the Musa forces and diplomatic staff hostage.  Or perhaps more precisely, claiming they have introduced a unique organism into the system of all Given on the planet that will prevent them from ever leaving, at least alive.  There are no Illuta on the ground but the bio scans show nothing unusual.  We are not sure what to make of it but of course by protocol are taking the threat seriously.  General Alta happened to be nearby on another mission and is en route with a science team and all the military might of the Morta at his disposal.  With all due respect to our Musa comrade, we would hope that level of intervention will not be necessary in this case.  As a team experienced in the ups and downs of the Transition, it seems clear to us the Rychii are panicking, having very little prior contact with outside worlds.  We should actively take the lead in this situation and defuse though we will need to move quickly to avoid the risk of any possible¡­escalation.¡±


    ¡°What are they demanding?¡± asked one of the junior diplomats. ¡°Is there any accommodation for us there?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid not ¨C their request is bold.  That we leave the planet immediately, leaving all ships and equipment behind - so that they might retain and study our tech for themselves no doubt.  They would have all Given on the ground embark on one of their cargo transports, accompanied by a local scientist of some kind who can evidently create a cure while in the air.  After doing so, the scientist will leave on an escape pod and we will be free to go on our way. Or so they say.  I will let Lylez here brief you on culture, technology, and protocols so we may then begin the strategy sessions.¡±


    ¡°Thank you sir.  Please look at your screen, the files should be incoming now.  The Rychii are a highly militarized culture born out of a long history of deep internal conflicts, many lasting hundreds of years.  The current peace, apparently surviving a century or more now appears based around highly stylized ritual combat sports.  Enormous, elaborate festivals incorporating these contests are hosted by the various factions, some lasting for weeks, and they serve to diffuse the inevitable tension between the cultures.  Surprisingly with the long-held peace, nearly all power, except for the highest ruler, is held by military officials.  Culturally, the Rychii appear to prize discipline and order above all else and have an outsize sense of honor.  It is tellingly a major part of the closing festivals that the visitors celebrate the losing factions, elaborately singing their praises almost at the expense of their own.  They are something to behold, quite striking in tone.¡±


    ¡°Their diplomatic style on initial review appears unrefined and without nuance for the most part.   The military culture seems to have stunted their development in this area and the lack of surrounding planet systems has left them without many partners to work with.  By all accounts the early Transition meetings were proceeding well or at least typically with bouts of insolence giving way to a grudging respect for the Given power and the strength of our message.  Where it all went wrong has been difficult for the ground team to identify and explain, but clearly at some point in the meetings it did and the conversations evolved from general frustrations to very specific threats against our people in the form of this biological entity.¡±


    ¡°The technology on Rychon is level 5 on the Riches scale with modest weapons systems and limited, non-warp space travel.  Keep that in mind in all conversations, they are unlikely to understand or be entirely comfortable with high-level tech. Stay at level 7 and below in all offer development.  There are no technological outliers that we have been made aware of, nothing our Illuta comrades would like to get their hands on so our desire for this planet would appear to be mostly strategic.  Those are the high-level details, there is more in the files being forwarded to your screens.  Any questions? No? Sir, back to you then.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Lylez.  We¡¯ll be lifting off shortly and should be in orbit around Rychon in two hours or so.  Before we break into our strategy teams, I¡¯d like to get some ideas from our leads on what our general approach should be.  Ulyz?¡±


    ¡°Well sir, to put it simply, we desperately need an accurate assessment of this bio threat.  If we can¡¯t make any quick progress on the ground, we need to try and get some tissue samples to the Illuta team waiting on the Morta by any means necessary and figure out what is really going on.  Since it seems quite likely this is a hoax of some kind, the sooner we can confirm it the sooner we can move on to the real business at hand.  Any strategic approach forward entirely depends on that confirmation.¡±


    The head diplomat furrowed his brow slightly. ¡°Does it though Ulyz? That seems perhaps a little narrowly focused?  Is there not a solution worth pursuing that is valuable regardless of the veracity of the bio threat?  What if we find out the danger is real or the truth difficult to resolve? Don¡¯t we need a simultaneous approach to address those possibilities given how quickly critical it could become? The head diplomat eyed his number one with impatience, clearly expecting a different, more complex approach.  The look in Ulyz¡¯s eyes suggested he registered the disapproval and he tried to recover.


    ¡°Of course, sir. Frankly that possibility seems remote given the Rychii tech level based on our initial studies but we need to be thorough I suppose.  Perhaps in that case we need to consider a more organic approach sir.  I would guess a bio element this out of line with their tech level would be a natural phenomenon, perhaps trained by their science but unlikely to be created by it.  That means there is almost surely cultural knowledge about it spread throughout the populace.  We need to track down healers, historians, anyone who might be able to extract any insight from.  In the meantime, we need a slow reengagement of their diplomatic force.  A complete linguistic breakdown of the past talks needs to occur.  There was a major misstep there somewhere.  We need to find it, process the cultural context, and avoid a repeat performance. This is likely to be resource intensive and time-consuming sir but perhaps worth the effort given the possibilities.¡±


    ¡°Interesting.  Logical, predictable, but sound.  And if we find it is not true?¡±


    ¡°In that case, we may need to shift our focus to the military contacts.  Our studies suggest for that scenario it was likely their influence that materialized the threat.  We need to find out why.  Is it just another juvenile attempt to scare us off or the sign of a deeper play that is still developing?¡±


    ¡°There may be something there, Ulyz, but how do we plan to do that?  We¡¯ve been actively shielded from all military contacts since the first meetings despite numerous entreaties on our part.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps our Musa brother here could develop a military angle that could result in some engagement?¡± Ulyz glanced at Jehz, trying hard to avoid expressing the distaste he had for that approach but realizing, as his boss had done, the obvious potential of it in this culture and context.


    ¡°My thoughts exactly, Ulyz, and a pleasant reminder to all of why we insist on a mix of disciplines in our Transition units.  It may not be natural to us, but Liddo teams must follow the optimal solution to the problem, wherever that might lie, without ego or jealousy.  Our Musa friend might help us reach the end of this fortunate situation, or not, but this is the right call.  He is with us for a reason and I might remind us all he is highly accomplished in his field with impeccable credentials, and we should feel honored by his Musa brothers that they have sent him to us.¡±  The head diplomat nodded respectfully toward his number one.  ¡°Your open-mindedness is appreciated, Ulyz.¡±


    Jehz sat in amazement at the way the head diplomat had steered his top advisor into recommending a lead Musa role in the talks despite the likely discomfort with it and without more openly challenging him as would have been the case had this been a Musa strategy session.  There was something masterful in the way it had been handled allowing both parties to claim success in the exchange.  Just when he thought the Liddo really had nothing to teach him, Jehz realized there might be a deeper power to their methods than he thought.  After all, was it not the Rija who held sway over all the Given, including the Musa and they surely shared more in common with the Liddo than his own kiln.


    ¡°So let¡¯s divide the teams into three prongs, one team to focus on the safety and medical sample of the Given, four teams to begin data gathering and intelligence studies, and the final group to work with Jehz on developing a military connection.  Let¡¯s get right to work, time feels very short, my friends.¡±


    In the shuffle of activity that followed as the teams readied themselves for the strategy sessions, Ulyz and his aides quietly made their way over to Jehz who was already studying his files for an angle that could be used to connect to the Rychii military.


    ¡°Captain, when you are ready, I would like to offer you my private meeting space and full staff resources if they might be of use.  I know your potential contributions have not been¡­fully appreciated or realized up to now, but rest assured your place on this team is fully accepted and understood by the Liddo.  Perhaps at times it may appear otherwise but we simply want to feel our role in the greater Given mission is understood.  Sometimes I admit we are defensive and overreach ourselves a bit in that regard.  Not to excuse but there some historical reasons why that is so. But our preference for internal methods does not preclude our appreciation of other techniques, and my personal feeling is we need a tempered military approach to this solution. Maybe on the battlefield or maybe at the negotiating table, but we do need it.  Please let us focus however on bringing the best of both of our kilns together on this effort so that we might avoid the sort of sizable military engagement that could undermine our chances at a long-term peace with the Rychii.  They don¡¯t seem the sort to forget easily ¨C and neither of us needs this kind of setback on our records I would think?¡±


    Jehz was taken aback by the blunt honesty and lack of guile in Ulyz. Once again had the Liddo surprised him with a greater depth of understanding and character than he had expected and again he found himself reevaluating his perception of their culture.  They were perhaps not the only ones in this affair who had underestimated another kiln. ¡°Thank you Ulyz, your openness and offer of assistance is greatly appreciated.  I say if you are ready, let¡¯s proceed to your meeting rooms and see if we can¡¯t use our newfound partnership to help devise a way to return our brothers and sisters home to us.¡±


    Shortly after they took their seats and Jehz began describing his pitch to share modestly advanced Musa strategy and training secrets with the Rychii generals rather than technology as a way to build comradery, the comm crackled to life. ¡°Looks like we have a pod leaving the atmosphere, one soldier aboard.  The bio signature says he is one of ours.  No pursuit in sight.¡±


    Jehz turned to Ulyz, ¡°What do you make of it, I thought they ran pretty tight security down there?¡±


    ¡°They do, Jehz believe me.  I think you¡¯d be impressed.  What they lack in tech, they seem to make up with their culture and commitment.  If half of their war stories are true this is a deeply traumatized culture, much like ours, though their wounds are self-inflicted.  And just like ours, their resolve to emerge from that trauma stronger than before has tempered their commitment and discipline.  I really doubt he got out on his own.¡±


    ¡°Agreed - they must have let him go.  But why?  To prove the deadly nature of the bio threat?¡±


    ¡°Hard to say, maybe they are trying to spread it aboard the Morta.  I would assume the escaped soldier is looking at a lengthy quarantine?¡±


    ¡°Standard protocol but for how long depends on the medeval, and they have the facilities needed on the Morta to study him while he is under wraps so maybe we can get some of the answers we were looking for sooner than we thought.  I¡¯ll contact the General, try to get some intel, and begin the coordination.¡±


    Jehz headed for a secure room and tried to raise his father on his comm. The General picked up immediately, ¡°Captain, good to hear from you.  Was this little package that just arrived a gift from my Liddo friends?  Are their slippery ways loosening the Rychii grip already?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid not General, and I would be very suspicious of that pod.  The consensus here is whoever is aboard was released on purpose and either or both could be booby-trapped.¡±


    ¡°Well, if that¡¯s true, they made a good show of it.  According to Sgt Iyez, our dedicated runner and a highly decorated hand to hand combatant by the way, he was able to hide a biocracker outside one of the holding tents during the intake, before they were officially declared as hostages.  Two days later as they were moving him back through, he had a chance to retrieve it.  Took three of their soldiers down fighting on his way to the escape pod if his story and internal bio scanners are to be believed.  Seems like a long, long way to go on the part of Rychii..and for what?  A clumsy ploy to infect the Morta?  We have three levels of cleanse protocols beyond anything their science could even imagine that would take down any bio agents they could develop.  We won¡¯t cut corners on this Jehz, but they would seem to have almost no shot at this kind of incursion and must know it.  Moreover, don¡¯t they seem more like the ¡°smack you in the mouth¡± types not likely to run a side game this early in the negotiations?  What do your Liddo friends have to say about the motivation here?¡±


    ¡°They are suspicious General.  We may not have the clear picture of their culture we imagine, even after all this time negotiating.  Perhaps the military command has more control than we thought and this entire process has been some elaborate feint.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps, but do we have any proof? Intercepted comms, leaked confidences, anything?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t sir, this just seems out of line to everyone on the Liddo team that has had contact with the Rychii.  They are nothing if not precise.  Their tech is low but their culture/commitment level would seem to rival even our own.  So I¡¯m told anyway.¡±


    ¡°Told by the Liddo, who would know exactly what about military culture, Captain?¡±


    ¡°Understood, General, but they do have deep cultural contacts and would seem to have a context for this.¡±


    ¡°All right, we will take extra precautions and double check the triple checking?¡±


    ¡°That seems prudent, sir.¡±


    ¡°The Illuta will be working through the night so we should have something for you in the morning at the briefing scheduled with Liddo leadership.  I assume you will be there?  I hear you have been given a starring role in this one?¡±


    ¡°I¡®ve been given a role, sir, which I think has caused a dozen Liddo Gods to roll over in their graves.¡± Jehz smiled, happy to be bantering with another Musa he could really relax with, and even better his father, for the first time in a while.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure it has. You show those arrogant sons of bitches they aren¡¯t the only ones who can problem solve. Over and out.¡±


    ***


    The next morning as Jehz was readying himself for the morning brief, rehearsing his pitch to trade strategy for access with the Rychii military, his comm came to life.


    ¡°Good morning, Captain,¡± said Ulyz, ¡°please come to the briefing room immediately.  The General has contacted us and is proposing a very disturbing plan.¡±


    I¡¯m sure he is, thought Jehz.  He should have known the General wouldn¡¯t wait long after the escaped soldier was cleared by his medeval to launch a response. ¡°On my way¡±, said Jehz and headed out, trying to contain his frustration at his father¡¯s brashness.


    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    As Jehz entered the room, he could see Dorz engaged in emotional discussion, almost surely with his father.  Ulyz sat close by with pained body language and a nauseous look on his face.  The head diplomat seemed relieved to see him and gestured in an animated fashion for Jehz to come over to join them.


    ¡°Captain, please explain to the General if you would, the protocol on military engagement in this scenario.¡±


    ¡°C¡¯mon Dorz¡±, said the General, ¡°We all know full well what the protocol says.  What does it say about a simple rescue mission to save a squad of soldiers before they are captured by a military force that has been overtly threatening us with death?  This is a simple snatch and run, Dorz, my soldiers will be back before you or the Rychii know it.  We¡¯re not even sure at this point if the Rychii realize this group is there but it won¡¯t take them long if they start focusing any scans in that area.  Our teams were leading a deep wilderness bio exploration for the Illuta, some kind of unique compound search, you know how they are, and I think the Rychii has lost track of them for now.  They never sent anybody even near their last known location.  We can launch right away, their sensors will never see us coming and we¡¯ll be back home with 50 less soldiers to worry about in a few hours.¡±


    ¡°The ranking Illuta is signing off on this then, our escaped soldier has been medically cleared?¡± asked Dorz.


    ¡°I¡¯m confident he will. They are finding no sign of infection of any kind; all cell parameters are well within normal.  He¡¯s fine according to them with almost no chance of a change based on their probability studies.  We are not talking about setting him free, by the way, he¡¯ll be in the full three days, but we have a chance here to maybe save a few lives and it seems like we should take it.  Looks pretty low risk.¡±


    Jehz knew the love the General felt for his soldiers was real, but he couldn¡¯t help wonder if there was more at play here.  Was this also going to be a recon mission to help with planning should a full-scale invasion become necessary?  The fifty soldiers might be better off digging in and waiting this out while the situation settled.  In the end, it might also be helpful to have this kind of resource on the ground if they could remain free should things take a turn for the worse with the Rychii.  The General must have already considered this, so why wasn¡¯t he mentioning it here?  While he didn¡¯t especially want to contradict the General, he knew his role was to act on behalf of the Liddo while he was embedded.  He also knew the General wouldn¡¯t like it, but he felt obligated to speak up.


    ¡°But with all due respect, General, low risk is not no risk, and shouldn¡¯t we consider waiting for the situation to settle a bit before we jump in?¡±


    The General stared at Jehz with a blank, mildly irritated expression, but he seemed to understand Jehz¡¯s place on the team and motivation.  He slowly sat back in his chair, staring around the room, making them all wait for his response.


    ¡°Well, Captain, we all know there is no such thing as a no risk situation, but based on the Illuta input and low risk of detection, it seems like bringing our brothers and sisters home is the right thing to do.  Do you disagree?  Would this compromise your ongoing negotiations in some way?¡±  The General knew full well the Liddo were attempting to rekindle negotiations but were struggling to gain any real traction.


    ¡°I don¡¯t disagree, General, just wonder about the timing.  This is a very fluid situation that could change quickly.¡±


    ¡°Which could easily turn against us. It sounds like you are making my case for me.¡±


    Jehz could tell the General was already committed and other than a vague gut sense this was a premature move, he could not think of a legitimate tactical reason to protest.  He turned to Dorz and shrugged.  Dorz seemed to understand the signal and frowned, his shoulders slumping.


    ¡°Proceed if you must General, but please proceed cautiously, we are still in a very delicate phase and¡­¡±


    ¡°Understood, Dorz,¡± the General interrupted, ¡°the Liddo are always involved in delicate work. We¡¯ll do our best.  General out.¡±


    A wave of quiet drifted over the room, and the Liddo exchanged glances with each other, not wanting to insult their Musa teammate, but clearly frustrated by the effort to save the entire Given contingent being preempted by the General¡¯s side mission.


    ¡°These things happen, team,¡± said Dorz, ¡°There is no reason to think the rescue will undermine our larger efforts so please return to your planning.  We have successfully worked around much bigger obstacles in the past.¡±  Jehz slowly drifted back toward Ulyz¡¯s meeting room avoiding Dorz¡¯s glance on his way out.  Despite his understanding of Musa culture and the deep commitment the General had to his soldiers given the risks they faced, he somehow still felt embarrassed at the way the Liddo¡¯s efforts had been stepped over.  And he understood for the first time why the Liddo had kept him at arm¡¯s length during his assignment.


    The following morning, like the morning before, Jehz comm sprang to life early and again it was Dorz. ¡°Right away, please.¡± No greeting, but a nearly pleading tone had crept into Dorz¡¯s voice.  What could have gone wrong, thought Jehz as he rushed out the door.  What had the General done? Jehz entered the briefing room and the stress of disaster etched on the faces of the Liddo startled him.  The General was on the main screen, composed but more shaken than he could ever remember seeing him.  He wasn¡¯t sure which was worse, the mortal fear on the faces of those who had never tasted death at close hand or the tone of anger and sorrow touching the face of one who had seen far too much of it.


    ¡°What¡¯s happened, General?¡± Jehz blurted out.


    ¡°They tricked us, Jehz, killing fifty of our best soldiers in an underhanded cowardly move.  For no goddamn reason.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know for sure yet who did it, General.¡± said Dorz quickly.


    ¡°Please, Dorz, don¡¯t play that Liddo obfuscating game with me now.  The cell studies were way out of normal for all those dead and the air samples show you can¡¯t take a breath on that planet without being infected. We know that now, don¡¯t we? They sent Iyez back clean somehow just to try and draw us to the surface.  They must have seen our rescue ship come and go if they were watching that closely and knew what would happen when we left the atmosphere.  Exactly what they had threatened us with and they sat there and watched it happen.  No warning at all, knowing our soldiers would die an excruciating death with no chance to defend themselves.  Savages.  Absolute savages and cowards.¡±


    ¡°General, please, for my benefit, start at the beginning. I need to understand what happened,¡± said Jehz.


    ¡°There is not much to tell Captain.  The mission went smoothly, exactly as planned.  All soldiers were recovered with no complication and no detection as far as we could tell.  Shortly after they cleared the atmosphere though, all on board started getting intensely sick ¨C difficulty breathing, internal hemorrhaging.  Within fifteen minutes, they were lost.  The shuttle was recovered and we are studying the situation now but it looks like a setup since Iyez¡¯s bio profile wasn¡¯t like any we have from Given who are down on the planet, and neither match the dead on the ship.  The Illuta are focusing on a number of organisms now that have been identified in the cell studies and are hopeful they will develop a cure but they have a long way to go.  The Rychii did this, Jehz.  I don¡¯t know how exactly or why, but those bastards are behind this overt act of war and they are going to pay a dear price.  I will have my planners working around the clock but it shouldn¡¯t be hard to beat down those back woods primitives.  We¡¯ll send in fully sealed teams, taking their one little virus trick away from them and end this ridiculous world if they don¡¯t get in line immediately.¡±


    ¡°I understand your feeling, General, I do, but we also have thousands of Liddo staff on the ground that were helping with the transition as well as a large contingent of Musa.  The Rychii clearly picked this timing on purpose to maximize the hostage numbers. We have to think this through.  They may have more traps waiting for us.¡±


    ¡°Have we had any contact with their leadership, anyone we can contact for an explanation?  They must answer for this, Dorz, you know that.¡±


    ¡°Of course I do, but I also have a world to bring into the fold and protect here, General, that mission hasn¡¯t changed unless you¡¯ve heard otherwise.¡±


    ¡°The mission is still on, Dorz, but you know letting this kind of aggression pass for any period is the worst kind of signal.  It only serves to embolden their lesser instincts which will not end well for anyone.  We¡¯ve seen this time and time again with this culture type.¡±


    ¡°Agreed General but we need to try and understand what is happening in the Rychii government before we make any moves. That is very hard right now as the brothers and sisters who¡¯ve been working with them are walled off and their limited contacts hard to reach.  We are using every angle we can.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not doubting you Dorz, but I¡¯m also not going to lie to you.  We need an explanation on this quickly or the Musa will use all the influence at our disposal to advance the military response and we¡¯ll have every justification for doing so.  You can work your Liddo magic for a while but time is running out.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll do our best, General, Dorz out.¡± Dorz turned away from his screen and for once could not find the words to address his staff.  An already difficult task had been made nearly impossible with the additional military pressure from the General.  Who had asked him to push so hard for the rescue mission?  Yes, it seemed safe but they¡¯d both been doing this long enough to know the universe was full of surprises.  The General¡¯s son, Jehz, sitting right in front of him was clear proof of that.  Dorz had been reaching out to the Rychii regularly since their arrival with no response and he wasn¡¯t sure what else he could do.  He had adequate planning in place but needed engagement with the Rychii to have even have a chance at progress.  Dorz turned to Ulyz and Jehz, not really expecting much, and asked, ¡°Any ideas?¡±


    Jehz and Ulyz looked at each other and Ulyz nodded for Jehz to lead the discussion ¡°Sir, Ulyz and I have been discussing the possibility of sharing some modest military training secrets with the Rychii as a way to begin an engagement.  Our assumption is that strengthening the Rychii culture is more important to them than any kind of weaponry and if we can impress them with our commitment to developing soldiers and the advantage that it gives us, perhaps we can find some common ground.  Without giving away too much of course.¡±


    ¡°Intriguing¡±, said Dorz, nodding. ¡°Continue, please.¡±


    ¡°Well, we obviously need to adjust our plan for the new circumstances, so perhaps we need to be frank with them about the possibility of an invasion while also dangling some kind of deal.  An offer for me to join them on the planet surface might show good will without sacrificing anything since it is unlikely I could be affected by the virus and it might even help us tactically to have me on the ground.¡±


    ¡°It could work,¡± said Dorz, ¡°but we can¡¯t raise them or get any response at all.  We¡¯ve been trying for hours.¡±


    ¡°Then maybe we should let the General do the work for us.  Perhaps if we let the Morta jam and override their broadcast frequencies with a warning message from the General, it may open the door for us. We just need him to use a more diplomatic tone.  Not his strength but hopefully he¡¯ll realize there are many lives at stake.¡±


    The General was contacted and though still fuming about the attack, agreed to send the message and even use some compromise wording the Liddo had suggested to moderate the tone of his draft.  He seemed happy to be back in control and convinced a show of strength, even a minor one displaying the technical power of the Morta would get through to the Rychii.


    At the appointed hour, Jehz, Ulyz and the rest of the Liddo watched as the Morta hijacked all the broadcast frequencies and the General delivered his message.  The speech was short and the General stuck to the approved script, much to the relief of all.  It was more a call to the negotiating table than a military threat but the option of an invasion was clearly suggested.  Minutes after the Morta released the frequencies, a hail came in from the surface.


    ¡°Dorz, this is Vice Premier Eellang, the lead negotiator for Premier Loitru.  Please forgive my directness, but does the General speak for all your people, or may I ask more precisely, is he in charge of your operation on Rychii?  Should we be readying ourselves for war?¡±


    ¡°Greetings Vice Premier. I, not the General, am the ranking Given official on this mission and am optimistic that together we can develop an understanding acceptable to both sides that will allow us to avoid any unnecessary engagement.  The General was chosen to deliver the message to your people as he was the commander that sustained the casualties and to make clear the leading role the military have in shaping Given policy.  So while I am in command, the military factions may be able to influence my direct superior to pursue a path more aligned with their specialty, you might say, should our negotiations be unsuccessful or your provocations continue.¡±


    ¡°Beginning your negotiations with thinly veiled threats, Dorz?  Is that what they teach in Given diplomat schools?  I guess when you are carrying the biggest gun in this part of the galaxy, you get used to not having to try that hard to work things out.¡±


    ¡°That is not our thinking at all Vice Premier, but the unprovoked assassination of fifty of our soldiers has a way of sidelining diplomacy, surely you must understand that?¡±


    ¡°So you would consider violating our airspace with military craft unprovoked?  In addition, there were multiple flyovers of military installations and numerous ground scans outside the rescue zone detected during your excursion.  This was more than a simple retrieval, Dorz, would you deny it?¡±


    ¡°I can assure you it was approved as a rescue mission only, Vice Premier, perhaps there are legitimate reasons for these events or perhaps your signals are being misinterpreted.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± said the Vice Premier slowly, ¡°and perhaps the Given have only come to Rychii to sample the cuisine?  Let¡¯s dispense with the dance, Dorz, and both speak plainly if you don¡¯t mind.  Your people, who would call themselves the Given of all things, come to our planet and treat us like children, placing us here, directing us there, demanding we sit still all the while pretending we are choosing all these things ourselves.  It is both deeply disrespectful and deeply dishonest.  We may not have your tech, but we have something you don¡¯t, Dorz, the Rychii spirit, hardened by fire and molten metal, more than capable of hurting even the mighty Given.¡±


    ¡°It was never our intention to insult your people, Vice Premier, and we must admit to being extremely confused by your actions as we thought the talks were progressing well.  It was to us a conversation among equals. Our very mission at its heart is meant to protect and preserve cultures like yours.  Many independent worlds, strong on their own, have been overwhelmed by the dark partnerships that exist throughout the galaxy.  We, and only we, are capable of stopping that and allowing the Rychii to thrive as they were meant to.¡±


    ¡°So you say, Dorz, but the spirit of the engagement seemed to suggest a very different intent.¡±


    Jehz felt instinctively it was the time for him to jump in and address the Vice Premier from a military perspective and hoped Dorz would not be offended.


    ¡°Honorable Vice Premier, I am Captain Jehz, the senior Musa consultant to the Liddo on this mission.  I wasn¡¯t part of the original engagement team and cannot comment on the tone of those discussions, but I can assure you the Musa have nothing but respect for what you have built on this world. Your culture is formidable, Vice Premier, rivaling our own in its intensity and purpose and the Given are renowned throughout the galaxy for exactly that.  As a military force that has seen a wide variety of cultures and approaches to warfare, we know better than most that tech alone will not achieve your goals for you, no matter how great the advantage. If you don¡¯t have the tenacity, discipline, and teamwork that would have allowed you to succeed without a tech advantage, you will not win with it, not for long anyway.  Tech has a way of inevitably leaking to both sides in a close engagement, blunting its initial effect over time.  It is clear to me both our worlds instructively share this truth and understand that militaries are not for conquest but are the wall of armor that protects our cultures and allows them to develop and mature into what they were meant to be.  We create the safety and calm needed to produce leaders that can show our people the way out of our dark and disturbing pasts and into a bright and limitless future.  The Given and Rychii have so much in common. Where we differ is that you lack the knowledge required to allow your military to quickly and efficiently build on the foundation it has started.  Knowledge that we are fortunate to already have.  With it, and with our help, you will grow into a fighting force that will transform the armored wall with which it protects its people into an impenetrable shield.¡±


    ¡°Even without us, you will figure this out for yourselves. Eventually. I have no doubt of that.  What you have accomplished already makes that very clear.  There is no magic in our methods, no special secrets that time itself would not reveal to you should you continue to develop.  But you may not have the time.  We have seen worlds like yours, with so much potential, crushed, mangled, and destroyed by evil forces beyond what you can imagine.  Please don¡¯t think we exaggerate this risk to take advantage.  The Given ourselves were victims of this type of evil for millennia, saved only by a leader no one could have ever imagined being born.  Had our conquerors even sniffed at the possibility, the flicker that became the torch leading the way out of the darkness would have been extinguished without hardly any effort.  Many others are not so lucky.  We can give you the time you need, give you the benefit of all that we have learned, allow you to reach your goals and build your armor much faster and stronger than you would on your own, ensuring your survival forever.¡±


    ¡°That all sounds very compelling, Captain, and the fact that you show some awareness and respect for our journey is impressive.  The Liddo who came before seemed quite unable or unwilling to do this.  But we have to wonder why you would help in this way, why extend yourselves, thinning your strength, increasing your vulnerability?  It seems to not make sense to us.¡±


    ¡°We have tried it the other way, Vice Premier, who wouldn¡¯t?  We are all concerned first with our brothers and sisters are we not?  The Given are no different in that regard.  But it did not and will not work.  The darker forces spread so much faster, more randomly, seeking only to destroy, taking what they can, moving on when there¡¯s no more to steal. They succeed by appealing to the greed and lower natures that are all too common among minded peoples.  How is it that the greatest and most complex gift in the Universe, our minds, can be so easily turned into forms lower than the animals we think are beneath us? It is one for the priests and philosophers to ponder I suppose.  We only know how evil spreads around the universe like a virus, never staying put in one place for too long, never caring about building something permanent, but always spreading wider.


    We protected ourselves from it for some time but the darkness was surrounding our world like a deadly fog and we knew one day it would close over us.  It is not something we could wait for, not after all we had been through.  We needed friends, or at least allies, to share our knowledge with, thereby extending the protection of both ourselves and the worlds we worked with.  And we succeeded beyond our wildest dreams. Many parts of the universe are completely safe now, thriving. We want to do that with the Rychii as well.  To prove our sincerity and commitment, I will offer to personally come to the surface to begin that process.  But we will not do this for free and we need your cooperation.  Let our people go, restart the negotiations.  Will you try, for the future of the Rychii and their children who, if we work together, will one day spread among the stars, without fear, rulers of their own destiny?¡±


    The Vice Premier smiled, ¡°Are you sure you are military, Captain?  You speak with the practiced and persuasive rhythms of a politician.  Hopefully you do not share their penchant for empty promises and deceit as well.  Indeed, we shall consider it.  You have permission to journey to the Rychii surface and begin talks with more of our leaders to determine if there is any substance behind your soaring promises.  Coordinates and specifics will follow on a secure channel.  I must inquire though, are you not scared of the surface bioagents that claimed the other Given?  You may be stranded here.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you intend to harm me, Vice Premier, and we know a cure is possible since you applied it to one of our soldiers.  I will take my chances.¡±


    ¡°Did we Captain, I¡¯m afraid I have no knowledge of that, but you have shown yourself to be honorable and you have nothing to fear from the Rychii.  We frankly don¡¯t trust your Given comrades but are willing to listen and see where talks lead.  Please ready yourself for the voyage immediately, there is no time to waste.  I fear elements on both sides have little holding back their aggressive natures and those bindings grow more frayed by the minute.  To address that concern on our side, we would like the General to accompany you to the surface.  It seems safer to have him alongside us than commanding that imposing warship circling above.  Would that be a problem?¡±


    ¡°I will have to check with the General, but I would expect not,¡± said Dorz.  ¡°He is as committed to resolving this situation as any of us, though the recent losses of his soldiers have him understandably concerned about the situation on the ground.  I¡¯ll let you know once I¡¯ve had a chance to speak with him.¡±  The Vice Premier disappeared from the screen and Dorz turned to Jehz, ¡°That was quite a speech, Captain, I can understand now more than ever why you were chosen for this assignment.  You took a chance with that tone but it was clearly the right one.  This situation is far from resolved though and please don¡¯t understate the ruthlessness of the Rychii.  They seem willing to go to any length to achieve their aims.  If you¡¯ve read their histories, they are quite a frightening bunch. Cold to the core and as vicious as a wild Pomeran when they are feeling wronged.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve read enough of them to know what I am dealing with, Dorz, but they have met their match with the Given.  Musa must always adapt and fight the mission in the way their heart tells them will be the right path, even if that is not the conventional way.  This seems likely to be one where fighting may not be the clearest and easiest path to victory but if we must, you know we will, and we will win. Either way, we will win.¡±


    ¡°And the General, Jehz, do you think he will go and if he does, can we count on him as an asset?¡±


    ¡°He will, if for no other reason than to size up their military leadership for a potential upcoming battle.  He¡¯s been through this sort of thing before, Dorz, just as you have.  The loss of the soldiers is always hard and the dishonor the Rychii has displayed has ensured he¡¯ll find a way to get his revenge at some point down the road.  For now though, he¡¯ll be a professional and not compromise the mission.  Should the situation deteriorate, that status could change quickly so please do your best to acquire any information that could help us.¡±

 Chapter 16

    General Wellku of the Rychii leaned into the shadowy figure standing at the edge of the room.  ¡°The Premier will give in to these ruthless thieves, my friend.  I can feel it.  Even now his resolve weakens and the future of the Rychii begins to look like those of the slave worlds of Ryooku.  How could any of them actually believe the Given?  Ships as big as a moon, the power to turn off every communicator on the planet, and who knows what else?  But they would come to help us? Educate us? And now this military whatever he is would even tribute us?  They have something in mind but ¡°helping¡± is not on the list I don¡¯t think. But we are far from defeated. What we lack in weaponry, we¡¯ll need to make up in guile and ruthlessness.  Anything less would be to hand our world, our legacy and our future to a new master and none of us plan on doing that just yet. We don¡¯t need to beat them, just drive them back, loosen their grip, make them feel we are not worth the trouble. Have we figured out a way to start up their ships?¡±


    ¡°Not quite, but I have all my best engineers working on it.  These are complex systems, centuries beyond anything we have seen before, but we¡¯ve been studying the device retrieved from the one sent back and know how he used it.  A biocracker is the term we¡¯ve heard being thrown around by the prisoners. My chief thinks we may be able to leverage this against them.¡±


    ¡°Very good, but we are running out of time.  The Given will be on the surface in hours and we need to be ready.  As soon as the General meets with his soldiers, the plan has to be set in motion.  Do you have everything you require?¡±


    ¡°We do, but you would still risk letting the General address the prisoners, Wellku?  It could be the last move we make as free men since you must know the General will be seeking blood payback for the insult of losing his soldiers.  If he somehow acquires any inside information, it won¡¯t be long before he comes for you.¡±


    Wellku smiled. ¡°That¡¯s exactly what we want, my friend.  By doing so, the General will set in motion a chain of events that has been meticulously planned for months and his anger and need for revenge will be his undoing.  It may not happen the way you are expecting but the Given will regret their arrogance and insults.¡±


    ***


    Jehz and the General arrived on the surface of Rychii with high expectations that they could build on the momentum created by the recent conversation with the Vice Premier.  The General put their progress down to the show of force and Jehz to his speech with the not-so-subtle compliments, but both saw an opening for possible success with the Rychii had been created.  Should the talks proceed productively, they could be at the forefront of solving a very difficult diplomatic situation without further loss of life and claim a significant professional achievement.  An achievement that would not be taken lightly when evaluations were done and promotions were being handed out. The Given hierarchy did not have time for resistant planets, they were an incredible resource waste, and managing thousands of planets was a difficult task for a single people.  Those that could make this sort of complication disappear were prized and revered.


    To smooth things over and save the hundreds of Given still under Rychii control would require walking a fine line of projecting strength while providing the Rychii with the deference and praise they seemed to desire so deeply.  The early rounds of talks went well.  While involving mostly midlevel diplomatic types, they seemed responsive to Jehz¡¯s consistent message of safety and sharing mixed with a focus on the Rychii strength and resiliency.  He found stressing the similarities between the Given and Rychii to be especially well received.  The General remained somewhat detached, ceding control to Jehz, clearly focused on strategy as he asked to be escorted around while projecting the airs of a tottering elder statesmen who sincerely wanted nothing more than to understand his host¡¯s culture and history as much as possible.  His plan was to project goodwill and passively accumulate the political benefits of progress while his gun hand lay comfortably on the trigger, waiting for the situation to deteriorate.  Either way, the General planned to come out of this mess better than when he came in.


    Dorz¡¯s staff were allowed to join them on the planet surface after a couple days.  Short trips in sealed suits were all that was allowed but it seemed to be enough to begin breaking down the barriers that had quickly gone up when talks had destabilized on the earlier mission. Nearly all the Liddo staff felt real progress was being made and it wouldn¡¯t be long before their captive brothers and sisters were returned to them and they were making the journey home, another successful protection established.  In the end, it seemed destined to go down as one of their more curious and confusing ventures with the banishment and kidnapping but nearly all missions were strange in their own way.


    Isolated planet cultures were deeply idiosyncratic even to galaxy bounding travelers like the Given and foreign customs and traditions were notoriously difficult to assimilate in the brief time they had on planet. Throw in the added aspect of how their appearing suddenly in the sky and ¡°offering¡± their protection often forced out additional oddities and loosened poorly patched societal cracks and it was a wonder these situations held together at all.  Oftentimes the only reason they did was the Liddo willingness to be cast in the role of peacemaker and mediator before their diplomatic duties were discharged.  It was a path the senior Liddo had traveled many times though none could envision the dark turn the event of Rychii were about to take.


    After a week of regular though minor diplomatic victories, the General was finally granted the request, originally suggested by a Wellku agent, to address the three hundred soldiers being held at one of the facilities nearby.  He had been tempted by the opportunity since arriving, knowing it would be an excellent way to both pick up the morale of the troops and develop a potential rescue plan should one be required.  The General hid his eagerness well and modestly thanked his hosts for the offer. He then quickly set about arming himself with every piece of surveillance tech he thought could be safely smuggled in.


    Arriving at the facility, the General noticed immediately the lack of heavy security in areas other than the outer fence.  His soldiers roamed freely, mixing with Rychii guards, building their relationships and formulating their resistance exactly as they were trained to do.  The Rychii response was more curious.  Were they allowing this kind of contact with their soldiers on purpose, aware of how the Given would try to exploit the situation as prisoners and training them to resist or counter measure? Were they perhaps unaware?  The Rychii had little experience with imprisoning enemy soldiers, their planet being largely isolated and the mostly shared culture of their history seeming to suggest an almost familial handling of captured soldiers was expected.  Or were they somehow steps ahead, playing the backwater cousin while slyly extracting all the intelligence they could to support some greater initiative.  There seemed to be a deeper truth to the Rychii the Given were struggling to perceive, their motivations remaining murky and not easily categorized among the common goals typical of protected people.  The General had come to respect them for their uniqueness and the cultural identity that played such a strong role in defining it.  Jehz was clever for recognizing the similarities between the cultures and stressing it during the negotiation discussion. The Rychii were indeed very much like the Given and he knew they would all need to be careful in thinking the situation was contained or they might end up facing their own version of the Awakening.  There was a heavy air of danger about these Rychii that was deeply unsettling.


    When the time came, the General strode onto the stage and delivered a strong message of hope, strength, and sacrifice to his soldiers. He was reassured by their high morale and resilience.  Meeting with his senior officers, he knew they were unaware of the tragedy aboard the transport and decided not to tell them, not wanting to jeopardize the delicate peace with details of the Rychii deception.


    Later that evening, as the General settled into bed, relieved and hopeful, a gloved hand engaged a biocracker and entered the cockpit of a Given transport stored in the hangar near the Given prison visited by the General earlier that day.  As the transport lifted off, a Rychii soldier struggled to strap a captive Given prisoner into a jump seat.  ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± the Given soldier demanded. ¡°It will serve nothing but to bring the force of the Given army to bear on your planet and mark the moment your destruction was guaranteed.  ¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be so sure of our demise, invader. Maybe it will instead be the day you and your brothers and sisters and your precious General are exposed as the murderous lunatics that you are.  It is what you Given worship so dearly is it not, the death and destruction of all you come across?  You shall get your fill then today, invader, and then some.¡±


    The Rychii maneuvered the ship through a dead zone in the surveillance field created by Wellku¡¯s agent and opened fire on the Given barracks.  The captive Given soldier looked on in terror as the buildings exploded and his fellow soldiers ran screaming from the barracks with fire consuming them.  For their last act, the Rychii soldier piloting the ship stood up and calmly killed his comrade with a stolen Given weapon.  He then freed the Given soldier, put restraints on his own wrists, and turned the weapon on himself.  The Given prisoner instinctively ran to the pilot¡¯s seat, not knowing what to do and scrambled to get the ship under control.  After stabilizing the ship, it suddenly dawned on the Given solder what this would look like should he be recaptured.  Panicking, he fired up the engines but before he could attempt an escape, he was surrounded by Rychii fighters and forced to the ground under a barrage of anti-aircraft fire.


    ***


    Rumors of the attack spread quickly through the camp and surrounding communities and the possibility that a Given soldier had gone berserk and killed hundreds of his own brothers and sisters was met with horror and disbelief by locals and prisoners alike.  General Wellku monitored the spread of the news carefully from a control room behind his main office and when he felt the reaction had reached an acceptably concerned pitch and reach, he turned to his assistant and nodded.  ¡°Notify the Vice Premier, Major.  We are bringing the General in for a briefing.¡±  Wellku felt surprisingly calm given what was at stake and the delicate nature of his plan.  The Gods are on our side against these filthy intruders who would seek to destroy our way of life, Wellku thought to himself.  He could feel it in his bones, knew in his heart it was true, and he smiled a deep weary smile.  Who would have thought the humiliation of the Given arrival would turn into the opportunity of a lifetime.


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    All will know I was the one who defeated the mighty Given. Amid the desperation and hand wringing, only Wellku had a plan that could succeed in turning them away.  He was the one who could protect the Rychii, the one who should lead the Rychii forward.  Finally, all would see it.  They would have to.  Civillian control of the Rychii government had been a tragic mistake, one that had almost lost them everything.  That could now be made clear and he, Wellku, was the one who could correct it all, reclaim the lost glory and might of the Rychii military and with that the pride they had all lost when the gun and sword had been traded for the ball and stick of the games.


    Wellku could hear the commotion in the outer hall, knew the General had arrived and he sat and listened.  He could hear the anger rising in the General¡¯s voice, knew the time would soon be here when the General would be primed for what was coming next. Wellku could barely contain his anticipation, but he forced himself to sit and wait as the General roared with both the insult of the day¡¯s events and being ordered to wait for his audience.


    Finally Wellku rose to meet the General, the mighty commander who feigned incompetence while trying to discover the inner workings of the Rychii defense.  The General might have fooled the politicians but not his spies, thought Wellku.  This man was a war machine through and through.  He could see it even if no one else could.  But I am one step ahead, thought Wellku, always one step ahead.


    ¡°General, welcome,¡± said Wellku, sweeping his arm toward the large chair in front of his desk.  ¡°I wish we could have met under better circumstances, but today is a sad day for all of us.¡±


    ¡°I assume this is about the security failure at the prison camp?¡± asked the General, ¡°and if so why wasn¡¯t I called through official channels?  This is a delicate operation, General Wellku and I may not be the right man if you are looking for someone to intimidate or a sympathetic partner in concocting some out of band scheme.¡± He stared coldly at Wellku, looking for a sign he had knowledge of the kidnapping and attacks.  ¡°You might be better served working with our Liddo partners on whatever you have in mind.¡±


    ¡°Oh I think you are the right man, General, quite sure of it. Please let me share what we know so far.  Tonight at 0807, a Given soldier, one of yours, escaped from Camp Alpha, took two Rychii hostages and stole a Given transport.  His movements were quickly identified by our defense team onsite and his escape routes blocked but he then did a most unusual thing, something quite unexpected.  He reversed course and proceeded to open fire on the Given barracks, his own people.  Your people.  Most unpleasant.  I¡¯m being told upwards of 200 casualties, including the Rychii on board. A shocking affair, General, absolutely shocking and you have to wonder what could possibly motivate someone to do such a thing.  It would be astounding to hear this story about a common madman, but a highly trained military officer? It bogles the mind, does it not?


    ¡°Your people of course have my deepest sympathies and I¡¯m sorry to be the bearer of such bad news, but it gets worse I¡¯m afraid.  After being captured and questioned, this Given soldier is stating under oath that he had direct orders to commit the atrocity from senior Musa leadership.  The purpose of the mission apparently was to escalate a war between our people and sabotage the negotiations that I¡¯m given to understand were going so well.  A budding partnership is forming, one that we all believe in.  All but some of the Musa leadership it would seem.  You wouldn¡¯t have any idea who might have given the order, do you General?  If we could find them quickly there is a chance all of this could be smoothed over still.  Of course, we tried to question the prisoner, but he committed suicide using some kind of poison implant.  We were helpless to stop him.¡±  Wellku gazed across the desk with the most concerned face he could muster, the face he used when attending the funeral of a political opponent he despised but could not be seen openly disrespecting.


    The General rolled his eyes at the audacity of the Rychii¡¯s bad acting, wondering if was trying to fool him or only make it appear he was doing so.  ¡°I am fully aware of the events, Wellku, though your version would seem to be open to challenge.  Do you have visual confirmation of the escape and kidnapping?  Such an attempt would be a desperate and deranged errand and one no Given soldier would take under the circumstances.  There seems to be more than meets the eye here.¡±


    ¡°We are searching the camera data now, General, but I can assure you multiple eye witnesses have confirmed my version of events.¡±


    ¡°Were any of them not under your command?  This is all highly irregular Wellku, so why not just tell me what your real play is here.  You try to frame one of my soldiers for massacring his own and then insult me by pretending you are simply calling me in for a courtesy briefing.  Since it was you that sought me out when protocol on both sides would suggest another path, I assume there is something you want.  You might simply let me know what that is and stop wasting both of our time.  The walls are closing in Wellku, and it might not be just your head being crushed.  If I were you, I would share everything I know about this nefarious plot and perhaps you and your conspirators will still have rank the end of it all, or at least your lives.¡±


    Wellku looked at the General, surprised at his aggression and how quickly he had seemingly seen through the charade.  He had to be bluffing, there was no way he could be sure of the truth in his words, was there? Wellku decided to press on.  ¡°You openly insult me General, but given the tragedy of the day and the obvious discomfort you must be in due to the circumstances, I will let this pass but do watch yourself.  Remember you are still a guest here.  Rychii is not under your control as yet nor will it be anytime soon.  So yes, the walls are closing in General, but I wouldn¡¯t be so quick to say on who.¡±


    ¡°It is clear someone, almost surely in the Musa organization, would do anything to undermine this peace, this new opportunity for the Given and Rychii to move forward and forge a new understanding.  I can¡¯t say why, revenge for your fallen soldiers some would guess, but with your sloppy leadership, I¡¯m thinking this type of loss must be a regular event for you so admittedly that doesn¡¯t make a lot of sense or you¡¯d be killing natives by the hundreds all across the galaxy.  But wait, you already do that don¡¯t you?  My goodness it is all so confusing, it¡¯s really hard to tell exactly what the Given are and why they do what they do isn¡¯t it?  Do they kill for power, for control, to steal or just for fun?  Not even the Given really know, do they?¡±  Wellku walked from behind his desk and moved close to the General, provoking him as he leaned close in.  ¡°In the end, it really doesn¡¯t matter why I suppose, you just kill don¡¯t you? Well, to prevent further intrigue and reduce the risk of additional Given prisoners falling under the same strange spell that somehow possessed our first attacker, all remaining civilian Given prisoners have been moved to an off-planet location.  I¡¯m told there is some risk due to their condition, but we can¡¯t protect them here.  We are too vulnerable to your advanced tech.  Should we somehow find the culprit who hatched this despicable plot, so much unpleasantness could be avoided.  Including your questioning by the Vice Premier¡¯s head of security within the hour.¡±  Wellku held his gaze as the General¡¯s eyes widened with surprise.  ¡°Oh, did I not tell you about that.  So sorry, it was hastily arranged but quite necessary under Rychii law.  Nationally broadcast, also by law, to all leadership centers as well but we can arrange an advisor for you if that would help.  Now about that name that gave the order.  The questioning would go much smoother for you if we could demonstrate some cooperation on your part.¡±


    ¡°I think we both know the name Wellku.  Why you would risk everything for this plan is beyond me.  You can¡¯t possibly win.  We could tear this planet apart, set your people back 200 years and walk away without any regret.  We would not want to lose even a single Given life in the process, but we have lost people before and all understand we have a larger purpose, something a petty little power grabber like yourself wouldn¡¯t know anything about.  Be very, very careful with your next decision or you will find your cowardice will set a heavy price that will need to be paid by your ambition.¡±


    Wellku had planned this day knowing the General could be provoked and thinking he would not accept the insult of being opening lied to about the attack but he had underestimated him.  The General seemed quite aware of what Wellku was trying to do and quite in control of himself, but Wellku could not let that ruin the plan.   While it would have pleased him to see the General enraged and out of control, turning the tables and attacking the General would do just as well so he decided to improvise.  Wellku feigned outrage, grabbed the General by the collar and yanked him out of his chair.  As they tussled, Wellku was able to wipe a clear gel containing the bioagent on the air supply of the General¡¯s sealed suit.  At nearly the same moment, the General was able to attach two Given micro trackers to Wellku¡¯s wrist and neck.  The guards rushed in to separate the men and as they were being pulled away, both felt satisfied the meeting had gone as planned.


    The General was quickly escorted to the outer chamber. Dorz was already there looking alarmed and clearly thinking the General had gone off plan. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Dorz,¡± said the General, ¡°I didn¡¯t initiate this meeting and something tells me General Wellku has more than his share of enemies in the Rychii establishment.  Like the ones that notified you I was here perhaps? Wellku mentioned something about a required security questioning, would you know anything about that?¡±


    Dorz shook his head but said ¡°Let me look into it¡± and stepped away.   He spoke intently into his comm for some time before returning.  ¡°It is cleared up.  Wellku is saying he has evidence you were involved in this plot, but I assured them that was outlandish and he has not delivered on his promise to provide the evidence as of yet.  You were right as well that he has some enemies in the Rychii establishment.  He is respected as a strategic genius but is also considered unpredictable and uncontrollable with a strong fascist streak according to my source.  I know this whole situation is quite upsetting but we will need to assist in the investigation for appearances sake.  The attack at the prison camp is currently being treated as most likely carried out by a lone rogue prisoner and that is fine for now as that will give us some breathing room, but I think we both know better.  This has Rychii military all over it and we need to pursue that before they get a chance to frame anyone on our side, especially you.¡±


    ¡°Agreed, Dorz, but I can probably help fill in the blanks on who from the Rychii side is involved in this.  I would bet anything our friend Wellku here is in as deep as anyone, so I would start the investigation right in this office.¡±


    The next few days were filled with a flurry of activity as both the Given and Rychii establishments tried to make sense of the attacks.  The accused Given prisoner had no record of violence or disobeying orders before this event though the extreme stress of the imprisonment and bioagent infection was offered as a mitigating factor by both sides.  Neither diplomatic team wanted to give any credence to those voices on the Rychii side that were promoting a conspiracy theory and thereby undermine the progress that had been made in the negotiations.  The Rychii government was particularly reluctant to cause any insult by casting accusations as they had now been convinced that the original Given protection offer had not been a cover for an invasion but would instead be likely to result in continued independence, or at least some acceptable form of it. It might even be useful as a lever to keep themselves in power.  This realization caused Wellku¡¯s agents to lose influence and when he began to see his position was weakening, he realized his final plan would need to quickly be put into place.  The Given had been following Wellku¡¯s movements closely but he had been very cautious in the days after the attack, showing nothing out of his ordinary pattern.  That would now need to change but he would need to be very careful.  He was so close.

 Chapter 17

    Late one night about a week after the initial attack, Wellku contacted the General across a secure channel reserved for critical diplomatic communication requesting that the General meet him alone at a Rychii research center nearby.  He promised the General he would be safe and that he had life and death information regarding the prisoners¡¯ safety he needed to discuss.  The General was suspicious but figured his personal shields would protect him and he would be tracked the entire time so he summoned his driver and headed out.  Upon arrival, the General burst through the door of the meeting house, his rage barely contained, and found Weelku, also alone, in the lobby.  ¡°How did you get access to this channel Wellku? Your infamous security seems to be nowhere near as effective as your leaders say it is.  I thought it was a Rychii specialty?¡±


    ¡°Oh it is General, but so is loyalty and a deep hatred for invaders.  Especially the kind of invaders that would wrap us in a velvet prison so they might slowly and gently cover our eyes and blind us while they steal the very soul of our people.¡±


    ¡°That would be the Given, I suppose?  Poetic words but that is quite a paranoid interpretation of events, even for an extremist such as yourself.  Should the Given and Rychii come to an agreement, you would likely almost never see us not because we would blind you to events but because frankly because we have more important things to do elsewhere.  Why some among us considered your primitive planet worth saving is beyond me.  To me, Rychii is nothing but a cauldron of untamed savages who have spent millennia doing little but killing each other and are centuries away from accomplishing anything that might interest the rest of the civilized universe.  You accuse the Given of senseless killing but that shows that the only thing you know less about than Given motivations is your own Rychii history books.  We would have better served to leave you to the real invaders that roam these systems.  Should they find you, the Rychii would learn the real meaning of terror beyond anything you thought possible and your petty complaints about the Given would crumble to dust. Ignorant fools!


    ¡°Quite sure of yourself, aren¡¯t you General?  Well, you can save your empty concern for some other weak tribe that might actually believe it.  We¡¯ll take our chances without Given interference and so the first step is to rid ourselves of you.  The great general of the Morta turned statesman and spy.  Your loss might weaken the grip of the Given on our little rock, might it not?


    The General scoffed aloud, ¡°And how will you accomplish that Wellku, your weapons cannot penetrate our personal shields, as you well know.  And you must also be aware that we are required to always have the fields active due to the deadly bioagents?¡±


    ¡°We are, General, we are.  But we¡¯ve been working on a little something since the Given arrived for our first round of talks, adapted from your own tech by the way.  Burrowing transport nanobots are what my engineers call them.  Not sure what they were being used for originally but they are interesting in that they proved to be a perfect vehicle for transmitting the Host and Guest.  Yes, the infamous bioagents have a name and we understand their cycle much better than we have shared with you to date though they continue to be a source of mystery to even our best scientific minds.  They have been with us as long as there has been an ¡°us¡±, interwoven with our evolution, so unsurprisingly a deep complicated shared history exists, one that you would not find in the history books you have been so diligently reading.  Pairing this deep knowledge with the nanobots, your nanobots, has made it possible for us, the stupid little primitive Rychii, to penetrate your envirosuits and force fields with the bioagents of which you have now become very infected General.  To make it even better, we used a new strain, the Host and Guest are quite a melting pot of mutations and variants you see, that cannot be cured by any known tech.  Those are quite iffy anyway, death rates are alarmingly high, even among the Rychii who have evolved to tolerate tinkering with their presence.


    Oh, the irony and the joy of poking a hole in your insufferable arrogance by literally poking a hole in your suit has been quite a treat.  I should enjoy it even more as your scientists struggle to solve the Host and Guest puzzle. Without our help, of course.  It will be quite difficult, even for the mighty Given, lots and lots of time and money.  The Host and Guest are, how do my scientists describe it? Sticky is what they say I think, very, very sticky. So would the Given be willing to sacrifice so much for one man?  They are so very busy solving all the galaxy¡¯s problems, you said so yourself.  I¡¯d say probably not?  I know I wouldn¡¯t if I were them.  You can¡¯t take the Host and Guest off world since they won¡¯t survive and if you study them here, you are looking at permanent envirosuits and a hostile native population.  With no guarantee you can avoid infection.  That¡¯s a long tough road to save one man.


    ¡°So welcome to Rychon as a permanent resident.  I¡¯m afraid there might not be quite as many occupational opportunities for you here as you have enjoyed on the Given home world but I¡¯m sure you can look forward to a long career as a barge crewman cleaning toilets or something similar.  If you can avoid a long stretch in one of our wonderful prisons, that is.   It¡¯s quite unlikely you¡¯ll be able to being a war criminal and all that but if you do, I can perhaps put a word in for you, since even a former general needs to eat I suppose.  Or maybe there is another alternative?


    ¡°As much as I know you would enjoy finding your place among the Rychii however low that might be, I did forget somehow in my excitement that I¡¯d like to offer you a chance to instead be a martyr and inspiration to your people, something your failed leadership would not have otherwise offered you.  It has come to my attention that there is an imminent equipment failure in orbital control equipment aboard the ship holding the Given prisoners.  All will be lost, I¡¯m afraid, as soon as that ship starts to drift, which will happen very soon from what I understand.  Four hundred Given lives extinguished in a most gruesome fashion as well as a number of Rychii crewman. What a shame.  If only someone could get there in time. But wait¡­waaiit, maybe someone could.  There just so happens to be a Given transport in a service hangar nearby that might be available.  Said transport has a small team of inexperienced security personnel that could be easily distracted in order to allow a brave general to steal it in a vain but bold attempt to return his people home.  You see, it turns out this general was able to discover where the evil Rychii had taken his brothers and sisters and rather than work through the proper channels, who has time for that, especially not a highly decorated general, he decided to take the impulsive step of recovering them before they could be moved or the information leaked.  That¡¯s how he would explain it in a debrief session, isn¡¯t it?


    ¡°Seems like a wonderful plan, a story to be told and retold around countless family gatherings, except for the bittersweet ending or maybe because of it?  You Given do like your songs of sacrifice don¡¯t you? So pathetic, and really, really annoying if you must know. No one really believes in that stuff, do they? Anyway, so it turned out in the end that the General was somehow infected with the bioagent.  My god, how could it have happened with all that Given tech in play protecting him? Hard to say, but somehow it did.  Just as the General was locking on to the ship in order to bring his fellow Given home, the bioagent, the Rychii scourge of the Host and Guest struck him down.  It does very unkind things to anyone infected as you get to a certain altitude, the General had already lost many soldiers to its ungodly curse, so it was a terrible misfortune that it got him as well.  Tragically the variant the General was infected with had a lower than typical altitude ceiling so it began to affect him sooner than it should have, almost making it impossible to attempt a rescue. Even though he was dying he fought on and was able to save the ship and everyone aboard.  My scientists are saying you will have just enough time to lock on with a tractor beam once you are within range, but no more so remember, no dawdling and don¡¯t get too close.  That speeds up the Host reaction I¡¯m afraid.  Oh your people will be so proud of you!  I can just hear them now. What a hero!  What a hero indeed!


    ¡°So you are a bright fellow, General, had me figured out in no time, am I right? Let me see if I can return the favor. Would the great Given war hero and captain of the Morta let hundreds of his comrades die when he had a chance to save them?  One small life in exchange for hundreds, any of which would have gladly sacrificed their lives for you.  Of course he would do anything to bring them home to their loved ones, wouldn¡¯t he, hero that he is?  Especially when the alternative is a long, bleak existence on a primitive alien world full of savages. Not to rush you, but you have but minutes to decide which way you will go, General, that¡¯s part of the deal and as an extra incentive, you should know if you stay it will get out, through the most reliable sources and with verifiable evidence, that you had the information longer than you will say and could have done more to save those poor prisoners. But instead you just sat on the news so you could mine the situation for political and personal gain ¨C just terrible, deplorable.  I know, I know, you could deny it and maybe no one would blame you. You could simply call for aid right now and wash your hands of the whole mess, but the doubt will be there, won¡¯t it?  What exactly did the General know and when? Why didn¡¯t he act sooner? That¡¯s a lot of dead bodies to explain, even for a master like you. Well, what do you think General?  Quite a conundrum isn¡¯t it?  Time is ticking away, my friend.  Ticking away.  What will your destiny be?  Towering, dying war hero who made the ultimate sacrifice for his people or, how can I say this diplomatically, something less.  Much, much less.¡±


    The General¡¯s mind was racing and the dissonance of the situation made it difficult to think through what was happening.  Could he actually have been infected or was Wellku simply trying to force him into some kind of suicide trap?  There were a thousand ways Wellku could use this situation to set him up, but his gut feeling told him it would play out mostly the way Wellku had described.  This was a long play on Wellku¡¯s part it seemed but what was the endgame?  Why create this entire bizarre scenario when simpler, safer plans would achieve the same thing if simply killing him was the goal? He had no idea. If Wellku was hoping for his death by the bioagents he could have just waited for the General to leave the planet on his own so that possibility didn¡¯t make much sense. Unless he wasn¡¯t infected.  But Wellku must want something more. What was Wellku¡¯s motivation?  If he could somehow understand why Wellku was doing this, maybe it would help him find a way out from under it.


    The General could not process the possible contexts though and didn¡¯t have enough knowledge of Rychii politics to ascertain that Wellku¡¯s true goals went well beyond any punishment of the invading Given.  It was political theatre designed to facilitate the effort to topple the existing government and return him to prominence, restore a way of life he had seen ripped from a future he had spent a lifetime to build and desperately wanted to reclaim.  Even though the General could not see the truth behind Wellku¡¯s motivations or guess at his master plan, he felt like he was safe enough to at least leave the planet.  Once that was done, he could then figure out what to do about his possible infection or any other trap out there when he was airborne. One step at a time, one problem at a time.  That was almost always the way to think yourself out of any impossible situation, and he had been there many times in his long career and beaten foes tougher than Wellku.  Just worry about the door in front of you.  Once you get through it you can concern yourself with the one after but not until then or you run the risk of overwhelming your mind, trapping yourself by fighting multiple battles at once.  Wellku was a general, had clearly thought this through and had significant resources at his disposal but he was also more than a little unbalanced and he would make a mistake eventually.  When he did, the General would be ready, but for now, he had little choice but to play along.  He needed more information.


    ¡°How do I know you aren¡¯t lying Wellku?  This sure feels like a setup.¡±


    ¡°I thought you might ask that General, any reasonable man would and I of course have your answer ready, simply look at the screens behind you.  On screen 1 with the scrambled location coordinates, is the transport holding your fellow Given.  Note the lifeforms scanner results if you would.  The profiles are Given are they not?  Yes, that¡¯s them. You can be sure of it.  If you look closely at Screen 2, you¡¯ll see the propulsion diagnostics for their ship.  To the navigator they appear fine, but the results are being faked.  In actuality they have less than an hour before the small device located there on Screen 3 in the lower left finishes eating through the main controller. The backup is getting the same treatment. Catastrophic failure, but quite undetectable I¡¯m afraid as that substance is part of the fuel makeup slightly modified, in case you were thinking of perhaps letting everyone perish and then trying to pin the crime on us.  You would stoop to doing that wouldn¡¯t you?  Well that¡¯s not going to happen!  So are you convinced General?  I feel I must remind you again you are quickly running out of time and your date with destiny awaits.¡±


    The General stared at Wellku, trying to control his anger and disgust at the kind of soldier who would fight in such a dishonorable fashion.  ¡°I will go, Wellku, but you have not won.  You never will.  Even if I die, the Given will continue to come, we never give in to intimidation or stop trying to protect the universe.  Once it is decided a people are to join us and we to help them, the decision is made, final and the ones like you, the lowlifes and sneaks, never escape. Your deep dishonor will make you visible to all Given and you will die a coward¡¯s death, Wellku. The Given, all of us and any of us, will see to that.  The Rychii will be far better off without you, and without you will have a chance to finally look beyond the petty squabbles of local politics and bitter tribal wars to see a brighter future than what you and your petty tyrant cronies will offer.¡±


    Wellku raised his eyebrows in amusement and smiled, more convinced than ever he had the upper hand.  ¡®¡¯The Given sure produce a steady stream of threats and promises General, depending on who you are trying to impress I imagine, but from where I stand, you don¡¯t seem so good at delivering on either of them.  But we¡¯ll just have to wait and see who is right won¡¯t we and who is standing in the end? Now back to the matter at hand.  You will need to follow this route here to the rear entrance of the hanger.  The door will be unlocked and a body will be just inside on the floor.  Have to make it realistic don¡¯t we?  Grab his weapon on the way by, you will need it later.  Communications along the route will be jammed and monitored so please don¡¯t get any ideas about trying to bring in reinforcements.  The transport will be located in the front of the hanger.  Shoot out the mechanism on the hanger door with your conveniently found weapon and you should be on your way.  The coordinates of the Given prisoners will already be programmed into the nav.  Good luck, General, it has been a rare pleasure to spar with an officer of your stature. I would have hoped for more but I benefited greatly from the experience.  In the next life, as they say.  Remember now, stick to the plan or this will not end well for anyone, especially your captive comrades.  We¡¯ll be watching and listening.¡±


    The General turned silently away from Wellku and began moving towards the door.  He had no idea what Wellku could actually be planning, where the traps, if any, might be but the General knew he needed to get that transport up in the air if he wanted any chance of escaping.  Being on the ground made him much too vulnerable and limited the possibilities to counter.  He started along the route to the hanger, moving purposefully but not running, trying to think.  What had he seen in the place where they had met, in Wellku¡¯s voice and eyes that he could use to give himself an angle to play or lever to press.  Anything in order to find some breathing room to try and figure out a strategy to get out of this.  He wondered if he should ignore Wellku¡¯s warning and attempt to contact Jehz or his military security team but figured it would not be worth the risk. Wellku knew every possible variation of the route he would be taking and had probably made true on his promise to jam his comms and detect any unauthorized use.


    Arriving at the hangar, the door was open as Wellku had said, though the General was surprised to see the lock had been blasted by what looked like Given weaponry, the tell-tale translucent multi-color burn marks were unmistakable.  Could Wellku possibly have gotten help or turned a Given prisoner to his side? How else would they have been able to bypass the weapon controls? Somehow this strange night was getting stranger thought the General.  Having a Given turn traitor was extremely rare but not unprecedented, as even the deep bindings of the Given culture sometimes failed to take hold.  He hadn¡¯t seen it in a long time though and couldn¡¯t help wondering who it might be, who among the ground crew seemed the weakest.  He began running through a list of the units in his mind, he knew most of their names and families.  Which ones seemed vulnerable from personality profiles and psy scores and how had it been missed?  He tried to push it out of his mind, there was no time to dwell on the possible traitor but it was becoming hard to manage his thoughts. He kept running through the list as if naming the elusive traitor would somehow release him from this situation.


    Stepping inside the hanger he saw a figure writhing in pain on the floor, badly injured, dying, blood pouring from his mangled leg.  Grimacing, the General stepped back. He was repulsed not by the violence, which he had lived with his entire life as a Musa, but by the crudeness and lack of purpose it exhibited. Excessive and quite unnecessary to the plan, the General thought, why not just put this poor soul out of his misery once his purpose had been served?  Did Wellku think this could possibly upset or intimidate him or was it to punish the victim somehow?  It was another clear sign the Rychii, and especially Wellku seemingly took great pleasure in chaos and violence for its own sake. The General leaned down to pick up the dying man¡¯s weapon from the ground and noticed the gaping wound in his leg had the distinctive shape of those caused by a Given war gun, a weapon a general would never carry and not the model that was used to blast open the hanger door.  He could understand the illusion of making it look as if he had shot his way in but why the Rychii would want to make it look like the General had an accomplice he could not fathom.  So much about this plot made no sense to him which set General¡¯s mind uncomfortably on edge.  It meant the plan was either deeply chaotic and likely to implode dangerously in numerous random ways or had a higher order he couldn¡¯t yet perceive making the patterns of it difficult to recognize and react to.  Both were deeply unsettling to the General as his reaction would need to be calibrated based one or the other. But how could he determine the truth? This fictional accomplice could be either a random thread of Wellku¡¯s scheme designed simply to make both he and the Given look bad or somehow the key to understanding this entire drama.  Intriguing and frustrating as the question might be, he had no way of knowing which and no time to try and figure it out.  He had to keep pressing.


    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    The General moved carefully through the hangar, staying under cover, almost fully expecting some kind of ambush, but he saw no one.  He boarded the ship, moved quickly to the captain¡¯s chair and immediately started running a full diagnostic.  No point in trying to get this ship in the air if it had been sabotaged.   He wasn¡¯t sure how much time he could spare to let the diagnostics run but the early critical system tests were clear so he gambled the rest would be too and fired the engines to life, blasted out the hanger door mechanism and within minutes was headed for open space.  Perhaps now I can finally get some time to work this through and plan my next move, thought the General.  He switched on his comm and tried to open a secure channel to the Morta.  He got no response but could not tell if it was simple interference or if the unit had been tampered with.  He began trying to adjust the calibration controls when suddenly Wellku¡¯s voice boomed through the overhead speakers. ¡°Did you miss me, General? Of course you did, we¡¯ve become quite the pair haven¡¯t we?  Now you didn¡¯t really think we would send you off with a fully functioning comm unit, did you, and assume you would keep your promise?  We know better than that, so I¡¯m afraid your friends will just have to wait until your funeral to talk to you.  It will be a bit one-sided, but I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re not all that much of a conversationalist anyway, am I right?  You seem more like a no chit-chat, get down to business kind of guy.  If you don¡¯t mind, we¡¯ll just keep this channel open to make sure everything goes smoothly and everyone, mostly you, sticks to the plan. OK? Good.  Carry on, General, you are doing great!¡±


    The General sat back heavily in his chair.  He knew Wellku would be tracking the ship closely but figured as long as he stayed on mission, he could escape close scrutiny and have a little time to contact and discuss planning alternatives with his staff.  Wellku still had the hostages which meant he still had all the control.  That should have relaxed him, so why didn¡¯t it? He could be fearing a rescue attempt by the Given but it would be nearly impossible to pull off in the limited time available and not worth the risk of something happening to the hostages. So his nemesis was being extra cautious and perhaps overestimating the Given¡¯s capabilities.  Not nearly as freewheeling as his persona made him appear, noted the General, a fact that might prove useful in trying to counteract his plan.  He mentally filed it away and switched to thinking of some other way he might be able to contact his ship, some kind of simple code signal, anything.  There was no way his personal comm would be powerful enough but maybe he could somehow boost it.  It then occurred to the General that the transport¡¯s bio systems were likely to be intact and unmonitored as the Rychii had probably never encountered an organic design like that before and wouldn¡¯t recognize what it was.  Silently, he moved over to the bio control panel and switched on the manual comm.  As quickly and quietly as he could, the General typed a message to his head of security, Rahez, explaining his situation.  After giving the basic outline of the plot, the General asked if the transport had been retrofitted with a blood analysis device capable of detecting the Rychii bioagent.  Confirming it had, the General moved quickly to the med station and stuck his finger into the reader.  As he waited for the results, he alerted Rahez of the position of the prisoner transport and had him develop a plan to close ships from the Morta support fleet around the transport in case they were needed.  They were to stay well out of immediate range and stagger their approaches to ensure their movements did not seem coordinated.  After all this, they did not want to blow their chance at saving the hostages.


    The General finished tapping out his order and then looked up at the screen of the bio reader.  He was stunned at what he saw as the result confirmed he was infected with the Host and Guest.  How was that possible? He was sure Wellku had been lying!  The General took a minute to gather himself and then turned to the bio comm and began typing, the anger welling up inside of him.  He had never felt so vulnerable in his entire life and it infuriated him.


    <<Infection confirmed.  Any progress on a cure?>>


    It was a painfully long wait for a response.


    <<Sorry to report there is none, sir.  The organism is proving to be a difficult study and we have limited facilities on planet until some kind of peace is brokered with the Rychii.  Any idea how it could have happened?>>


    <<Wellku said he had a way of breaching our suits with modified Given nano tech.  I would have thought it impossible with their capabilities but there is a chance they have a Given on their side.  Our own tech Rahez!  I can¡¯t believe it.  Perhaps this traitor has training and is feeding them technical information.  Let¡¯s get a rundown of all the original Given delegation who were Illuta or might have had knowledge in this area. Don¡¯t focus too heavily on it though as it could be a false lead. Wellku seems to be creating side trails in an effort to slow us down. It¡¯s also worth looking into whether our suits could have a flaw that they somehow they stumbled across or whether this was a legitimate breach. In the meantime we need to warn all Given on the surface to implement a silent withdrawal protocol.  It is important we be very quiet about this until the transport situation is resolved.>>


    <<Sir, you to need to let us initiate a ground sequence plan against these impertinent fools.  In 24 hours we could be kicking down the front door of their Vice Premier¡¯s mansion and taking the fight directly up his cowardly ass.  This is a bad way to start a protection, sir, you know that.  We¡¯ll be fighting uphill for decades if we let this fester.  This planet isn¡¯t worth it.>>


    <<Agreed but negative on the ground effort Rahez.  You can ready the plan but I¡¯m relatively sure the faction behind this hates the Vice Premier more than they hate us.  Protecting the Vice Premier looks like the right move here and a way for all of us to walk away with some lives saved and additional bars on our shoulders.  Stay the course.>>


    <<Understood General, I just can¡¯t believe the endless treachery of these Rychii.  We offer them a second chance and they spit in our face!  Why can¡¯t they comprehend we are here to save them from outside interference?  All they have to do is just finalize the protection agreement and then they can go back to killing each other if they want to.  We could care less about their internal affairs and we¡¯ve told them so many times.  I¡¯ve seen basic primitives with better situation skills than these fools.  Simply crazy, sir. Anyway, I have all the Illuta teams working on your blood sample now.  Maybe when we get down to the surface they¡¯ll be able to hit the ground running on a cure or at least some kind of treatment.>>


    <<Very much appreciate it, Rahez.  Now we also need a plan to get me off this ship as soon as I can lock onto the transport and stop its drift.  At that point there is no way any Rychii on the ship would be able to move it into a higher orbit in a suicide play.  Their only path to harm the hostages would be if they are planning a massacre and that would be an ugly scene that would be hard to cover up.  Assuming it happens the way Wellku described, we have about twenty minutes after I get close enough, maybe less if I start feeling the effects of the bioagent earlier as Wellku is predicting.>>


    <<We have a small transport ready sir.  It¡¯s fast and should be able to make it to you in time.  I doubt the Rychii radar will be able to pick it up and even if they do it sure won¡¯t look like an attack ship.  A backup military transport will be right behind as well to secure the hostages.  The Rychii won¡¯t dare make a move, we¡¯ll have the whole area locked down tight sir.  The minute you grab the transport with the hostages, we will be there.  How long until you are within range?>>


    <<Less than thirty minutes so we need to initiate.  I¡¯m declaring emergency mode alpha 17 mooru. Repeat emergency mode alpha 17 mooru.  Give the order immediately Rahez and I¡¯ll see you on the other side.  Good luck, soldier. Tola capi.>>


    <<Thank you sir.  You too.>>


    Sitting back, the General relaxed for the first time since the episode began.  The situation had felt alarmingly and surprisingly uncertain for a time but now it seemed as if things had turned back his way.  Wellku was smart and had planned well but he was no match for the cohesive strength of the Given.  It would wear him down as it had done so many times before to so many others, a heavy net of insoluble links that would allow you to struggle without knowing that struggle would only cause the weight to tire you more quickly. No one had ever broken through, for thousands of years no one had even come all that close.  There was always an ambitious leader who would seek to be the first, try to exploit the Given presence and turn it to their advantage.  It happened so often it was almost a clich¨¦.  It was often their brightest and boldest too, a bit of a shame, but these threats had to be smothered and eliminated and they always were.  Wellku would be no different.


    ¡°Almost there, General!¡± boomed Wellku.  ¡°You¡¯ve been awful quiet.  Not thinking of making a run for it, are you?  I don¡¯t believe you¡¯ve got the fuel to get very far.  We checked.¡±


    ¡°Of course not, Wellku.  Just re-verifying the system status.  Hate to come this far only to have a mechanical failure get in the way of my big moment.¡±


    Wellku laughed unnaturally loud and long.  He was still nervous. ¡°Still capable of levity, General, I like that.  You are a brave man.  Too bad we could not have met under different circumstances.¡±


    ¡°I suppose it is.¡± said the General. He was raging inside but did not want to say anything that might provide a clue that a counter plan was in the works.  The General reminded himself to simply play it safe, there would be time for revenge when this was over.  The two leaders would meet again and indeed the circumstances would be very different thought the General, just not in the way Wellku was imagining.


    Soon the transport was in sight and the General began preparing to initiate the tractor beam by routing energy from non-critical system.  The focus and activity level calmed him and with the transport in sight, the thought this might finally be ending gave him a great sense of anticipation.  With the last bargaining chips freed, the Rychii would have no choice but to negotiate the protection agreement to conclusion and the difficulties of the last few months would ensure that the diplomats would not weaken their efforts.  Positive reviews would flow in for both he and Jehz. They had made quite a powerful pair in this engagement and of that the General was deeply proud. It was the kind of outcome he had always dreamed about.  Once the protection agreement was in place and the situation had settled down, Wellku would be dealt with.  The General knew he was not supposed to hold a grudge under the Musa code or seek anything but a Given triumph, but this one had crossed the line. Even a Musa Prazan purist would be able to understand that.  If there was anything he could do short of openly breaking Given law to ensure Wellku paid dearly for his transgressions, he had every intention of doing it. He doubted if Wellku would even survive the wrath of the Rychii leadership long enough for it to matter once the truth about his deception came out.  But if Wellku did somehow manage to wriggle free, the General decided then and there he would gladly trade one-sided favors with any official who could get him close enough to drive a Nagu blade deep into Wellku¡¯s heart.


    As his ship was nearly within range of the transport, the General tried to mentally search his body for sign of the Host and Guest illness.  He felt no symptoms and his body scan was normal even though he was slightly above the altitude that Rehz had fed him as the target based on his blood test.  Maybe this variety was not as sensitive as they thought, maybe he would finally get lucky.  Wellku was strangely silent as the General ran through the final tests of the tractor beam.  Had he expected the General would already be dead?  The signal light came on, letting him know he was within range and the tractor beam could be deployed.  He paused for a second, remembering the sacrifice the Given had made to protect this planet, the sacrifice he was almost forced to make.  It was often thankless and resented but it ensured the galaxy and all its peoples would survive and better yet thrive. That all could be safe, even ignorant savages like the Rychii.  The galaxy may not be aware but the Given knew who and what they were and the worth of what they had done. They had lived the alternative for far too long, a gentle people crushed and nearly obliterated under the power of an advanced warlike culture. Their innocent nature had been used as a weapon to exploit and pervert them until the Great One had somehow been born and found a way out.  Other societies had not been so lucky and it was the Given mission, his mission, to ensure it never happened again, even to the Rychii.  He flipped the switch on the tractor beam.


    The General looked at the control screen, expecting to see the lock on the transport confirmed but the signal only blinked in target acquisition mode.  As the General began diagnostic scan, the blinking stopped and the out-of-range message reappeared.  Had he dropped to a lower orbit?   A quick check of his navigation controls confirmed he hadn¡¯t, so how could the transport be drifting away?  His heart immediately began racing and his throat tightened.  No, no, no, he thought to himself, this cannot be happening!  Had he set the beam controls in reverse somehow?  Could he possibly have made such a basic mistake?  Double checking his settings it became clear there was no mistake but the hostage transport was quickly drifting away in a manner that could only happen if it was being pushed.  He desperately tried to maneuver his ship gently toward the transport in the hope he could reengage the tractor beam but quickly realized he had no chance.  Even if he were to sacrifice himself, he¡¯d never be able to get there in time.


    The General ran to the bio comm and quickly typed the words racing through his mind


    <<All they all dead? >>


    <<I¡¯m afraid so, sir.  What happened? >>


    <<Not sure.  Looks like the tractor malfunctioned or more likely was tampered with.  My settings were correct.  I reconfirmed. >>


    <<Who would do this? Why? >>


    Even before he had a chance to consciously think of the answer, the name rose to his lips.  What started out as a whisper ended in a scream of rage aimed at the comm.  ¡°Wellllkuuu..you did this?  This was your plan all along, to kill 500 hundred innocent Given and then pathetically try to pin it on me? What could you possibly gain?¡±


    ¡°Well, General, it wasn¡¯t really my plan, not all of it anyway.  I was really hoping the most important part, your bloody and painful demise would be accomplished by now but the Host and Guest don¡¯t seem to be cooperating, so I will take what I can get.  Plans during wartime do have a way of not working out quite right, don¡¯t they?  Oh well, the day is not over yet, one can still hope. My potential gain, if you must know was simply to destabilize the current Rychii government you Given seem so dangerously infatuated with.  They are fools, unworthy of your attention and undeserving of their power.  I could go on, but it¡¯s a long story, and who has the time?


    Anyway, since you are miraculously still with us, I¡¯m sure you¡¯d enjoy listening in on my briefing to the senate. You¡¯re the topic of the day.  They were asking for an update since they got the news a few hours ago on your daring and surprisingly violent escape.  It¡¯s admittedly a little dry in the beginning but let me just fast forward to the part where I explain how your incompetence would likely doom your poor brothers and sisters to a grisly death if their rescue was in fact what you were planning. How prescient I turned out to be wouldn¡¯t you say?  Almost spooky.  I was compelled to further explain how this incompetence was compounded by the fact that you refused our offer to negotiate.  Simply and flatly refused despite the obvious criminality of your overt aggression toward the Rychii.  But even in the face of that disrespect and with the law on our side we were still willing to graciously work with you so that we might reach a peaceful conclusion.  No matter what we tried, it did not work.  You could not be reasoned with.  I was really quite eloquent and they seemed very angry with you. Very, very angry.  They are on a comm with that dolt of yours Dorz as we speak.  You really must hear my comments for yourself though.  It¡¯s quite good. Listen.¡±


    The General tried to quiet the sound on the comm but could not, Wellku had of course modified that as well to be fully under his control.  As Wellku¡¯s voice droned on in a tone of faux authoritative concern in response to questions about the incident in the hangar, the enraged General resolved to end this situation himself.  No sense in involving anyone else, it would only complicate things afterward.  This way he could at least feign being overwrought with emotion at Wellku¡¯s betrayal and impulsively killing him.  It would likely end his career but that seemed inevitable anyway after what had happened with the hostages.  He would get his revenge and still walk away a war hero with a nice pension.  A shame perhaps given what might have been, how powerful Jehz and he could have been together, but that was the way things turned out sometimes.  There was often more than a little luck involved in ascending to the elite ranks of the Musa command.  He had done well but in the end his luck had not held.  He would still have influence through Jehz and a chance for a second career as an advisor.  In his mind he knew he would need to accept that for all the obvious practical and political reasons.  To make the sacrifice worthwhile however, he would have to successfully deal with Wellku.


    To that end, he knew he had a secret weapon that Wellku hadn¡¯t planned for, the tracker he had planted during their scuffle.  He had almost turned it on more than once, wondering if the moment was right but it had never seemed quite worth it.  It was now time to use it and he knew this was the reason he had saved it all this time.  He turned away from the bio comm, ignoring the pleas from Rehz he knew were sitting there waiting to be read, and activated the device.  Tying into the ship¡¯s computers, the General found Wellku located in a Rychii government facility near the office they had met at when he planted the tracker and got infected. ¡°Got you, Wellku,¡± said the General, ¡°We¡¯ll be meeting sooner than you expected and I am going to shove those taunting remarks right back down your throat.¡±  He set a course for Wellku¡¯s location and fired the ship¡¯s engines into overdrive.