Chapter Six
From Karathlathornka’s report I made a breakthrough in the problem of the Magi. It was not much, but it might be the key we needed to start making headway. Often in these cases a few small steps are made, then all of a sudden everything falls into place. I was still trying to make that happen but at least I had enough to make a start.
In the Academy we were trained to look at everything like a child’s picture puzzle. Every piece of data was a new clue to be assembled in order to reveal the complete picture. I never worked this way; it was too simplistic for real intelligence work. Instead I saw everything as threads in a great tapestry in that the data we collected were not discrete pieces, but rather strands of thread, and those threads were often knotted up. Untangling them and figuring out how to weave them into the bigger tapestry would reveal the hidden truth. While working at the threads, smaller patterns could be found that would eventually make up the details in the bigger picture, and it appeared that I had found one of these smaller patterns.
I brought my report to the captain, but he insisted on waiting until the senior staff was assembled. I did not know if I was ready for this. If I was wrong this would reinforce their low opinion of me, but if I was right it could be the opportunity I needed to prove myself. It would be nice to leave them with a good impression before I departed on my suicide mission.
When I entered the conference room and looked around, the atmosphere seemed more relaxed than it had been recently. I wondered if that was because they did not expect anything I had to say to be very shocking.
Zalith had his feet up on the table, Dr. Rannor was sitting on the table looking like he should be sipping a drink, and everyone generally seemed in a carefree mood. It felt more like a social gathering at a friend’s house, at least as far as the others were concerned. I felt like I was about to face the worst exam of my life and had forgotten to study. I assembled my notes and did my best to look as relaxed as they were, but without much success.
The door opened and everyone jumped to attention as the captain entered. His broad shoulders seemed to fill the great doorway as he passed through it, adding to the aura of power that he projected.
Soon everyone was seated and the captain said, “I asked Vydor to call this meeting because he has some news for us on the Magi situation. He has shared a little with me already and I think we would all benefit from hearing his presentation.” He paused and looked at everyone as to say, “Give the kid a break,” then said, “Vydor, go ahead.”
“Thank you, Captain.” I paused, took a breath and told myself that these were my peers, not a review board. I only wished I could believe myself …
“I want to start with a review of what we know, going back to the original transmission from Lieutenant Tom. This is because I think I have found a thread running through all the events which gives us a clue to the puzzle of the Magi.
“When Zalith presented his report on Tom’s message, he stated that he thought the message was tampered with because of the way Tom was acting. At the time I agreed with him. Tom, as we all knew, was a battle-hardened veteran and was acting like a green soldier who had never faced battle. After that meeting, I studied the message to see if I could verify that theory.
“It is fairly well-known that all transmitters in the Empire have a code which they transmit to identify themselves. What is not so well-known is that all military transmitters, like Tom’s, have a second coded message they transmit to prevent any possibility of interference. Based on my analysis of that data, there is no way that message was tampered with. It is exactly as it was when it left the transmitter. If there was any falsehood involved, Lieutenant Tom would have had to be involved. There is no reason to believe he would knowingly have taken part, so we can only take the message at face value.
“The next thing to look at is the target the Magi picked for their move: a colony deep within the Empire’s secure borders researching biological warfare. At first it sounds like a great target, because it would be unexpected and yield some nice weapons, but not this colony. The last few reports on the colony indicate that it is a complete failure. It has never produced a single new discovery in the seventy-five years it has been in operation. What does not make sense is the colony’s classification. It is rated in the highest level of biological warfare research, which is why Dr. Rannor strongly warned us against landing. From what these reports say, that project should have been abandoned and not classified so highly.”
I paused here. I wanted that to sink in a bit. I had a lot more to say and I needed to gather my thoughts. I was sure they would soon start wondering about my information sources. I did not officially have the security clearance to know about the reports I had just cited, never mind study them. Heck, I was not sure anyone in this room other than Dr. Rannor did.
“The next thing to consider is the first probe we sent. The Magi could easily have simply shot it down; instead they tampered with it, changed what it would report and let it report for a while, and then shot it down. The only reason for this is that they wanted to change our perception of them in some way. If they had merely destroyed the probe, we would not have thought much about it. By manipulating what the probe reported they caused us to spend time and resources trying to deduce what they were up to, and making wild guesses about what they could do.”
As I looked around the room, I noticed something I had never seen before. They were listening very closely to me. Not as if I was a green youngster, but as a peer. I certainly had their attention. Dr. Rannor was a good example of this. He always took notes when he thought something was important, and he was taking notes on my presentation. Zalith never took notes, but his piercing gaze was firmly planted on me, paying very close attention to everything I said.
“After this we sent a second probe. This probe was specifically designed to prevent tampering, and was heavily armored so that it would not be easy to shoot down. It was also transmitting data non-stop throughout its flight. This meant that the Magi could not merely manipulate the probe to convey what they chose, and it was impervious to the known planetary defenses of the colony. What did they do in response? They used a weapon that they know we cannot duplicate, and fired on the probe three times. As we agreed here, it would have been impossible for them to know that the first hit failed to destroy it before they fired the second shot, indicating that they had always intended to take three shots. When we discussed this, the captain pointed out that it was probably a tactic designed to induce fear. It was then that Zalith pointed out their lack of sensor technology.”
Now it was time for me to present my conclusions. This would make or break me. I had their attention and if I messed up now it would be much harder to prove my worth in the future. If I had a future, since in a fairly short time I would be leading a virtual suicide mission.
“By now some of you may have an idea what I am leading up to, but let me present two more pieces of data that have not yet been considered in these chambers. The first is the crew’s morale. Most of our crew are battle-hardened veterans, yet there is a noticeable level of fear everywhere on the ship. That does not make much sense. All the Magi have done so far is to blow up a couple of probes and repel our first attempt at invasion. Even a mighty force like the Imperial Navy loses skirmishes, especially early on in a brand-new war, or potential war. Some level of anticipation might be expected, but fear? I may not have seen as much space time as the rest of you, but I think I can fairly state that this level of anxiety is not normal.
“Add to that the strange orders from High Command, the lack of information, and the death of the captain’s informant; and it start to appear that High Command is also suffering from an unusually high level of alarm. The fear here on the ship could be categorized as fear of the unknown, but the indications are that High Command knows more than they are saying, so their fear is that of a known force.”
I paused to gather myself. The silence in the room was deafening, almost entreating me to continue. “There is one more piece of information which I think ties this all together. What I am about to disclose comes from a reliable but unofficial source. I travel a lot in intelligence circles, and so I meet people, and perform favors which are paid back with information. I believe this to be accurate. I trust this source.
“The Magi are not a new hostile force. They are an experimental research group into the art and science of psionic warfare. I know, you have probably all heard the various conspiracy theories and think them groundless, but add up what we know so far and it becomes apparent that the colony has launched a devastatingly subtle weapon against us, that of psychologically-induced fear. They are researching biological weapons, but not the kind we assumed; the so-called bugs in this case are people, a group that goes by the code name Black Adders. They were sent there secretly to focus solely on psionic warfare and attempt to prove or disprove the viability of such a weapon, and I would say they were successful in their endeavors.”
That wrapped up what I had to say. I was unsure what to do next, when the captain spoke up. “Vydor, they told me you were the best, and that you could find connections and link data which others missed, and they were certainly right.”
I sat down and waited to see what would be the reaction of the others. Dr. Rannor was reviewing the notes he had taken. Larath was finding some reports on his personal computer, and Zalith looked lost in thought.
Larath was the first to respond. “Sir, I have to say, with regard to Vydor’s statements about the crew, I must agree. I am looking at the reports from my staff, and an illogical level of fear is being reported. I can think of no good reason for this.”
“Dr. Rannor, what is your opinion on the colony?” inquired the captain.
“Well, Captain, I have heard some rumors about a colony such as Vydor described, but I had rejected them as silly. His assessment of the colony as a failure is an accurate one, based on reports which I have no idea how he could have seen. In my studies of biological warfare I have turned up no new discoveries accredited to Arken IV. In fact, I had never heard of the colony until this mission,” answered Dr. Rannor.
“Zalith? Your thoughts?” prompted the captain.
“I have to admit Vydor’s theory sums up everything very nicely, and I would agree with his conclusion based on the given information. This leaves us with a problem. The Magi have at least one powerful plasma cannon, and the ability to sow fear. Either of those weapons by themselves would be dangerous, but combined they make a deadly mixture,” was his reply.
“Does this change our commitment to send in troops?” asked Commander Jones.
“Our orders are not conditional upon anything, so no. It is safe to conclude that High Command knows about the Black Adders, and that’s why they do not want us to bring the fleet in any closer than needed. I assume they are counting on Vydor’s reputation for reasoning to defeat the fear weapons, since the Tom’s boldness apparently failed,” answered the captain.
“But why did High Command keep this information from us?” asked Dr. Rannor.
“Well, fear of the unknown is something we all have experience of; we all know how to deal with that. Fear as a weapon only works when you can remove the person’s ability to deal with it. They are probably assuming that we have a better chance of winning if we do not know what we are facing, as odd as that sounds,” answered Larath. “The big question we need to be concerned with is how to fight this fear weapon.”
“I am not sure. I cannot find any reliable information on how to counter psionic warfare. We are all trained to deal with fear, but Tom had that same training, and it did not help him,” I answered.
There was some brief chatter regarding various rumors and theories about psionic weapons, even a few references to myths and legends from days so far back that no one can place them.
“Captain, I need your permission to select a replacement to take over my post,” I began.
“Do you think you’re not coming back?” interrupted Larath. “If you leave with the intention of failure, then you will surely achieve it.”
Commander Jones interrupted, “That is a good idea, Vydor. If the mission is a success you are likely to be gone at least a few months.” I noticed he did not address the question of the mission failing.
“Months?” I was a bit shocked by that assessment. “I figured several weeks, but not much more than that.”
“Yes. If you are successful at making first contact, then I will need you as part of the negotiations when I arrive. In most cases the person who makes first contact is the person most able to smooth over negotiations. After we have built up formal communications, you could return to your post here, but that often takes several months,” answered Commander Jones.
“Oh, come on! First we take a top officer and send him on a suicide mission, and now we are talking about disgracing him with a desk job? Is nothing sacred any more?” boomed Zalith.
The assembled officers really were unhappy with this mission and how it was being handled by High Command. Combine that with the fear everywhere on the ship and things could start to get explosive. The captain sat back and watched. He looked so calm in the face of all this. How did he do it?
It was officially my meeting, so it was up to me to try to control it. “Gentlemen, please. Enough of this. I appreciate the concern for my honor and wellbeing. I completely understand the risks of this mission. As of now no one understands our enemy better than me, and I am not looking for a way out. The Emperor has decreed that I lead this mission, and that is enough for me. I need not know what his plans are or the part I will play in them. If by my death or life I can serve the Empire, then I shall do so.”
I paused a moment and looked around the room. My comment affected them in different ways. Larath, as always, had a look of encouragement about him. It was that look that he used to keep himself from ever showing any emotion. The captain and Zalith both regarded me with knowing pride on their faces. It was as if they looked at me and saw younger versions of themselves. Commander Jones maintained a completely unreadable posture and face. The big surprise was Dr. Rannor. He had an odd look on his face; it was a sad look, but more than that. It was as if he was looking into the future and what he saw depressed him. He must have known something that he had not shared, but what could it be, and why hide it?
“If there is no further information, or questions, I have a team to prepare to run without its leader for an unknown length of time.” I paused here to see if anyone had anything to say. Since this was my meeting, protocol demanded that I be the one to wrap it up. “Okay then. This meeting is adjourned.”
As everyone started to clear out, the captain grasped my shoulder from behind and said, “Vydor, wait a moment. I would like to talk to you in private.”
He waited for everyone to leave, and then gestured for me to sit across from him. He paused for what seemed like years. Then in an uncharacteristic, fatherly tone, he started to speak.
“Vydor, you are a fine officer and a valuable member of my team here. Since you came on board you have gone well beyond the call of duty in everything you have done. You have worked very hard to prove yourself worthy of the tremendous honor of your position here. I will admit I had to be talked into letting you on to my team. You were not my first choice; in fact, you were not even on my list of possibilities. However, since you came on board, I have watched you. I have watched how you work with your teams, and how they view you. I have read every report produced by anyone under your direct influence, and I have kept on top of everything you have done from the beginning. You have certainly shown yourself to be worthy of the great chance you got when you were offered this position.
“Now that you are leaving us for a while, I would like to give you a bit of advice on what to do with your teams before you go. In your desire to prove yourself, you are overworking your teams a little. Before you assign a replacement, go over your rules and regulations and add a little more flexibility and leniency. People tend to work better when they have some room to maneuver.
“When you do select your replacement, don’t pick the best man for the job; instead choose the one whose leadership style most closely resembles yours. This will reduce the amount of retraining you will have to do on your return.”
The captain paused here a minute, as he decided what to say next. I knew him well enough to be silent while he worked it out. “Vydor, I must say I am a bit concerned that your pride may be driving you to take this mission. You lack experience and really do not know what it is like to face death. You will be leading a very dangerous mission, and every member of that team’s life will be in your hands. I want them all back safely. Do not take any foolish risks just to prove yourself to us. Returning alive with all of your team will be enough.”
“Captain, I have faced death.” I paused to gather myself. “I have faced him in a very intimate way. In our first round, he won. We brought every weapon and tool that the Empire could muster against him, and lost. Now I am locked in a stand-off with him. I can see him down the corridor of time. He stands ready to do battle again, patiently waiting, knowing that the clock always runs in his favor. While I may not have a huge amount of combat experience, I am all too familiar with death.”
“You are referring to your father, and the disease you are destined to get. Good, I am glad you realize that. A healthy respect for death is a good thing to have on a mission like this. Do not look so surprised; I make it my business to know my staff. Your family line is plagued with Betalian’s Syndrome. Every male in your family has died from it. In fact, I also know that you are the last of your bloodline.”
I was continually surprised by the captain’s ability to learn things he was not authorized to know. Personal medical histories like mine were not intended to be generally known, in order to prevent discrimination in assignments. But he was completely right. It was just a matter of time before I too got sick like my father.
“Vydor, before you leave pay Dr. Rannor a visit. No, I am not worried about your health, but about his. You see, he is the reason you are here.”
To say that remark surprised me would be an understatement. I knew that High Command had sent orders ahead to secure me this position, but it never occurred to me that the ship’s doctor would even know my name, never mind be the reason for my acceptance.
“As you know, High Command sends out recommendations for crew replacements whenever positions open up in the fleet. What you may not yet have learned is that most of the time, most captains ignore them and choose whoever they think best. High Command makes its decisions based on records, while captains make their decisions based on their personal knowledge of the officers. When your recommendation came down the line I intended to reject it, but Dr. Rannor piped up in your defense.
“He was very convincing, singing your praises and telling me that there was no one better in all the Empire for this position. I was amazed by this, as he has never done anything like that before or since. Based solely on his recommendation, I accepted your assignment to my staff. I thought that you wouldn’t last more than a few days and I could appease him and then be rid of you. But to my surprise, you turned out to be all that he said you were. You lack only experience, something you’re about to get a big dose of.
“I am worried that if something should happen to you on this mission, he will take it hard and blame himself. So please stop by his office as soon as you can and see what you can do about that.”
With that, the captain left the room.