14:36 (Universal Time)
Wednesday, July 3, 2318
Callisto Prime Space Terminal
Callisto orbit, Jovian System
Janet Robeson had greeted important visitors and heads of states many times before during her political career, but she had never been as nervous as of now. To be fair, this would be the first time in Humanity’s history that representatives of a sentient alien race would be greeted officially in the Solar System and the medias were out in force to cover the event. There was also this business about the Hygiean plot to steal the Koorivars’ anti-matter technology, but someone else was supposed to take care of that. Her mind then concentrated back on her present task as a small electric car emerged from the long access tunnel of the A.M.S. KOSTROMA and went through the security airlock of the terminal’s gate before stopping ten paces in front of her and her delegation. All the cameras present were filming as the doors of the car opened, letting out Captain Tina Forster and two Koorivars wearing richly embroidered robes. One of the Koorivars then took the lead, followed closely by Forster and the other Koorivar, to finally stop two paces in front of Janet Robeson and bow to her. His first words were in a strange, totally alien language, followed by the voice of the translation unit he carried at his belt.
‘’Greetings, Governor Robeson! I am Administrator Sheraz, leader of my people who travelled to your Solar System aboard the VEON SHOURIA.’’
‘’And I am happy to welcome you and your people to Callisto, Administrator Sheraz. I hope that your trip aboard the KOSTROMA was a nice one.’’
‘’It was indeed nice, Madam Governor. The hospitality shown by Captain Forster was impeccable and her KOSTROMA is an impressive ship in all respects.’’
‘’I am glad to hear that, Administrator Sheraz.’’
‘’May I present you Captain Shanandar, the commander of the VEON SHOURIA, in which so many of my people are still in cryogenic sleep?’’
Janet bowed in turn at the second Koorivar, who had just stepped forward to take place at the right side of Sheraz. While both were totally alien in aspect, Janet found it surprisingly easy to differentiate the two Koorivars from each other.
‘’Welcome to Callisto, Captain Shanandar. Your journey to our star system was truly an epic one.’’
‘’That trip would have ended in tragedy if not for the arrival in Eris orbit of Captain Forster’s KOSTROMA, Governor Robeson. Destiny was kind to us in that respect.’’
‘’Indeed! Captain Forster, please step forward so that I can greet you properly.’’
Tina, who was holding a small, decorated box under one arm, did so and was solemnly hugged by Janet, who smiled to her as she parted from her.
‘’Captain Forster, your voyage to Eris will be inscribed forever in the annals of Human space exploration. You and your crew did a splendid job.’’
‘’It was a most satisfying job as well, Madam Governor, as it allowed us to rescue the Koorivars on the VEON SHOURIA. Our survey of Eris also proved it to be a most precious addition to our space assets.’’
Tina then took her decorated box with both hands and flipped open its cover to show its content to Janet. The latter, with all the cameras around zooming on the box, could not stop herself from gasping with admiration at the sight of the orange-sized, elaborately cut and polished orange-yellow diamond sitting on a cushion of blue felt.
‘’Madam Governor, me and my crew are honored to present you ‘The Heart of Eris’. It weighs 7,800 carats and came from Eris, where we found hundreds of similar diamonds forged inside the core of that dwarf planet.’’
Taking the box in her hands, Janet admired the huge diamond for seconds before turning around to show it to the cameras.
‘‘I intend ‘The Heart of Eris’ to be exposed publicly at the Callisto Museum of Fine Arts, where all of our citizens will be able to admire it. Let this be a tribute to our first ever expedition to the dwarf planet Eris.’’
Janet then had an aide take the box before turning around again to face Tina and the two Koorivars.
‘’A reception has been arranged in honor of your arrival. I wish to invite you to it, my friends.’’
‘’We happily accept your kind invitation, Madam Governor.’’ Replied Sheraz through his translator unit. Janet nodded with satisfaction, then signaled her chief of staff to have her official limousine roll forward. She was soon sitting inside the vehicle with Tina and the two Koorivars, with the limousine then starting to roll forward. Janet’s expression of benevolent welcome was then replaced by a somber look at her guests.
‘’You will excuse me if the next thing I will say may disturb you, my friends. Know that a plot by the Hygiean Security Forces to steal the anti-matter technology from the VEON SHOURIA was discovered some months ago. Unfortunately, that plot is still running, albeit under our surveillance: we still need more proofs before we arrest the Hygiean agents sent to Callisto and before we can accuse the ones on Hygiea who ordered that plot.’’
Sheraz and Shanandar opened their mouths in shock and surprise on hearing that, while Tina’s expression hardened at once. Sheraz then spoke up, his voice none too steady.
‘’But, I publicly announced to your people that we had destroyed our anti-matter drive and erased all the pertinent data about it. How could those people still think that they could get our anti-matter technology from us?’’
‘’By kidnapping one or more of your people who would have worked with that technology, Administrator Sheraz. They would then force their captives to reveal what they know about it, possibly by torturing them. Your chief engineer and his assistants would be the most at risk here.’’
As the Koorivars digested those words with difficulty, Tina looked into Janet’s eyes.
‘’How did you learn about that plot, Madam Governor? I would have expected those Hygieans to be very discreet about it.’’
‘’True! However, one of the Hygiean agents tasked with that mission, while accepting it, also secretly disapproved of it, finding it morally repugnant. She then confided herself to a good friend of yours, Major Michel Koniev, who agreed to help her and came to warn us about this plot. It appears that the mission may have been ordered by the highest echelons of the Hygiean authorities.’’
A smile appeared on Tina’s face when Michel Koniev was mentioned.
‘’Good old Michel: always the decent man. Where are Michel and that agent now, Madam Governor?’’
‘’The details about this and the Hygiean plot are known by only a very few select Security Branch officials, since we are afraid that there could be an Hygiean double agent in our services, but they are somewhere on this space terminal and are due to board your ship soon, along with the rest of the Hygiean undercover team. The plan of those agents is to select and watch their targets during the KOSTROMA’s trip to where the Koorivars will be resettled, then act once on Earth. Unfortunately, we don’t know the identity of the other Hygiean agents involved, so we will have to play it tight until we are able to identify them.’’
Sheraz, seriously shaken by all this, then picked up on something that Janet had said.
‘’Madam Governor, you mentioned that we will next travel to the resettlement location of my people. May I ask you where that location is?’’
‘’You may, Administrator Sheraz. The President of the Northern Alliance on Earth has generously donated for your people’s exclusive use the northern tip of Vancouver Island, on the West Coast of North America. That territory covers a surface of 1,650 square kilometers, has a temperate climate and is heavily forested and surrounded by the sea. It is in fact a beautiful region and is one of the most pristine natural preserves left on Earth.’’
Tina broke into a grin, temporarily forgetting about the Hygiean plot, and nodded to Sheraz.
‘’I know well that region, Sheraz: I go there every time that I have a chance to take some vacation time on Earth. Your people should love that place.’’
‘’Please act as if you don’t know that yet, Administrator Sheraz.’’ Said Janet Robeson. ‘’I was supposed to announce it publicly to you at the reception we are going to.’’
Sheraz made a forced smile then while lowering his head.
‘’While I can only thank you for the generosity of your people, it will be difficult for me to appear cheerful at that reception, Madam Governor: my people are still threatened by those hostile agents you told us about.’’
‘’Well, with some luck, those agents will soon stop being a threat, my dear Sheraz.’’
17:08 (Universal Time)
COMFORT INN Hotel, Callisto Space Terminal
Michel Koniev glanced at both ends of the hotel’s corridor, making sure that nobody was following him, then stopped in front of a room’s door, knocking lightly on it. Nobody answered then, so he knocked again, a bit stronger, but still got no answer. He knocked a third time, this time also speaking through the door.
‘’Lyudmila, are you there? It’s Michel!’’
Still not getting an answer, Michel tried the door’s handle and immediately tensed up on finding it unlocked: as a trained undercover agent, Lyudmila would be unlikely to leave her room unlocked while on a mission. Slowly cracking the door open and with his right hand on his holstered pistol, Michel cautiously looked inside. His heart missed a beat when he saw a shape sprawled on the carpet, near the bed. Drawing his pistol and opening wide the door, he swept the room with his eyes and his pointed gun, but saw nobody else save for the immobile shape on the carpet. Closing and locking the door behind him, Michel still stayed on the ready and went to check the bathroom attached to the modest room, then looked inside the room’s wardrobe. Seeing no one else, Michel then knelt beside the woman sprawled face down near the bed. He closed his eyes for a second, feeling sadness on recognizing Lyudmila. She was dead, with two bullet holes in her back and a third hole in the back of her head. She was wearing only a light night gown and her underwear and seemed to have been shot as she was heading towards the wardrobe to dress up. Anger then came to him: someone had probably found out that Lyudmila had betrayed the HSF and had eliminated her before she could unmask the other Hygiean agents involved in the plot. The question of how her murderer could have caught her like this unaware in her hotel room then came to Michel’s mind. If someone had intruded in her room, Lyudmila’s reflex would have been to face that intruder, not to turn her back to him. There was also no trace of a fight and her position suggested that she had been simply walking and not running when she had been shot. It was as if she had opened her door to someone willingly, then had gone towards her wardrobe to dress up, with her visitor inside the room. She thus had trusted that visitor. Planting a last kiss on the head of the dead Lyudmila, Michel then got up on his feet and surveyed carefully the room, trying to find any piece of evidence that could help him identify the killer. Lyudmila’s wrist communicator, resting on its side on the bedside table, then attracted his attention: its cover was opened, while a small jar of face cream had been placed in front of it, hiding part of it. Walking around the bed to the bedside table, Michel held his breath when he could see that the communicator was actually on and switched to video recording mode. Nearly all the models of wrist communicators on the market in the Solar System had such a mode, where the owner could film scenes around him, typically during a party or a vacation trip. The recordings, which included both image and sound, could then be replayed, downloaded or retransmitted. Grabbing the wrist communicator, he stopped the recording and rewound it in fast mode. He put it on ‘play’ when he saw the face of Lyudmila on the screen as she was putting down the communicator on the bedside table. Now tense as a bar, Michel watched the recording as Lyudmila was seen, wearing her night gown, going to the door of her room and speak through it after looking through the peephole.
‘’Who is it?’’
The muffled response she got apparently reassured her, as she unlocked and opened her door, letting in a tall man wearing a good suit. The man flashed a badge at Lyudmila.
‘’Spacers League Security Branch. I am here to escort you to our terminal’s office: we have spotted a man that we suspect is one of the Hygiean agents sent to board the KOSTROMA. Hopefully, you will be able to recognize him discreetly via the security cameras of the terminal. Major Koniev is already at our office.’’
‘’Very well! Just give me a minute to dress and I will come with you.’’
Lyudmila was then seen turning her back to her visitor to walk towards her wardrobe. The man then pulled out from under his vest a silencer-equipped pistol and shot Lyudmila twice in the back. He then walked to her, going temporarily out of the field of view of the communicator’s camera. Michel still could hear however the ‘plop’ of his gun firing a third time before the man walked back to the door, holstering back his pistol before leaving the room and closing the door behind him. Cold anger mixed with dread filled Michel as he stop the recording. Only a few Spacers League Security Branch officers were supposed to know about Lyudmila and himself, while there was no way that any Hygiean agent could have known about his role in this. There was obviously an Hygiean sleeper agent inside the Spacers League Security Branch, and a highly-placed one on top of that. Michel had personally only met one such person, the director of the Security Branch, James Caldwell. The killer, while a mature man, was however nothing like Caldwell. The Spacers League’s counter-intelligence operation was thus hopelessly compromised, with Michel himself now probably unmasked as a traitor to the HSF.
Feeling momentary discouragement, Michel sat down on the bed, Lyudmila’s wrist communicator still in one hand. If he alerted anyone at the Security Branch about this, there was the distinct risk that the Hygiean team could be informed of it, in which case they would disperse and disappear, ready to strike at a later date and place. On the other hand, if he didn’t give the alert, those yet unidentified agents would be able to slip aboard the KOSTROMA, placing both the Koorivars and Tina Forster and her crew at mortal risk. Thinking over the problem for a moment, Michel then rewound the recording of Lyudmila’s murder to the moment she was going to answer the door, then used the wrist communicator to make a call.
At the banquet lounge of the PRESIDIO HOTEL, the reception given by Governor Robeson was in full swing, with Sheraz and Shanandar being assaulted by a crowd of officials and guests anxious to speak with them. Tina excused herself with the CEO of the Jovian Shipping Lines when her wrist communicator buzzed. She smiled widely when she saw Michel’s face on the small screen, but quickly cooled down on seeing his hard facial expression.
‘’Michel? Where are you right now?’’
‘’At another hotel of the space terminal. Are Governor Robeson and her Koorivar guests close to you?’’
‘’I have them in sight and could get to them in a few seconds. What’s going on?’’
‘’Tina, the security operation to protect the Koorivars from undercover HSF agents has been severely compromised. The woman who alerted us to the HSF plot is now dead, murdered in her hotel room, and the HSF now knows that I betrayed them. Worse, I have proof that an HSF sleeper agent has infiltrated the Spacers League Security Branch and has probably alerted by now the HSF operatives. Those operatives may already be aboard the KOSTROMA by now. I need you to go warn Governor Robeson personally and discreetly, right now! I need to show her a video recording showing the killer of my friend.’’
‘’Hold the line, Michel!’’ Said Tina, the reception now all but out of her mind. She quickly walked to Janet Robeson, who was talking with a graying man. That attracted the attention of a man, probably a security officer, who interposed himself politely but firmly.
‘’The Governor is having a private conversation, miss. I will have to ask you to wait a bit.’’
‘’It can’t wait! This is a matter of life or death!’’ Replied Tina in a strong voice, making the head of Janet Robeson and of many others around turn towards her.
‘’Let Captain Forster approach, Mister Glennis.’’
The security agent stepped out of the way at once, letting Tina walk to Robeson. Tina then undid her wrist communicator and presented it to the governor, holding it at face level. She spoke in a near whisper, so that others could not understand her.
‘’Madam Governor, I have an urgent call from Major Koniev: your security operation concerning the Koorivars has been compromised. You now have Major Koniev on line.’’
Janet Robeson took the communicator and looked at its screen, where Michel’s face could be seen.
‘’Speak, Major!’’
‘’Madam Governor, you have an HSF sleeper agent inside your Security Branch, and probably one at a high level. My friend that alerted me first about the HSF plot against the Koorivars is now dead: I just found her body inside her hotel room on this space terminal. Fortunately, she had the presence of mind of setting her wrist communicator on video recording mode before answering her door and then getting killed. Her killer presented himself as a member of the Security Branch and mentioned me by name to her.’’
Shock showed for a moment on the governor’s face, then she glanced at the man she had been speaking with, who also had been able to hear Michel’s words. She then looked back at the communicator’s screen.
‘’I have presently beside me Director Caldwell, head of the Security Branch. I have complete confidence in him and wish him to see your recording with me. Do you have any objections to that, Major Koniev?’’
‘’No, Madam Governor! In fact, he may just be able to identify Lyudmila’s killer, if we are lucky. I am now starting to replay the murder.’’
With Caldwell first signaling his security men to clear other guests from around him, Robeson and Tina, he then watched stone-faced the recording of Lyudmila’s murder. He however swore under his breath when the killer’s face became clearly visible.
‘’Libmann, you damn bastard! Madam Governor, this man is one of my top lieutenants and is presently in charge of the security detail assigned to the Koorivars and to the KOSTROMA.’’
Both Janet and Tina looked at him with horror, with the governor showing a flash of anger.
‘’Then, I want this man to be found and arrested at once. Don’t hesitate to shoot him if he resists, but try to get him alive: he could be precious to us in telling us who ordered the stealing of the Koorivar anti-matter technology.’’
‘’I will take care of this personally, Madam Governor.’’ Assured Caldwell before walking away and assembling a few of his security men while posting four of them close to Sheraz and Shanandar, who were still oblivious of the latest events. Janet looked back at the screen of Tina’s communicator and spoke in a low voice to Michel.
‘’Are you armed, Major?’’
‘’Yes, I am, Madam Governor. I now intend to get to the KOSTROMA and go aboard to try to find those HSF agents and that Libmann.’’
‘’Do that! I am freeing Captain Forster from this reception, so that she could get back to her ship and put it on alert for those infiltrators.’’
Janet then glanced at Tina, saying only one word.
‘’Go!’’
Tina didn’t have to be told twice, only taking the time to recuperate her wrist communicator before nearly running out of the banquet hall. She then broke out into a run, heading for the taxi stand outside the hotel while punching a call number on her communicator and getting her ship’s head of security on line.
‘’Bill, this is Tina! I want you to discreetly put the ship on alert for armed infiltrators that may try to pass on as either passengers or as terminal employees. Be aware that an officer of the Spacers League Security Branch, a Peter Libmann, is in reality a mole for the Hygiean Security Forces bent on kidnapping key Koorivars in order to steal their anti-matter technology. That man already assassinated a woman here at the terminal. My friend, Major Michel Koniev, has the picture of that Libmann and is on his way to the KOSTROMA. You are to assist him as much as you can, as he may be able to recognize those HSF agents. If you find those agents, take them alive if possible but don’t put your people at risk just for that. If those bastards are found and resist, then shoot! I am now on my way back.’’
Bill Morrison, to his credit, caught on at once to the situation and nodded his head.
‘’You can count of me, Tina.’’
Now a bit reassured, Tina closed the link and, emerging out of the hotel, shouted at one of the compact electric taxis waiting in line at the entrance.
‘’TAXI!’’
She jumped in even before the taxi could come to a complete stop, surprising the driver.
‘’Uh, where to, miss?’’
‘’To Gate Six! Floor it!’’
Inside the ship’s security office on the KOSTROMA, Bill Morrison was frantically assembling his few security guards when a familiar female voice spoke to him via a ceiling speaker.
‘’Mister Morrison, this is Spirit.’’
Holding in a flash of impatience, Morrison went to his security desk and switched Spirit to his intercom.
‘’We have a serious security alert on our hands here, Spirit. What may I do for you?’’
‘’I have a suggestion for you concerning that security alert, Mister Morrison.’’
That left the security man incredulous for a moment: Spirit had in the past responded to queries and requests concerning past problems, as she was programmed to do, but this was the first time that it proposed something without being asked. This was however only the latest example of how Spirit had changed since their discovery of the VEON SHOURIA on Eris and the extensive exchanges between Spirit and Shanya, the main computer of the Koorivar ship. Bill was in fact starting to seriously wonder how much Spirit had really changed in the last months. He however still believed Spirit to be incapable of bringing harm to the ship or its crew.
‘’I am listening, Spirit.’’
18:13 (Universal Time)
Apartment 20291, Bow Gravity Sail Outer Ring
Level 16-D, A.M.S. KOSTROMA
Shoumak, accompanied by his assistant engineer, Kovar, was emerging from his assigned apartment on the Bow Gravity Sail Outer Ring, intent on going to eat at one of the two economy class dining rooms on the Main Cafeteria Deck, but nearly collided with a Human male standing in front of his door. The man had stood with his back to the door and wore a belt supporting two pistols, something that surprised Shoumak. He spoke in a polite tone to the man, using his portable translator unit.
‘’Excuse me, sir. Why are you standing in front of my door?’’
The man, a young and fit one, nodded his head and gave him an apologetic smile.
‘’I am sorry, Mister Shoumak, but I have received orders from the Captain to escort you at all times from now on for security reasons: we have learned of a plot to possibly kidnap one or more specific Koorivars, which includes you.’’
‘’Is that plot linked to our anti-matter technology, mister?’’
‘’It apparently does. Where were you headed with your friend?’’
‘’To the cafeteria, for supper.’’
‘’Good! Then let me lead the way.’’
Now a bit nervous due to that story about a security threat against him and other Koorivars, Shoumak followed the man towards the nearest staircase section, Kovar close behind him. They went down to the outer ring promenade level, where they took the pedestrian bridge leading to the core section and giving a view of two of the forest habitats of the Bow Gravity Sail section. A number of Humans and Koorivars were also using the bridge at the time, most heading towards the core section, along with a few maintenance robots. The armed man then surprised again Shoumak by going to an elevator shaft where no one else was waiting for a cabin. A woman and two children who showed up a few seconds later to get into the cabin called by the man were politely but promptly asked to use another cabin, citing reasons of security. Now frankly puzzled, but never having faced anything in his life that he could have called a security threat, Shoumak went in the cabin with the man and Kovar, with the man pushing a button to designate his destination. Shoumak didn’t really pay attention then, until their cabin passed the level of the Main Cafeteria Deck and continued going down.
‘’Hey! The cafeteria is on Level 10, no?’’
‘’Correct, but we are going somewhere else.’’ Replied the man, all politeness gone, at the same time that he drew one of his two pistols, an impressive weapon with a very large caliber barrel. Just after he said that, the cabin stopped rather abruptly and its doors opened on Level 7, the Hangar Deck. At the same time, a female voice coming from an overhead speaker spoke in Koorivar, its tone urgent.
‘’Quick! Back up to the opposite corner of the cabin from that man.’’
The armed man frowned on seeing the two Korrivars step back from him but didn’t have time to speak before a massive firefighting robot rolled to a stop in front of the opened door of the cabin, one of its appendages pointed at him. A blast of extremely cold white vapor hit the man squarely as he was instinctively pointing his pistol at the robot. Shoumak and Kovar, maybe two paces away from the man, felt their hands and faces nearly freeze at once from the few vapors that reached them, while the armed man was transformed into a frozen statue, slowly tipping over against the walls of the cabin and sliding down to the floor, his now rigid arm still pointing his pistol. The two Koorivars were still contemplating with stupor the frozen shape on the floor when two more armed men came at a run with guns drawn, pointing their weapons at the frozen man. One of the newcomers then looked with concern at Shoumak.
‘’You and your friend are okay, Chief Engineer Shoumak?’’
‘’Uh, yes! What just happened?’’
‘’Spirit was watching you remotely and stopped your cabin at a level where she had posted a firefighting robot. That robot then shot a blast of cryogenic nitrogen gas at your attacker. He will live, but may end up with some superficial freezer burns.’’
After a moment of stupor, Shoumak looked up at the overhead speaker.
‘’Thank you, Spirit. I will owe you.’’
‘’You are welcome, Chief Engineer Shoumak.’’
Shoumak then looked back at the ship’s security guard, who had started to pull the frozen gunman out of the elevator cabin.
‘’Are my people safe now, or are there more bad people like this one on the ship?’’
‘’There are more of them, but we are about to round them up down on the Container Storage Deck. Don’t worry about them anymore.’’
Two levels down from the Hangar Deck, Peter Libmann was waiting with growing impatience near the elevator cabins of the central axis core, two men and one woman around him and with pistols at the ready.
‘’Come on! What is Kovalev doing? He should be here by now with his two Koorivars.’’
The woman in their group, whose beauty belied her nature as a hardened killer, suddenly tensed up and raised her pistol while shouting a warning.
‘’Watch out! Two firefighting robots are approaching from opposite directions.’’
‘’What the…’’ Could only say Libmann as he eyed one of the approaching, massive robots. Firefighting robots were standard pieces of equipment on spaceships and space installations and were designed to fight fires in conditions no human firefighter could hope to survive, even when wearing a spacesuit. As a consequence, they were heavily armored and insulated and were equipped with a number of devices, including a cryogenic nitrogen gas gun and a high pressure water lance. They also had their own gravity drives and could fly in space. He was pointing his own pistol at one of the robots when a man’s voice shouted out.
“DROP YOUR WEAPONS AND RAISE YOUR ARMS, NOW!’’
Out of combat instinct, the three HSF operatives around Libmann pointed their pistols at once towards the now opened door fifteen meters away where the voice had come from and started firing. Whoever was in that opening hurriedly backed away behind cover. Return fire then came from another door opening twelve meters away, downing one of the male HSF operatives and making the female operative cry out in pain before she clutched her left forearm.
‘’AAH! I’m hit!’’
Libmann swore and changed his aim, but he didn’t have time to shoot before the two firefighting robots fired their cryogenic nitrogen gas guns at the group, enveloping it in a swirling white vapor cloud. The four agents stopped firing nearly at once, transformed into icy statues that then toppled down to the floor with hard thumps. Five s