Curse of the Legion (25 page)

"And why did you fire?"

"It appeared clear to me that the O was about to fire and if he did, at that range, we would be instantly annihilated, with no chance to fire back."

"You still haven't told me why you fired first."

"I fired to save my life and that of my companions."

"And who were they?"

"Two Legion Taka auxiliaries, Deadeye Standfast and Stormdawn, and two Taka we had just liberated from the O's—a female, Moontouch, and a Taka child named Love's Child."

"I see. According to the record, you altered the ops plan at the last moment to enter the hive. Why did you do that?"

"We had to rescue the child. He was in the hive, and Moontouch wouldn't leave without him. We hadn't known about him when we planned the op. I made the decision to go in."

"So. You entered the hive, leaving your Phantom—and all the other prisoners you had rescued, including several ConFree nationals—to await your return, should that ever happen. They were unlikely to survive the planned Fleetcom attack, which was by then overdue. Was that responsible? Didn't that bother you?"

"Yes sir, it did. At first I was hopeful we could extract the child quickly, but when it became clear that it might be a lengthy process I ordered the Phantom to leave in order to save the passengers, and to return for us should it prove possible to do so."

"And yet it didn't leave, did it?"

"No sir."

"Why not?"

"My deputy told me my transmission was breaking up and he couldn't read me."

"That would be…let's see…trooper Dragon. The record shows your transmission was perfectly clear." He smiled. "Thank you, Commander. I'm through."

"Any more questions?" The captain asked. There were none. "Thank you, Commander Thinker," he said. "You are dismissed. You will be notified of the verdict and sentencing within the hour. In the meantime, please stand by in the corridor outside. You're needed as a witness in another case."

###

I rested my back wearily against the cold bulkhead of the corridor, closing my eyes. I was sweating. I had no idea what the result of the court-martial would be. I tried to tell myself that I didn't care, that all I could do was tell the truth and let Deadman roll his dice to determine my fate. It was just like the Uldo time drop, I thought. I did the right thing. That's all I can do. If the Legion decides it's wrong, there's nothing for it except to live with the consequences. What will it be? Execution? Banishment? At the very least, a dishonorable discharge, revocation of citizenship and maybe two more years breaking rocks. That'll teach me. No good deed goes unpunished.

"Commander Thinker? This way please." A young vachead opened the door to the courtroom and closed it behind me. Dragon was standing at attention in his blacks, right where I had been a few marks before. He looked terrific—a soldier's soldier, glaring into space. I snapped to attention beside him.

"Commander Thinker." It was the pale young officer with sandy hair. "After you entered the Omni hive on Mantis did you give certain orders to your direct subordinate, trooper Dragon, regarding the presence of the Phantom at the scene?"

"Yes sir," I replied.

"Did you say…and I quote…" he squinted at his d-screen, "Get out, Dragon! Take your folks and get out! There's no need for them to die." My adrenalin gave me a surge, just to hear it.

"Yes sir."

"And when Dragon seemed reluctant to launch, did you subsequently say…" he glanced at the screen again… "Get out, Dragon! That's an order!"

"Yes sir," I sighed. Why did they even bother asking me to show up? They had the whole story on the official record.

"Trooper Dragon," our inquisitor continued. "Did you then reply to your superior officer 'Sorry, you're breaking up. I can't read you.'"

"Yes sir," Dragon said calmly.

"Trooper, the record indicates there were no technical communications problems between Commander Thinker and you. Did you, in fact, have trouble understanding your superior officer's order to 'get out.'?"

"No sir."

"Thank you, trooper. Captain, the people of ConFree are satisfied that the accused is guilty as charged, and we have no further questions."

"Fine," the captain said. "Anyone else?"

The officer with the tan and the wrinkled blacks slowly came to life, smiled and spoke. "Once again my esteemed colleague has established the accused's guilt beyond question. Trooper Dragon deliberately disobeyed a direct order from his commanding officer. That's kind of surprising because this trooper has an outstanding combat record. I'm very curious why he chose to disregard his CO's direct order. Trooper Dragon, please enlighten us. Why did you disobey this lawful order?"

"Yes sir. My commanding officer, two Taka auxiliaries and two liberated Taka prisoners were in the hive. I am not a coward. I am a soldier of the Legion. I could not leave my comrades behind."

"What do you think would have happened if you had left them behind?"

"They would have been killed, and it would have been my fault."

"And what about the mission? What about your Phantom full of innocents, what about the rest of the squad? Don't they count?"

"When I was told to leave, I turned command of the squad over to trooper Sweats and ordered him to launch if the Legion began the attack, or if the O's attacked the Phantom. I then exited the aircar and entered the hive."

"And what was your intent?"

"I was going to extract my comrades."

"I see. And did you witness an Omni, A&A, shielded, with Vulcan scanning and psyprobes active?"

"Yes sir."

"What did you do?"

"I was about to fire, when Thinker beat me to it."

"I see. So, to sum up, you disobeyed this lawful order because you thought obeying it would result in the death of your comrades?"

"Yes sir. That's it."

"Thank you, trooper. That's all for me, Captain."

"Dragon, Thinker, you are both dismissed," the captain said. "Dragon, you will be notified within the hour of the court's decision."

###

"That was fun," Dragon said without enthusiasm, falling into an airchair. We were in a medium-sized cube in the VIP passenger quarters. Moontouch and the kid and several of the Taka females we rescued were crowded in there. I was spending all my spare time with Moontouch, except for the occasional court-martial.

"It doesn't matter, Dragon," I said. "We've got time for a couple of dox before we're executed." Moontouch popped opened a dox and passed it to Dragon. We were gathered around a little table. Moontouch was snuggled up against me, so close we could have been joined at the hips. I thanked Deadman for returning her to me. My life was complete. What the hell did I care about a court-martial? Kill me, leave me alone—I didn't care. That little kid, Love's Child, had his arms around Moontouch, totally content. He looked a lot better than when we found him.

"Slayer!" Deadeye appeared in the doorway, with Stormdawn. They both looked rather distressed, clad in sweaty camfax fatigues and carrying their E's. And they still wore deathpaint. "What is this about punishment? Are you to be killed, for what you did?"

"Relax, Deadeye," I said. "We don't know what's happening yet. We're just waiting to find out."

"Who will do this?" Stormdawn asked. "The Legion?"

"Yes, that's right. The Legion." I sipped at my dox, resigned to my fate. The dox was excellent.

"So, you are to be punished, for doing what is right? No!" Deadeye exclaimed. He was deathly pale.

"They will not touch you, Father!" Stormdawn said, snapping the safety off his E. A terrible resolve showed in his eyes.

"You are under the protection of the Taka nation, Slayer," Deadeye grimly informed me, pointing the barrel of his E to the doorway and activating the laser sights.

"Put those E's away," I said. "There's nothing we can do."

"We can fight! They will not take you, Father! I pledge it!"

"Fear not, my love," Moontouch said, "The Gods of the Past are with you."

"Looks like you've got your own strike force, Thinker," Dragon commented, "in addition to the Gods of the Past. You'd better turn them off before the security folks show up with the verdict and sentence."

"What the hell is this?" Snow Leopard asked. He stood in the doorway, clad in his blacks, and two glowing red laser dots were crawling lazily over his chest. Deadeye and Stormdawn had their E's at their shoulders, poised to blast him into eternity.

"Snow Leopard is my friend!" I snapped. "Turn your weapons away from him!" Deadeye and Storm reluctantly ceased targeting Snow Leopard, but continued holding their E's at the ready, tense and taut, glaring at him.

"I've got the verdicts," Snow Leopard said. "I wanted to tell you myself. Can I do that without getting shot?"

"Have a seat, Snow Leopard, and have some dox," I said. "You know the Taka sometimes get emotional about things."

"Yeah, I know," he said, taking a dox from Moontouch. It was steaming and foamy. He sipped at it in delight, then carefully placed it back on the table and looked at Dragon and me in turn. "Not guilty," he said, "both of you. For the same reason. Seizing the operational initiative in a rapidly changing combat situation, resulting in a favorable tactical outcome. Congratulations."

"How's the dox?" I asked. I didn't give a damn what the Legion decided about my actions. Do the right thing, I thought. That's all I can do.

"It's just like working in an insane asylum," Dragon commented dryly.

"You see?" Moontouch commented. "The Gods of the Past will protect you, my love. You have nothing to fear."

Chapter 20
Evil Deeds

The main starport terminal at Alpha Station was awash in humanity, over-run by boots and vacheads, a chaotic, noisy mob scene as hundreds of arriving and departing troopers milled around in confusion. The shuttle had just dropped us off but we were soon dispersed among the crowd.

"Where the hell are we?" Dragon asked. "I don't even recognize the place."

"They've extended the terminal," I said. "I think this is Terminal 4. We want the main terminal, Terminal 1, for the magtrain to Alpha Station." Andrion's Alpha Starport was, at that moment in time, the busiest starport in the galaxy.

"We are home, Slayer!" Deadeye exulted. "Home and victorious!" He looked ecstatic.

"Home, Mother!" Stormdawn called out. "I bless the Gods!" He seized Moontouch and embraced her. His enthusiasm was contagious. I couldn't stop smiling. I never thought I'd see this day. Ecstatic!

"Thinker!" A girl in black came rushing out of the crowd and leaped right into my arms, almost throwing me off balance.

"Priestess!" I was stunned. Priestess in my arms, a heavenly angel in black, gasping in delight, throwing her arms around my neck and locking lips and not letting go, her slender body wrapped around mine like a boa constrictor. Her feet weren't even touching the ground.

"Welcome to Andrion 2," she beamed as she came up for air. "I'm so glad to see you I think I'm going to cry." She was trembling.

"Priestess. This is wonderful. What are you doing here?"

"I can't live without you, Thinker! You know that. Moontouch! You did it, Thinker, you did it!" Priestess unwrapped herself from me and embraced Moontouch. There were tears in her eyes.

"Come on, Priestess, let's get out of this madhouse and go somewhere we can, uh, talk." I gathered up my two girls and looked around. Deadeye and Stormdawn were both grinning like fools. They still wore deathpaint.

"Where's Dragon?" I asked. Then I spotted him. A sweet little Assidic girl was standing before him. She reached out her arms for him, almost as if praying. She was smiling like a saint. Dragon reached out and gently pulled her to him. Cze Lu! I knew the advice I had given her was going right out the window. But it didn't matter! We were all alive, and it was time to celebrate.

###

On the magtrain back to Alpha Station, I sat between Priestess and Moontouch. The train was packed. Deadeye and Storm and Dragon and Cze Lu were with us, and Love's Child was in Moontouch's lap, soon to be reunited with his parents. It was so crowded, people stood in the aisles. Our group was almost giddy with happiness, talking nonstop. It was only a short distance to Alpha, and the train was fast and smooth.

"I've only got a few fracs, Thinker," Priestess said. "We're terribly busy at the body shop—I've never been busier in my life. But I had to welcome you." Her face was shining with happiness.

"How did you get here?" I asked. "I thought you were going to watch the kids in Providence, while…"

"I couldn't stand it, Thinker. The whole galaxy was at war, and I was a housecat, fat and happy, sipping milk and watching the kittens. I was getting cranky and nasty, shouting at LiLo…even shouting at the kids. I felt ashamed. I just couldn't go on. I turned the kids over to LiLo, and made her promise to watch over them, for eternity if necessary. Then I walked into Providence and raised my hand for Andrion. I was on a starship before the day was out. They desperately need medics. I'm so glad I did it! We've been expecting big casualties from Mongera…or wherever you were going. Millie wouldn't tell me everything. What happened? We heard there was no attack. Is it true?"

"Yes, it's true."

"Well, that's wonderful. All those soldiers…alive! What a miracle."

"Are you sure the kids will be all right?"

"I've learned a lot about LiLo. I'd trust her with my life—and my kids. Where is Millie? Is she all right?"

"She was on a hospital ship, the Tough Love. As far as I know, she's fine."

"Good. Good. That's wonderful! All right, this is Alpha Station. I've got to run to the Body Shop. I'll call you the instant I'm free! My cube is pretty small, but we can squeeze in one more, Thinker!" She gave me a little-girl smile that melted my heart. I knew she had come to Andrion for me—only for me. Moontouch squeezed my hand, her exotic Taka eyes half-closed, her tender lips half-open. Deadman's death, how could any man be more fortunate than I? I've died and gone to heaven.

###

"Go right in, Commander. The general will see you." Tara's secretary triggered the door open. It was the same office I had last seen her in, high atop Alpha Station. Getting an appointment to see her was not easy and I had left a whole lot of brass in the waiting room.

"Wester! What a relief. You look great." She abandoned her chair and came out from behind the huge conference desk to greet me. She was so charged with beauty and energy that she was almost like a human lightning bolt. I figured she'd wind up running ConFree one of these days.

"You look pretty good yourself, Tara. I just wanted to thank you. For the mission, I mean."

"Thank me? I should thank you, Wester. You saved all those people, in extraordinary circumstances. I've read a brief on your actions. How is Moontouch?"

"She's fine. Nothing puts her off."

"That's true. She was…heroic. And the kid?"

"He's fine, Tara. Look, I know it took guts, on your part, to get the mission approved. In view of the planned attack on Mantis. I'd just like you to know how grateful I am."

"That's quite all right, Wester. I try to do the right thing—for everybody. It's not easy—it's seldom easy—to decide what's right."

"That's for sure. What happened to the attack, Tara? Can you tell me that? The official explanations I've heard so far are…unconvincing."

"Yes, I know, Wester." A cloud seemed to pass over her lovely features. "That's on our list of 'Things To Do Today.' We deal in the truth and we owe the truth to the people of ConFree. Nothing less."

"And what was the truth?"

"Let's go outside, Wester, it's a lovely morning." I followed her over to a doorway that led us to a long balcony that ran along the top story of the building. Cool breezes kissed my skin. The world was fresh and bright. We leaned against the railing and breathed in the morning.

"Look at that, Wester!" She flung out her arms, taking in everything. As far as we could see, the Legion's mighty armed camp stretched. It was a gigantic portable military city, thousands of gleaming grey tempomods of every size and function, swarming with troopers, completely surrounding Alpha Station. It seemed even more formidable and busy than when I had last seen it. The Station itself still showed damage from the O's attack. "It's all for the people," she said, "everything we do is for the people of ConFree. And we can do anything, when we put our mind to it. It's a terrible, fearsome power, when we wield it, in the name of the people of ConFree. And we have to be sure we get it right." A harsh thunderclap interrupted her. It continued—I could feel the vibrations in the air. A shuttle was heading upside—there, a blinding golden exhaust and a dark wedge, disappearing into the clouds.

"The planned attack on the O fleet at Mantis was the right thing to do, wasn't it, Tara? I sure think so. We had them in our sights—the whole damned fleet, fat and happy. Revenge, at last, and we cripple them permanently. Right?"

She looked off into the distance. "It seems obvious, Wester, but things that seem obvious are sometimes deceptive. The Council called off the attack, at the last moment, based on the latest information we had. I don't know if that was the right decision or the wrong decision, Wester. Nobody does. But we take responsibility for our decisions at the upper levels of ConFree. I can tell you I was salivating to attack the O fleet, Wester. I wanted rivers of green blood to flow, I wanted every stinking O to die, horribly. I knew a lot of our own soldiers would die too, but I was prepared to accept that, as the price for a great victory. But in the end I urged my comrades to cancel the attack, under certain circumstances. And those circumstances were met. I'll live with my decision, Wester. If we're wrong, we'll probably be executed."

"And what were these circumstances?"

"Have you heard of genetic migration?"

"Yes I have. And I still don't see what that has to do with cancelling our attack."

"That O you sent me from Andrion was very useful, Wester. Our lifies learned a lot—a great deal—about the O's double brain, and mind, and thought processes. Oh, we still don't understand them, we can't communicate with them, but what we did learn from your O was how the O's brain is structured. That's very important. We can make very accurate conclusions about how these creatures act, if we understand how their brain is physically structured. And our life scientists did that. Their preliminary report was convincing."

"And what did they conclude?"

"Well, first of all they told us about the genetic migration, which is triggered biologically, by genetic survival and reproductive mechanisms deep within the brain. They told us that, because of the particular way the O's double brain is structured, the O's see the universe in very clear, unambiguous terms. They would have a strong biological imperative to defend the race and engage in territorial expansion if that was seen as benefiting the race. However, this could only be done if it was clear, to them, that they were completely justified in doing so, morally."

"Morally? You're joking. They're monsters! They eat their enemies!"

"No. Our lifies told me the expansion and aggression of the O's is based on the conviction that they are justified in what they are doing, and that any other creatures they meet, who oppose them, must be viewed by them as evil. In other words, it's good versus evil, in their view. And they're the good guys."

"Who cares what they think? What does this have to do with cancelling the attack?"

"Listen, Wester. If the O's conclude that the race is threatened, or if they conclude that their view of their enemies is seriously wrong, this genetic migration may be triggered. And it will lead to a general retreat, and a long period of reflection, and reproduction, to prepare for the future."

"All the more reason to blast their fleet to atoms."

"Based on what we now know, we have concluded that the general retreat of the O's after the Plague War was a genetic migration, triggered by their defeat by Fleetcom. But our lifies told us more. More fascinating information about the O's. They view other creatures as either friends or enemies, good or evil. There is no middle ground. You can't be neutral. You're with them, or against them. If they are not facing evil—in their eyes—they cannot function as aggressors. Isn't that interesting? Isn't that nice to know?"

"How do we know that?"

"Our lifies tell us the brain structure is very clear. If the O's meet friendship they must—they will—respond in kind. Remember Mantis? Remember what Gildron told us about the O's, when they first landed on Mantis? A ladle of cool water, extended in friendship. The O's have never bothered the Daz'ra, even though they've been living among them. But the lifies told us more. If you are categorized as evil and act it, you confirm their certainty. But if you are categorized as evil and don't act it, you shatter their certainty. They will pause, and try to puzzle it out. What happened after we gave the formula for Xeno-A to the O's, Wester? We saved them from the Plague. And they stopped attacking us. The O's have acted just like our lifies are telling us they should act, based on their brain structure."

"What do you mean, they stopped attacking us? What about Andrion? What about Dindabai? Don't they count?"

"Yes! It's very interesting, Wester. That shouldn't have happened, but it did. The lifies told us one more thing we could expect from the O's. If, for whatever reason, they have classified you as friendly, but you turn on them, they will react with ferocity."

"So what? We didn't turn on them."

"No, we didn't. But they were clearly upset about something. That's why I opened up my mind to your captive O, Wester. That's why I let him roam around in my head, and then sent him back to Mongera. We can't communicate with them, but I wanted him to see—with his psychic powers—that we didn't do whatever it was they were upset about."

"How do you know the lifies are right?"

"What they're saying is reflected by how the O's are reacting, Wester. As we launched the fleet for the Mantis attack, the O's were pulling out of all the worlds they had occupied in our sector. All right, we thought, they were defeated in the Battle of Andrion Deep. So that made sense. But could it be a genetic migration? We knew Mantis was the Hqs for their galactic effort. The orders were that Fleetcom was to attack if we saw no signs that the O's were pulling out of Mantis. But if they were pulling out, the attack was to be cancelled. We used the Q-link eyemotes—and the Q-links on your own sensors—to determine that. It was almost immediately clear that they were pulling out, that it was a genetic migration, and that we had once again made the transition from enemies to friends, based, presumably, on their examination of my brain. If the O's classified us as friendly, the conflict with them would be over. Permanently. And I, for one, viewed that possibility as important enough to justify calling off our attack."

"And that's why we were told not to fire unless fired upon."

"Exactly."

"I see." But I didn't really see. There were plenty of unanswered questions. Tara seemed suddenly subdued, somewhat tired, gazing blankly into the distance. "All right, we save them from the Plague, and then they attack us," I said. "Why did they do that?"

"We don't know, Wester. But we're going to find out. And I believe the consequences are going to be truly horrific, when we do. I'm sending Gravelight to Mantis, to communicate with the Daz'ra, if she can. Do you remember Gravelight? That little blonde girl. Her powers have been growing—she's a lot stronger than I am, at this point. My psychic powers have been fading. Anyway, the Daz'ra are powerful psychers too—not as powerful as the O's of course, but we know they can communicate with the O's. You remember Gildron communicated with them." She sighed, and I knew Gildron's ghost was still with her. "The O's made Mantis their home—for many years. I'm hoping the Daz'ra can tell Gravelight what the O's motivation was to attack us."