Fortified (14 page)

JD scowled and gazed down at his costume. “This is cool.”

“For a twelve-year-old's birthday party,” Orlando chimed in, also taking off his mask. “At least take off the extra pair of underwear and hide it in your pocket. We're going back to civilization soon.”

“Fine…” JD took off his mask at last and then began to tweak his costume so he didn't stand out quite as much. They could have easily explained the outfits away. He took in a slow, cleansing breath, a tiny smile forming on his lips.
Me, I did it. I finally have my powers.

A
lan chased
after his father through the narrow underground tunnels. These particular tunnels didn't seem as sturdy or well engineered like the ones around town. Normally, that kind of thing would give him reason to hesitate.
But he's my
father! And he'd never forgive himself if he let the man get away.

They turned right and into a dead end. It seemed his father wasn't familiar with the area either. He searched for a door and found nothing beyond a sleeping bag and pillow tucked away in a nearby corner.

“When you said you had the leak narrowed down to the top four officials of our tribe, I'd made the assumption to trust you weren't one of them,” Alan said bitterly. “Now I see you were just trying to throw me off of your trail. I don't understand why you'd want to work with the Gelandrosimbol or Basatlavan.”

His father faced him, giving him a sad smile. “They aren't who I'm delivering information to. I'm sharing with the governments of this planet.”

“They're already being informed,” Alan seethed. He clenched his hands into fists.

“Not as much as they should be. I told them about the drug being used to recruit teenagers. About how it is already for sale on the black market so they could have the chance to purchase it for themselves. There is so much the nations here didn't know and don't you think it's their right to be told? We are invading their planet, after all.”

“Our people could have died!” Alan recalled all of the foiled missions, the number of close calls he'd had with just his team alone thanks to the way things seemed to conveniently go wrong too often.

“Their people are already dying. The innocent teenagers being manipulated into science experiments, remember? Less of this would happen if the government had more control. They could choose who became soldiers, make them trained military personnel instead of random individuals who happen to be a match to the Wimosiphyer, our technology. It all goes back to us when it should be about them.”

Alan shook his head, unable to believe what he was hearing. “But behind everyone's back? That's the part I don't understand. Couldn't you have worked something out so no one needed to be hurt unnecessarily? I don't always like our tactics, but I respect protocol. It's in place for a reason. You're encouraging chaos and that's so much more dangerous, especially in a war! Wasn't the whole goal to keep people in the dark so they could be safe?”

“Negotiations were taking too long,” his father said slowly.

Footsteps running through the tunnels grew closer. Alan stiffened, ready for one or more of his father's assistants to barge into the scene. When he realized it was Jaes, he relaxed…but only a little. There was still the possibility Jaes might be involved. A thought that soon went out the window when his friend displayed a pair of laser handcuffs from out of his pocket. The blue energy crackled between the metal pieces dangling from his fingers.

Jaes stepped forward with a confidence Alan needed before he lost all of his nerve. “This is not a crime that will go unpunished.”

His father laughed, his gaze settling on Alan, as if expecting his son to intervene. “Is that so?”

No. He needs to know he will get no sympathy from me.
Alan took in a shaking breath. “By Code 785 of the Alturan Unification Committee constitution, you are under arrest,” Alan somehow managed to say. His entire mouth felt dry, his speech coming out on autopilot. “You will be held in a cell of the Rosalotuve until your trial before the committee takes place on Altura.” He swallowed. “Should you resist arrest, we are allowed to use any force necessary to bring you in.”

“I'm disappointed,” his father said softly. His eyes briefly met Alan's before he averted them back to Jaes who moved closer, cuffs at the ready.

“Not as disappointed as I am,” Alan said, biting back his tears.

Jaes was almost upon his father when the man disappeared into thin air. “I didn't realize this was a gift that ran in the family.”

Alan stared at the empty space where his father once stood. “I didn't know either, but it certainly puts all of the pieces together.” His father's teleportation ability explained Drone's quick escape from the ship. It also explained how he could come aboard to get information as he needed it.
And because he is a higher officer, he has the clearance to get into a lot of areas most of us can't. Possibly even manipulate other members of the ship to join him.

He squeezed his eyes shut. Jaes placed a hand on his shoulder. A hand he shrugged away. “I'm fine.” Alan was pretty sure his friend knew it was a lie. For the time being, he got to indulge in it. “We need to speak with Sir Orioltogorthan, now, and my charges. I need to make sure they're safe.”

“Would you rather I talk to Sir Orioltogorthan?” Jaes offered. “You can focus on finding your charges and tracking down the Ilotus.”

Emotionally numb, Alan nodded, all the while wondering when the world started to spin so fast. Why was he all of a sudden so dizzy? So nauseous? The real weight of what just happened crashed over him, becoming an unbearable load to carry. What would happen now? What about his mother and sister back home?

Jaes must have sensed all of Alan's distress because he silently brought them back to the ship. Once in the safety of their vessel, he drew Alan into a hug. “The technicians can help you track your charges. I will find you soon. I promise. Unless you are in need of me now? I can stay with you until you are ready.”

Shaking his head, Alan held onto his friend for a moment, long enough to keep his tears at bay. “No, go check in. I'll be okay.”
For now.
He stood in the empty hall of the ship, watching his best friend leave. Guilt filled him at the realization of how horrible of a person he was to ever doubt Jaes. At least he didn't have to hide things anymore. That was one less burden to deal with.

He slowly made his way to the technicians sector. There was always someone working and monitoring the situation on Earth. When he walked into the room, people actually stopped what they were doing to acknowledge him. Since when did anyone on the ship respect him? Had it been going on for a while, and he just didn't notice it? He paused, soaking in the moment, before going to the head tech on duty.

“I won't take up much of your time, but I'm in need of a tracking system so I can find where my charges are to make sure they're safe.” Somehow he managed to have some kind of authority present in his voice. Surprising since it was taking so much of his effort to not shake. Even more surprising was that he could remember the assigned codes to identify his charges.

The tech gazed up at him before nodding. With a few quick keystrokes and a pinch of her fingers on the screen in front of her, she located JD, Orlando, and Angela for him. They were still close to where he'd left them.

“What's this building here?” he asked, pointing to a small box shape on the map.

“A business of some kind. Convenience store is what the people here call it, I believe,” the tech replied.

They must have succeeded in getting away.
“Thank you. That's all I needed.” Alan almost teleported right then and there. He knew he should have. That would have been the responsible thing to do since he was in charge of their well-being. What would he say to them, though? As soon as he arrived, they'd know instantly something was wrong. Was he ready to tell them his father was a traitor? Should he?
Is it their business to know? I never told them about the leak. Only Cadence…
She was who he wanted to see most. His thoughts couldn't linger on her for long, however, because Jaes rejoined him.

“He wants to see you in his office,” Jaes said.

Of course Sir Oriol would want to see me.
“Now?” he asked, hopeful the encounter could be delayed.

“Yes. Are your charges well? Do you want me to check in with them?”

Alan exhaled. “Make sure they're safe, but don't engage them in conversation. I'd like to talk with them myself.”

“Of course.” Jaes saluted. “It'll be okay.”

The words seemed vain. Alan appreciated them all the same. “Thank you.”

His friend gave a small smile before putting his attention on the tech's computer screen. Alan took this as a good sign to leave. While he knew he should have rushed through the hall, he instead walked slowly, his hands deep in his pockets. The only thing he focused on was his breathing, using that as a distraction from his mind so he could remain calm in his commanding officer's quarters. A commanding officer who liked to berate him simply because of who his family was.
Maybe he knew all along what kind of a man my father actually is…

Alan reluctantly entered Sir Oriol's office, ready to get the torture over with.

“Sit down,” his superior said in a surprisingly gentle voice. “The day has come where I can gloat, and I oddly do not want to take the opportunity to do so.”

“Thank you for being considerate of my feelings,” Alan said darkly. He gripped his knees tightly. It was about the only thing he could do that wouldn't result in him punching the man.

Sir Oriol gazed across his desk at Alan. “I should be thanking you for staying loyal to our cause.”

“Regardless of the sentiments my father and I
do
share in regards to our mission, I am an Alturan, not an Earth human,” Alan stated. “My job is to help end the war, not make it worse. Our mission is to leave Earth as close to untouched by our presence as possible. It is something I agree with strongly because I see how painful the changes are to my charges who are willing to be involved. Then I think about those who won't have a choice in the matter.”

“Good, I'm glad you haven't lost sight of those goals. Of who you are.” Sir Oriol paused. “Do you know why your father and I have squabbled for so long?”

Alan shook his head. “No, Sir.”
Why would my father tell me anything?

“Because a long time ago, your father and I worked together on a mission back home.” Sir Oriol folded his hands in front of him. “I won't bore you with all of the details, but we were doing ground work with the Yumsaltanz during the beginning of their conflict with the Gelandrosimbol. We were supposed to help protect them from spontaneous attacks. You know how the Yumsaltanz are. They're so passive most of the time, so reluctant to fight.”

Alan nodded to show he was listening, but he had little to add.

Sir Oriol watched him for a moment before continuing. “We were patrolling the village where we were stationed when we found an enemy spy. She was taken into custody and held as a prisoner of war. You're familiar with the laws regarding those, yes?” Again Alan nodded. Sir Oriol sighed. “Even then, your father seemed to be above things like rules and laws and orders. I'm sure in his mind, he thinks he is doing the right thing despite his careless actions.

“We were told to guard her and nothing else. A specialist would be coming to interrogate her in the morning. Your father thought it would be a good idea to do the questioning himself. He didn't think it a good idea to wait.” Sir Oriol shook his head. “I'll spare you the details. In the end, he got valuable information that led to another village being spared decimation. The cost, however, came at the price of him breaking every rule I can think of in regards to how a prisoner should be questioned. It resulted in her death. Perhaps a village was saved, sort of. The attack still happened. Our forces were able to aide and overpower the enemy before it got worse.”

He leaned forward and folded his hands together on the table. “The thing you must understand about your father is his disrespect for protocol. His actions cost the life of a woman who didn't need to die in order to give up the information she possessed. A woman who was a wife and a mother. But he doesn't think of these things when he gets his noble ideas, and that is why I dislike him so. He cares more about his ego than anyone else. While he may say he gave up our intelligence to Earth because he wants to help them, he only wants to help himself. Somehow he's found gain in this situation, and I'm determined to find out what that is.

“When you came aboard this vessel, I was concerned you would follow in his footsteps. A few of your actions have been questionable, though I never explicitly told you no. You find the loopholes. Don't misunderstand me. I want you to question if you ever see something that breaks our code of ethics, but I don't want you to make the same mistakes he's made. The man I saw torture that woman was one who didn't value human life. He was no better than our enemies. They don't follow the rules of common decency either, and that is what makes them so hard to beat.”

Letting out a breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding, Alan leaned forward. Confusion, anger, frustration, everything billowed up inside of him. The man described to him by Sir Oriol was not the man who raised him. His father had been nothing but kind and taught the importance of standing up for what's right. Alan had a hard time believing his father killed anyone using torture, especially for so-called “selfish reasons”. It did explain one thing about his father though: Why he'd turn on his people. Something else must have been going on that Alan wasn't aware of yet.

For the time being, he played the obedient servant. Until he was told to do something completely against his morals, he would trust his captain.

“That isn't the kind of heroism I was raised to aspire toward,” Alan said at last.

“Of course not. I'm just glad you're more like your mother.”

“You know her?”

Sir Oriol nodded. “Does this surprise you? Honestly, Alanmendiquixanimackle.”

“I suppose it shouldn't,” he said, though he wondered if there was more going on that he wasn't being told. Alan was almost twenty-one years old. Shouldn't he have at least seen Sir Oriol over at the house if he was so well acquainted with both of his parents? He'd barely heard the man's name in passing. If not for his mother's warning, he'd have never known about the bad blood between Oriol and his father at all.