Koban: Rise of the Kobani (62 page)

“What the hell kind of advanced suit do you have?” He was wheezing from the increased pressure on his ribs, and his hands were feeling numb from the circulation cut off at his elbows. There had to be skin colored gloves to maintain that unbreakable steel grip.

“Top, you really don’t listen to me or believe me when I speak the plain truth, do you?  I
said
I don’t have a suit, and what I do have is built into me. I was born with part of it, the rest was grown with genetic modifications later, and more will be added soon. My children, if I live to have any, will inherit every enhancement I have. Does that provide enough to make you quit fighting me? I’d rather not have to break anything to get you to stay still and listen.”

“I know perfectly well you are saying what you think I want to hear. To get me to incriminate myself.  There is no such capability to modify humans to do even what I can do as a Special Ops soldier, let alone what you are doing now. It’s new technology. It’s something my men need more than a damned snoop like you needs.”

Jorl sighed, but latched onto his last words. “You want your men, and yourself I presume, to have the ability to meet a Krall on even terms, right?”

“You frigging well know that! It’s what the spec ops program was designed to do.”

“No, the program you have now is destined to
fail
, because you can’t match Krall reaction speeds with any technology that depends on your own nerve speed as the trigger. Did you notice I stood still when you charged at me just now, until you were literally at arms-length? To me you moved in extreme slow motion the whole way. A Krall is at least five times faster than you are, but they also move slowly, at least to my perceptions.”

“What are you,” Crager snapped, “some left over Clone War monstrosity?”

Jorl paused, unprepared for that deliberate, if off the mark insult, coming from a person he had expected to be more receptive.

The extended moment of silence did what talking had not for Crager’s thoughts. “What? Are you a clone? Someone learned how to make them again? We might win this war if we can make more of you.”

Jorl shook his head. “I went from monstrosity to man-made savior in ten seconds flat. No wonder Captain Mirikami was so reluctant to come to Human Space to get help. You Normals flip flop too damned fast. If we can find a way to help you win the war, you’ll turn on us when it’s over. And no, I’m not a clone, I’m a one of a kind me.”

“OK. I apologize for that stupid thoughtless remark. I give my word that I will not renew my attack on you without advanced warning. Please set me down. I want to talk.”

Jorl set him on his feet and released him. As Crager started to turn around, shaking his arms to restore circulation, he reminded the man. “I didn’t have any warning the first time you jumped me, so it doesn’t matter to me if you announce it in advance. Same result, except I’ll just break an arm or leg next time.”

Crager nodded. “It matters to me. I just gave you my word.”

“I’ll accept your word. However, before I say any more, Top, I want to hear something from you. What are your hopes for improving humanity’s chances in this war? What do you expect that people with my ability can bring to the table?”

Crager decided to stick his neck farther out. This mere boy had him beat anyway. “I believe we have to improve ourselves genetically. Spec ops requested research to be done in that area, and we were turned down strenuously. I can’t see any sign of a suit on you. Is your speed and strength really built-in, and can be inherited?”

“Yes, although thus far the degree of inheritance has only been proven to extend to what I received from my parents, who received a handful of the clone mods of three hundred years ago as the starting point for my own ability, and the ability of many of my generation on our home world. Then we enhanced ourselves greatly from that point, with new modifications that have made us superior to the Krall. Everything we have done can be passed on to our descendants, and we are capable of intermarriage with other, standard humans, or Normals as we refer to you. I am, in effect, an example of a new race of our human species, just as your heritage, if I judge your features and skin color correctly, is a mix of Caucasoid and Negroid.”

Crager shrugged. “I’m even more of a mix than that. However, most people today are. Where did you find bio-scientists that know how to do this?”

“Funny you should ask. I jumped the fence earlier tonight to get the data cube and some tissue samples to sneak into the possession of one of your scientists here. It explains much of what we have done and tells how we did it, and what’s required. I doubt you have the technical knowledge to ask me the right questions, which is fine, because I don’t know jack about genetics. I’m just a messenger, and a living example.”

A chilling doubt crept into Crager’s mind at the mention of Jorl’s reason for leaving the camp. “Who met you out there? How did they get there?”

“It was a remote piloted Krall single ship. Controlled by our AI, launched from a captured clanship, which we renamed the Avenger. We stole the ship in a raid on K1. I told you we could beat the Krall in a fight, one-on-one. Our problem is that there are probably a hundred million warriors for each person like me. We need to sneak up on them, and not let them know who we are or where we are based, something spec ops knows how to do. We have some of our people receiving training right now, on Poldark. Do you know Colonel Trakenburg? He’s in charge of a small training camp that resembles this one.”

“Frank Trakenburg?”

“I don’t know his first name. None of us on the Avenger met him since we never landed on Poldark. That was a different captured clanship, which landed there. He was less than cooperative at the start. About as friendly as you have been tonight, frankly.”

“He’s a very by-the-book stiff necked officer. I was one of his trainers years ago, before he rose in the ranks. You managed to win
him
over?”

“When we left orbit, he was still organizing the training for more of our people, with the cooperation of General Nabarone.”

“You claim to have friends in high places. I’ll have to confirm this, you understand.”

“Fine. If you can get anyone to admit it to you. They are keeping this as secret there as you are your own plans here. The Hub government isn’t going to accept what we have to offer. Not until the war is much closer to being lost. Poldark will go down within two years, and then one or two other worlds will be next in line. We can’t wait too long to go after the Krall where they live, and strike where their war material is made.”

“How can you know about any plans we had here?” Suspicion again.

He avoided a direct answer again, not willing to reveal Fred’s Mind Tap ability. “Dr. Lisa Markel is one of your scientists. She wants to do the work on genetics. We were going to try to leave our data in her private quarters
, anonymously. Now I can just pass it to you and let you do that for us. We’ll be leaving Heavyside soon. The three of us were never planning to finish your training program here. It would take far too long at the slow pace you set. We can be ready for missions in a month or less, if we meet up with those of us that have finished training on Poldark.”

“You boys might be good, but you don’t know enough to take on actual missions.”

“Top, I don't know enough right now, that’s true. However, aside from an accelerated learning ability, we also have a learning transfer method that is genetically unique to us. We can learn every combat related thing you know in a month or less,
if
you decided to share it with us. We can’t force you to do that, and would not if we could. Besides, we don’t have time to do that now. However, I hope we can meet again in the future.”

“Breaker, you keep telling me you have a reaction speed faster than a Krall. I felt your strength, and I saw you run and climb up here faster than I could do the same, but I didn’t really see your reaction speed. Although I never saw your hand coming. You split the inside of my upper lip.”

“Too bad. I think you were trying to split more than my lip. I guess you want a demonstration?”

“Nothing dramatic or painful, but yes.”

Jorl grinned. “There’s a game we play with kids below age sixteen. They don’t receive the gene enhancement that provides the linkage to a high-speed nervous system when they’re any younger than that. Here’s how it goes. I’m going to reach up and touch a single finger to the tip of your nose, with either or both hands, starting with my hands hanging by my side. You will already have your hands up by your face, ready to smack my hands away before I can touch your nose. If you so much as touch my hand or fingers in the process, you win. Ready?”

Crager looked skeptical, but raised his hands in a defensive position near his face. He’d already activated his chemical boosters when he was climbing up the tower. He was as fast as his suit and embedded platinum nerve overlays could make him.

“Go.” Crager told him

His fruitless swiping at the blurred hands completely missed their targets. Jorl had tapped the end of Crager’s nose not once, but twice, using one hand at a time, both before he could block either one.

“Crap!”

“Yes, I believe I will,” Jorl agreed.  “It has been a long night and hours since I ate. We have a high metabolism, and I’m sure you noticed how warm I look in infrared. It’s close to sunrise, and we should probably get down. I’ll have to ask Yil or Fred in person where they stashed the data cube and tissue sample. You told me you have our transducer frequencies jammed. They picked up the data cube from my bunk after I jumped back over the fence and hit the showers.”

It was a subtle difference, but Jorl had slipped into an attitude of dealing with Crager as an equal, not as his Top Sergeant and a superior he needed to please. He was ready to get back to the Avenger and go home.

“I’ll meet you at my barracks, with Fred and Yil and the data cube. I’m sure you could have some men meet us with weapons, but not only would that turn ugly for them, but your secret plans to improve spec ops capability will die as well.” With that, he stepped backwards off the edge of the platform, to skim down the steep rough sloped sides at a breakneck pace, his boot toes tapping rapidly and loudly on the logs to control and slightly slow his drop. Near where the base flared out slightly, he kicked off and performed a neat double back flip and a twist to land on his feet at a dead run. He had been waiting weeks to show off.

Crager briefly was tempted to drop down the same way, but then told himself that his arms still tingled too much from the cut off circulation, and chose to climb down normally. This conveniently ignored the fact that Jorl had not used his hands and arms for his descent.

Jorl burst into Fred’s barracks, but he wasn’t in his bunk. He woke several other men in his rush through the doors. Most of them had been kept up late last night and the rumor that Jorl was somehow the cause for the precious loss of sleep on the first free weekend didn’t make him exactly popular. He headed for Yil’s barracks, one building farther away.

Midway between buildings, he heard his name called. It was both of his friends.

In a low voice Fred asked, “Jorl, what did the First Sergeant do?”

“Yea,” Yil prompted. “We heard he was mad enough to kill you.”

“You joke, but I think you’re closer to the truth than you know. I believe Top is part of a small local conspiracy to develop genetic modifications for spec ops, to fight the Krall more effectively. Does that story ring any bells?” He laughed.

“Damn. Really? We have the cube and tissue samples with us. If they searched all the barracks, we knew we couldn’t let them find them. We were discussing going over the fence by the housing area, and breaking into Dr. Markel’s unit. Did you just walk away from Crager? It sounded like you had been consigned to exercise purgatory and doing penance. Missing breakfast would be the worst part of that.” Yil chuckled.

“Crager thought we were spies, sent to find out about their beginning plans for genetics research. He was prepared to make certain no one lived to tell the tale. He sent me up Everest in the dark, and tried to jump me. I assume he intended that I have a fatal accident in the dark. I stopped him.”

Fred sounded horrified. “Jorl! You didn’t kill him did you?”

“Ease down on the panic. No, he was climbin
g down Everest the last I saw him, on my way to find you two. I sorta filled him in on our mission, and he is supposed to meet me at my barracks building in a few minutes. Besides,
Mister Outraged
, after he tossed me off Everest, he had accident plans for you two as well, because he knows we’re together. Hold out your hand Fred, I can pass this on faster than the time we’ve already wasted talking.”

They touched hands, and Jorl briefed them in less than a minute on everything that had happened after he and Crager headed for the obstacle course.

“What if he does show up with a gun or other armed men?” Yil wasn’t particularly trusting.

“If the three of us don’t feel we can take them, we could let them hold us for a short time. However, Fred can confirm Crager’s intentions with a question and a touch. I don't want to kill anyone that can be an ally, but if it’s us or them, they lose.”

Fred agreed. “Let’s go to your barracks. It’s getting light in the east anyway. We’ll be able to see better shortly. I can’t wait to get the next mods. Dark sucks.”