Chapter 21: More Pieces to the Puzzle

Roy

Roy came around and felt awful. There was a metallic taste in his mouth and his tongue felt three times as big as normal. Every muscle and every nerve ending was hurting in his body. Now he knew why Neuro Rippers were illegal. It was more a Torture device than a weapon. He found himself sitting in a reclining chair of sorts, his hands and legs wrapped with memory tape. Cara was in a similar seat, and also tied up. Including a layer of tape across her mouth and eyes. He strained his muscles, against the tape. The woman came into view, at least the person that pretended to be a Terran business woman. Still wearing the same business skirt suit, but the face was now paper white, the head bald and something was sticking to the persons chin. He was not entirely certain if the person was male or female, but he was certain it was a Kermac. He had seen images in Xeno Class.

The person said. “Don’t struggle against the tape. It’s a Terran Quality product and could hold a Pertharian.”

Roy tried to speak but all that came out was gibberish. His tongue really was swollen and hurt badly as he tried to move it.

The person said. “Don’t you worry Roy. You see I am Kermac as you so correctly identified and I am a Telepath. I can read your thoughts. While I could fix your tongue and make you more comfortable, I like you to suffer and know who is in charge here. Any thought of escape I will know as soon as you think it and I will take measures to prevent it.”

Roy didn’t want to talk to that slime but he could not stop his own mind from thinking and the question as of why the Kermac were so interested in a simple Terran Teenager was heavy on his mind.

The disguised Kermac sat down, and the way the Alien sat, Roy was certain it was a male. No woman, at least no human woman would sit like that.

The Alien said. “How observant, I think I need to work on my mannerism, but then I am not an expert spy and since I succeeded where the Ministry of Information failed, I doubt I need to disguise myself much longer.”

The Kermac pointed at Cara. “She will suffer like no being has ever suffered if you don’t exactly do whatever I want you to do.” The Alien fiddled with the beard like thing on his chin and leaned forward. “Ah you ask yourself why you’re here. I want you to guide us to through the jungles of Green Hell and to a region called the White Mountains. An associate of ours finally found what we are looking for.”

There was hot rage and ice cold hate inside Roy and he hated his captor and he started to hate the Kermac.

The Alien recoiled. “Oh my such strong emotions, you Terrans are all alike, primitive emotional primates that should have never been allowed off that blue planet of yours.”

He tried to remember what he had seen while he was at the White Mountains. What could there be that was so important and who was their associate?

The Kermac supplied the answers.”I am sure you remember the old Saresii living all by himself in a Research Outpost?”

Of course he did. He had seen him many times at Ma Swenson’s Boathouse. Sabari Dohr stomping in a Krauss Armor suit through the jungles of Green Hell for almost 300 years, at least that is what he always said.

“Ah you do remember him. Well he was working for us and only a few days ago he found the location of the first Saresii ship that crash landed on Green Hell. One would think that after 300 years of experience he would know the jungles but our mutual friend never made it back from the White Mountains, he died, killed by whatever crawls in your jungles.”

To Roy the whole story became weirder by the moment. Green Hell was discovered by the Saresii during their First Age of Knowledge and that was over a million years ago. What could be left after such a long time to explain all this?

The Saresii answered. “The secret of Translocator technology.”

Phil

Celyciia came out of the small but well equipped bathroom of Phil’s ship. She almost felt like a person again, but she still wasn’t happy. She felt as if they had sold their souls to the devil to get out. Phil and Ruddick sat at the mess table and nursed cups of coffee.

The Saresii said. “I am still pissed. I still think we need to find those double crossing bastards that worked us over, even if we can’t touch that invisible demon.”

Phil said. “Knowing her they are all dead. She never leaves loose ends.”

Ruddick didn’t look happy either. “We are still lose ends. Can we even assume she keeps her part of the bargain?”

Phil sighed. “I am trying to prove she exists, put a name and a face to her for a very long time and have not been able to do that. Kiddos I am trying to tell you that I am more or less still a simple flat foot from Pre Astro New York. I am not like Stahl with a cosmic vision and an almost mystical understanding of things. She was right, I was not selected, I have no purpose like the other Immortals. Cherubim is like a ghost, has a thousand faces and deep connections in every government agency there is, but hunting her I have learned that there is one person she respects and fears and that is Stahl.”

Ruddick said. “Why is he not doing something right away then. I am sure he knows about it. My confidence and pride in our Union is severely disturbed. How can I believe that the Rule of Law applies to anyone?”

Phil sighed. “As I said there is no evidence she really exists and as long as there is no evidence there is nothing I can tell him. He is integrity incarnate because he sticks to the laws and decisions. I can’t tell you to trust the system again of course, but I’ve seen a lot in my life and no system is perfect, but overall our Union it is the best I have seen so far.”

Celyciia suddenly smiled. “Well you sure showed them, disappearing and returning from the dead.”

“It hurt like hell, being shot like that.”

“How did you disappear like that?”

“I can teleport. I had my Psionic abilities raised in the many years I was on Sares and I was trained by Gray Cats, but it exhausts me and I can’t do it often.

Ruddick finished his coffee. “So what are we doing now. Our trail ran cold in that warehouse.”

“We go to Green Hell. I think this is where the answer lies. If we can find out what they are after, we will be a big step closer solving this mystery.”

Roy

Roy suffered greatly. His arms hurt, his wrists were bleeding and swollen, and he was sure his tongue got worse than better, maybe it was infected or something. Despite all the physical discomforts he felt even more sorry for Cara and he really missed Partner. He could not explain why his animal would so completely disappear, but then Partner had always done what he asked it to do and he told Partner to go away. As marvelous as his animal was, it was an animal and did not have the level of understanding like a sentient person had.

How could you plan an escape if your captor was able to read your thoughts?

He was denied to go to the bath room and did not get any water or food. Not that he believed he could have swallowed anything solid. He had soiled himself and he was stinking and that made him feel even worse.

The Kermac came back every so often and kicked or hit the Saresii woman and always telling her how much he hated the Saresii and how much she and all Saresii would suffer once the Kermac had Translocator technology and then swept the Union out of existence...

There was a fire of hatred burning in Roy towards the Kermac and it became hotter by the hour. It was this hate that gave him strength to somehow bear his ordeal.

There was no real way of telling time, but finally two men supervised by the evil Kermac picked him up and stuck him into a luxury model Auto-dresser with hygiene function.

The machine told him and the men outside that medical attention would be required as well but that only resulted in laughter and the Kermac said. “If you do everything we tell you to do, I might even be persuaded to give you medical attention.”

Roy said. “I get out of this somehow and then I am going to hunt you down, you and every henchman of yours and then I am going to kill every Kermac I can find.”

“You are so typical Terran, all these empty boosts. All this primitive emotion, how much better would the Universe be if you apes had never ascended. Not that you could have done that on your own anyway.”

A cold smile crept into Roy’s face. “Strange enough we upstarts kicked your arses every time, can you imagine what the Assembly is going to do if they get wind of all this?”

“They will tremble in fear, knowing we have Translocators!”

“Nope White Face, they will send Stahl. Every teenager knows that!”

Somehow invoking the Eternal Warriors name had quite an effect on the Kermac. There was a momentary expression of open fear on his usually smooth face.

Roy dug deeper and said. “Who’s got primitive emotions now?

The Kermac slapped him across the face. “You will sing a different tune soon. We Kermac have the means to make you simple beings do whatever we want. You call it Psionic Suggestions, we call it Kermac Dominance.”

The Kermac produced an apple sized alien device and Roy could almost see the invisible fingers that extended from the device engulfing his head. He screamed, he tried to concentrate and somehow keep the alien influence out of his mind but there was nothing keeping the soothing whispering voices out of his mind. He felt his rage and anger ebb, and while he knew it was a foreign influence he suddenly begun to accept the Kermac’s superiority. His innermost self felt like a caged animal inside his own body his own mind. His resistance faded, but just as he was about to slip completely under psionic hypno-control if the Kermac he heard a new voice in his mind, it was a female voice and she said. “You are coming back my child, don’t despair. No psionic tricks can keep you enslaved once you are back home!”

The Kermac removed the restrains, the two men stepped back not trusting the psionic powers of the Kermac entirely. They remembered what Roy had done to them in a flash of action.

But Roy simply stood there and the Kermac said. “Give him back his equipment, Kermac powers hold him safer than any mechanical restrains ever will. If I want he will commit suicide or kill without hesitation. His mind is mine!”

Another man stepped into the bath room and said. “We are about to enter the Maxwell System and reach Desolate.”

Phil

Phil and his two new friends landed at Harper’s Junction in the Maxwell System from where they wanted to take a shuttle to Green Hell. But since there was only one shuttle connection per day and the last one had just arrived, they needed to wait till next day.

Both Celyciia and Ruddick had recovered somewhat from the ordeal, but the carefree and friendly banter atmosphere from before had not returned. Celyciia could intellectually understand that there was the need for clandestine and subterfuge on such levels to protect the Union. She had no illusions that the Kermac and all the others that opposed the Union would play by the rules. But she had grown up to believe that the Union was simply bigger and its armor was impenetrable simply because there were no weaknesses and no cracks. Of course she was a police woman long enough to know that there were always cracks and that the shiniest top side had a dark underbelly.