5 months later, October 19th, 2264. 11:30 St. Mary’s Station – Commercial Wing
Agent Aaron Voss had received a highly encrypted, and cryptic, message from John the week prior. He didn’t want to go but his superiors were insistent on him attending the meeting just in case. Their attempts to send additional agents with him had failed. Each one was uncovered for odd or highly speculative reasons and was turned away at the border.
Much to his chagrin, his flight was changed at the last second to a different void liner. Aaron was a seasoned intelligence agent. He knew at that point he was along for the ride and there was nothing he could influence where he was going. He shrugged things off and just went along with the flow. Intelligence agents never, ever, want to feel like someone else is controlling the situation or narrative. It’s not in them to feel that way.
And here he was stepping onto St. Mary’s station feeling like he had been played like a fiddle every moment of the past two weeks. A deep and loud sigh was given off as he walked towards his destination. At least it was a Texas BBQ restaurant. If he was going to be double-crossed at least he’d eat well before then.
Once he walked inside the restaurant, he saw John enjoying a beer and waving him over. He smirked as he walked over to John’s table. Aaron set his coat on the stool next to him and sat down.
“Well, you got me, and only me, here.”
John smirked after he took a sip of beer, “Well, then things went according to my plans. I didn’t want your friends to overhear our discussions.”
Aaron shook his head at John as their waitress, “Do you have a plate with a little bit of everything?”
“Hi honey,” the waitress said in a Texas-style drawl, “There sure Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome. What’ll you have big guy?”
“Same thing, also a reload of this please,” John smiled before finishing the mug.
Aaron waited for her to leave before looking straight at John, “Ok, out with it. What’s so bloody important to get me here. You freaked my department the fuck out.”
John leaned into the table and said quietly, “I need you to schedule a meeting with your aunt.”
“Look, a cabinet member cannot be speaking to a spy for an enemy nation.”
“Navy corpsman technically. Not a spy anymore,” John said quietly and seriously, “There is a big distinction between the two that I feel like you’re overlooking.”
Aaron laughed and thanked the waitress for delivering their fresh round of beer, “This whole operation has me thinking otherwise. This has your hallmark all over it.”
“A cabinet member traveling to the border station in Epsilon Gamma Triangulum system isn’t unheard of.”
“Why her and why there?”
“She’s one of two confirmed remaining holdouts protecting the good doctor. It’s a safe station for her to visit. You can have your normal security team arrive there first to sweep the facilities.”
“That still isn’t a good enough answer.”
John looked at Aaron, “She’s the only one I have a reasonable connection to set up a meeting. Put another way Aaron, she’s the only cabinet member I have hope in hell of speaking to. You can set up the meeting, and I think you know that I’m not going to do anything to burn you or hurt your position in any way.”
“Look John, you realize that I’d be setting a meeting up with a sitting cabinet member with a former spy and current member of a foreign military,” Aaron shook his head, “Who is actively waging war on an organization that calls the Union home.”
“I’m trying to help both nations. Your government is currently fomenting cancer. You know this to be true. And you also know that I can help you out.”
“If she is harmed in any way…” Aaron let the sentence hang.
“Do you really think I’d go straight to homicide against a member of a foreign government?”
“Yes, I do think you are capable of that.”
John frowned, “Dude. I have no problem killing people that need a good killing. I’m not willing to start a bloody war. There’s no benefit in doing that. Plus, I’ve been given precise orders not to start a war with the Confederacy.”
“What do we get out of this arrangement?”
“Dr. Norman stops complicating things for you.”
“Personally, I agree with you on that point, but that isn’t going to cut it for them.”
The wheeling and dealing paused as the men received their meal. Their conversation continued, albeit less focused, over BBQ, cornbread, and several sides. By the end of the meal, John was no closer to convincing him to arrange the meeting. John decided it was time to increase the pressure.
“Ok, so Dr. Norman is an agent for your nation, right?”
“Yeah, so?”
“He detonated a fusion bomb at one of his sites,” John said calmly.
“Bullshit…” Aaron said before thinking about what he knew Dr. Norman to have done in the past.
John slid a data slate across the table to Aaron. The semi-hostile agent scooped it up and skimmed through the report. Aaron sighed loudly and stared at the table.
“This isn’t common knowledge. We’d have heard about this.”
John nodded, “That’s pretty classified stuff there. By the way, slide that back. The fusion bomb was one of yours too. Had a thorium detonator.”
“Here ya go,” Aaron smirked as he slid the tablet back, “So, what’s your play now?”
“I don’t think you need me to do that. You know damn well what could be done as a result of that bombing.”
“An agent of my nation blowing up a bomb and killing military members is bad enough. The whole experimentation via proxies is every bit as bad,” Aaron finished his beer.
“Set up the meeting and let me know. Ideally within the next two weeks.”
“I’ll talk to her, but I can’t make any promises.”
John handed the waitress a credit chit to pay for the meal and stood up, “I would tell her failure to comply will result in this becoming public knowledge. I’d prefer to avoid going there, but if she wants a war we’ll comply.”
“You just said you were fucking ordered to not start a war. What gives?”
“I said I was ordered to not get the Confederacy involved in a war. What do you think those puritan fucks in the Alliance will do when they see this shit.”
“You sound too confident in that. She won’t change her vote simply because you’re blackmailing her.”
John slapped Aaron’s shoulder and smiled, “I’m using this leverage to get a face-to-face meeting. Nothing more. Your flight home leaves in ninety minutes. I’d make that a working session. Oh, and I upgraded your seat home, consider that an apology for the bullshit you had to go through to get here.”
John left a surprised Aaron in his wake. The intelligence agent finished his beer, collected his jacket, and then headed to the transportation ring. He’d spent five days traveling here for what amounted to an hour-and-a-half bullshit session. All in the hopes that John would’ve convinced him to contact his aunt. When that failed Aaron was effectively blackmailed into contacting her.
12 days later, October 31st, 2264. 08:10 Epsilon Gamma Triangulum System – Independent Station
John pulled out his tablet and answered it as he was cleared through customs. He looked at the screen to see who was contacting him. A small grimace appeared on his face.
“Good morning, sir,” John said slightly sheepishly.
“Lieutenant Erickson contacted me that you were not onboard the Fargo. Would you care to explain why you are AWOL?” Admiral Nelson asked indignantly.
“Oh, my bad, do you remember that chat with that dignitary? What's happening ahead of schedule,” John smiled, “I figured that it’d take another month or two before she would agree to the meeting.”
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Admiral Nelson sighed, “Then the report of you transferring top-secret intelligence to data slates is probably accurate.”
“Yeah, yeah, they would be. Don’t worry though, they haven’t left my side and are highly encrypted. I also added a few safeguards to the devices to ensure they are not copied or otherwise tampered with.”
More groaning could be heard on the other end, “You realize you needed to get permission to copy that information to those devices. And that’s ignoring traveling with them or even, God forbid, sharing that intelligence with a foreign actor.”
“I’m calling this stuff leverage. But again, the devices have been secured and, on my person, since I left,” John said, “And honestly this isn’t going to work unless I show more honesty than we are otherwise willing to speak about.”
“And what’s this about renting a private civilian shuttle?”
“I couldn’t exactly use one of our military shuttles or transport craft.”
“You are already on the station aren’t you,” Admiral Nelson sounded like his blood pressure was rising.
“I just got cleared through customs. Have the meeting with the individual tomorrow morning.”
“You and I are going to have a conversation about this lack of communication when you get back. And also, who you are not qualified or cleared to be talking with.”
“I’m hearing that I am supposed to be really careful in these discussions.”
Admiral Nelson was left speechless at John’s recent comment, “Lieutenant, tread very carefully. You haven’t done that yet, but I recommend you start now.”
The call ended as John walked through the commercial district. John wasn’t in any rush to get to the hotel. There was some preparatory work to do, but that wouldn’t take much more than an hour. He had spent most of the flight reading up on Secretary of Veteran Affairs Merissa Bandernan.
To John, she was a fascinating individual. She grew up in abject poverty but was blessed with a brilliant and sharp mind. She graduated early from high school, much like him, except she went to college and had earned two masters and was a year away from earning a Ph.D. by the time her peers were graduating high school themselves. She quickly rose to an executive position in a military manufacturing corporation.
That ultimately was her into pollical service. For the last thirty years, she’s held various titles and offices in the Mercantilist Union’s central government. Her political faction didn’t exactly agree with everything the chancellor which is why she didn’t receive the top cabinet post, but her clout within her faction forced the chancellor’s hand to include her in the cabinet anyways.
There was an odd dynamic in the current cabinet that the secretary of state wasn’t the most influential position like it normally would be. Marissa held the power within the cabinet. This power was crucial to John. He desperately needed her to stop protecting Dr. Norman, she was all that kept his protection active.
That would be easier said than done though. She was as headstrong as she was smart. She was known to be stubborn for the sake of being stubborn. Changing her opinion, once it was made and committed to, was all but impossible. Playing dirty didn’t seem to work well against her either. John was nearly certain that he’d have to get his hands dirty to get her on his side. Though there likely would be a significant amount of animosity directed at both John and the Confederacy at the conclusion of these talks.
John shrugged that off though. The short-term gains were more important than the long-term relational issues with the Mercantilists. Dr. Norman had to go, and short of murder, John was prepared to do anything to achieve that mission.
1 day later, November 1st, 2264. 08:30 Hilton Penthouse Suite 1-B
John squinted his eyes as the elevator doors opened. The waiting foyer was a busy hub of activity. Nearly a dozen Mercantilist Union agents and security personnel were there. Everyone shot a glance at John.
For his part, John stepped out and smiled. He was freshly shaven and wearing a navy-blue suit. It was the first time he had worn a civilian suit in several years, though that was because it wouldn’t have been wise to wear a military uniform to this meeting.
“Sir, please come to this table. I need you to remove your shoes, belt, and any timepieces you are wearing and place them on this tray. We will also need access to your briefcase,” the security agent said.
“If I must comply,” John said with an irritated tone, “If you do not handle my watch carefully, I will be very put off.”
There was no reaction to John’s statement. No second thoughts or statements indicating that this measure could be skipped were forthcoming. It didn’t take long for the tray to be full of the requested items. The briefcase was set down and opened for the agent.
John also took off his suit coat and laid it on the table as well. Another security agent went over to John and began to frisk him. A little too aggressive for John’s taste.
“Mate, my wife doesn’t feel me up like that. You’ve already done at least three scans of me in the elevator. You’ve found nothing thus far and will continue to find nothing.”
Another security agent walked into the room, “You won’t take a single step near her until we’re confident you aren’t hiding anything.”
“We’re all hiding things,” John said sarcastically, “But I’m bringing nothing into this meeting besides information. And a few data slates to share certain details.”
“You will move no farther until we are comfortable with the threat you represent,” the agent said once more.
John spied one of the agents looking at his watch, “Bud, I told you about my watch. That is a piece unique Mosier watch. Your life is worth less than that. Shake it again and I will shake you.”
The lead security agent pointed at the agent monkeying with the watch. A moment later the watch was set back on the tray, very carefully. Another agent looking through the briefcase shook his head.
“There’s nothing in here. These are data slates. There’s not even any gunpowder residue in this. He didn’t bring any bladed weapons. Hell, there weren’t any writing utensils,” the agent at the table said.
“Your reputation precedes you, Lieutenant,” the lead security agent said, “My name is Brian Frederickson, chief of security for Secretary Bandernan.”
“Pleasure. Can I have my shit back?” John said as he held his pants up, “Especially my belt, you're making me look highly undignified.”
Agent Frederickson nodded. John immediately took the watch and put it back on his wrist. The security agent's shaking of the watch hadn’t damaged it thankfully, he could feel the gentle heartbeat of the watch on his wrist. He quickly put his belt and shoes back on.
John was putting his coat on when he asked, “Am I cleared to see her yet?”
“In a moment.”
Aaron Voss then walked into the foyer, “Ahh, there the big asshole is. How do you like the security setup?”
“Frustrating, but insufficient to contain me were I interested in a violent approach that is,” John said confidently as he put the data slates back into his briefcase, “Of course, that is not, nor ever has been, my intention here today.”
“By the way, you’re an asshole for forcing my hand.”
John grinned as he spun to face Aaron, “Agreed. But it worked. Maybe the ends do justify the means.”
“Brian, she’s ready for him.”
Aaron turned and walked to the penthouse suite. John was a step behind him following him to the door. The pair walked to the large dinner table. To John’s annoyance, a holographic imager was placed at the far end of the table.
“We can…”
“If she doesn’t appear physically in this room the meeting is not going to happen Aaron. I am not sharing any of this,” John shoved the briefcase in front of Aaron’s face, “Over any wireless connection, secured or not. Fetch her now.”
John sighed as he walked over to a marble pillar and leaned on it. Aaron stared at John and shook his head. He pinched the bridge of his nose before he pushed on his earpiece and began speaking quietly to it.
“Honestly mate, I came here, and I fucking told you that I wasn’t going to get violent or murder anyone. I gave you my bloody word. She is not now, nor ever will be, in any danger from me.”
The hologram then activated. Merissa was a woman in her early fifties. She appeared older than her years, the youth and attractiveness were gone from her figure. But her visage was stern, she was a woman who commanded respect.
“Morning ma’am,” John said politely, “But as I was telling Agent Voss, this meeting is not happening with you being physically present. You’ve nothing to fear from me.”
“You’ll have to forgive me for not believing you at your word. This will have to do.”
John shook his head, “No, it won’t. We can either have this conversation face to face or we don’t have it at all.”
“You seem to misread the situation, Lieutenant Lief. I am the one in control, we will…”
John shot the hologram an impish grin, “Ma’am, this is how things are going to play out if this charade continues. In roughly thirty minutes news agencies across both the Confederate and Alliance territories are going to be reporting that a research lab with ties to the government of the Mercantilist Union detonated a low-yield fusion bomb.”
“Look here you little shit, I…” Merissa tried to interrupt John.
“Now if that isn’t enough of a bombshell headline, I’m sure you can imagine what bullshit Dr. Norman was up to. Now if the rumors you’ve heard about him are true, what do you think the Alliance is going to do when they find out the rumors that they’ve heard are true?”
“I am here as a courtesy; this is good enough…”
John interrupted her again, “So, we can do this like professionals, or I can resort to my baser nature. I’d prefer to avoid that because again for like the fiftieth fucking time if I wanted you dead, I would’ve taken care of you in the industrial hangar that you disembarked in, or the service elevator, or the supposed secure corridors you used, or firing an anti-material round through a window of the penthouse suite 1-E on the northwest corner of this building.”
Aaron nervously looked at his aunt’s hologram. The fierceness in her features disappeared. She looked much smaller than she once did.
“I tell you all of this because I know how the game is played. If I wanted you, or for that matter any of you, dead, you’d be dead already. You’d never see me coming nor would you have any evidence I did any of it until I was a long way away from here. Now stop wasting my time and yours so we can get to business, because as much of a joke as you are making this situation to be, I am not joking with our request or intel that I am willing to share.”
The hologram shut off suddenly. Aaron sighed and looked around the room. He spoke dismissively to John.
John looked at Aaron, “Clock’s ticking by the way. You might want to let her know that.”
Aaron hurriedly typed a message into his tablet before he looked back at John, “How the fuck did you know the route she took? None of that was supposed to have been captured.”
“Oh, that’s quaint. You thought you were the only ones in control of the cameras. Obviously, you weren’t. Now go get your fucking aunt so we can take care of this business transaction.”
Just as Aaron was about to leave John alone the main doors to the suite opened. John figured at least twelve people just walked into the room. That assumption was confirmed when several agents began clearing the room.
“Bunch of untrustworthy Mongols, that lot are,” John said with a smirk.
“Do you blame them?” Aaron said sarcastically.
“Actually, I do. If I wasn’t searched, then I’d understand this. They’ve had us on camera every moment that we’ve been in this room. It’s not possible for me to have picked up anything I stashed here earlier. Even if I did that, which I didn’t,” John sighed and shook his head, “This is getting a little out of hand though.”
From the other room the pair could hear Agent Frederickson, “Clear, ma’am you can go into the dining room. We will stay in the living room.”
John turned his head a bit, “No you won’t, none of you are cleared for the bullshit we are going to discuss. Agent Voss can remain though. And once again, I will do no harm to the Secretary.”
Merissa strode into the room. If her fury were visible, it’d be a raging firestorm. Meeting this one-time agent and supposed, in her mind, naval officer was an affront to her. She actually had work that needed to be done but instead, she was pulled to some backwater station for a silly negotiation.
“Lieutenant Lief, a pleasure to meet you. I am Secretary Merissa Bandernan,” she spoke the words but no sincerity was to be found.
“Ma’am, pleased to make your acquaintance. I suggest you sit down. We have much to discuss,” John said as he walked over to the table and pulled out a chair.