Duncan
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Duncan smiled as he moved his leg, relishing the absence of pain. He hadn’t expected that he would feel so happy once it was healed, but he did. He would never think less of the tech that let broken bones heal fast ever again. “People just don’t understand how far we’ve come until they don’t have it, do they?”
“That’s what I’ve always seen!” Vivian said from his left.
Duncan hid a small smile as he looked to his left. The room he had used was surprisingly able to have at least three desks, and Vivian needed a cover. After the work to find the threat was done, he would say that she used to be an aid. With how small everything was he didn’t need a whole staff, just one person would do. She had ‘offered’ to mind the store for him while he was up in the clearing. This way he would be able to move around, and if people needed help they could go to her.
“And I expect that you’ve seen quite a few characters that have learned that lesson the hard way? No, don’t answer it,” Duncan said as he held up a hand.
Vivian only looked at him and chuckled. “Don’t want to hear about all the people who’ve learned like you then chief? Okay. I’ll spare your ego.”
Chuckling at her sass, Duncan only laughed a bit. For the last few hours, she had been here, learning to use Dalila’s drones. And he was finding that she was someone that had a wicked sense of humor. The few times that he had seen her on the ship, she had seemed so demure. That was just another way that Bounty Hunters knew to hide in plain sight. Act the part.
If was something else to see how she was. And it made him think about a few other people that he had met in passing. Once again, he knew nothing about anyone, and it made him question a few people.
“Still, this is amazing. I mean, I never thought to try these things before now. I should have,” Vivian said with awe in her voice as she held up a hand and the small bug drones took flight.
He watched as she mentally directed them to perfume maneuvers before them. She had them making signs and letters in their flight patterns, amazing to watch. It reminded him of a few shows that the Entertainment Chief aboard the ship had been planning. Something using shuttle-size drones at Journey's End. If this was what small drones could do, then he owed that person an apology. This was amazing, and the bigger ones with the augments that they were talking about? It would have made the ship famous in the company! He could even see some military uses that Vivian couldn't, but that was another asteroid ring that he didn’t want to see now.
The one thing that he needed to think about, was the terror beneath their feet. There was no knowing how big it was, or what the consequences of opening it could be. But they had no choice, there was more danger in not going than waiting. Even trying to get in contact with the intelligence beneath them had failed, there was no choice.
But he didn’t have to like it. He sighed and Vivian looked up.
She stared at him for a few moments, the drones flew away. She looked at him, the silence building until she spoke. “You know that there’s nothing else we can do, right?”
Duncan knew that, he did. But he also knew that there was something else there, one thing that changed everything. He just looked at her and then he just looked away. After a silent moment, he spoke. “That’s the burden of command. You make a choice and you’re dammed if you made the wrong choice.”
Duncan turned to look at the wall behind his desk and called up the view from the cameras at the top. He looked at the natives and scowled. He might have agreed with everything, but there was a problem here. He knew that there was something more about them, and why they were captives. He couldn’t think of what it was, but it was there. The few devices they had were making no progress to break their language. The most the computer had done was confirm that the natives were sentient!
He didn’t know what to do but move forward. Once Jinn made contact, then they would know what to do.
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Vivian
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
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Vivian looked at Duncan and hid a sigh of dismay. She understood what Duncan was talking about, she didn’t want to but she did. And that was why she worked alone. Too many stories around the Guildhall of Hunting packs destroying themselves for revenge. Too many people retired in shame after their partners died.
She closed her eyes and let what the drones were seeing appear in her mind. They were smart enough to only need a direction, they could move themselves. Not sentient, maybe at most as smart as some pet species.
As they flew through the vents, she had to admire the construction. She had never really used anything like them before, but this might be something. As she saw what her ‘flock’ saw, she let her mind wander. She had heard about these things before, but she had never used them. Maybe that was a mistake. If she was seeing the specks right, then she could have hacked so many systems with them. A few of them to invade the right systems as she escaped would have worked as well.
But if she was honest, there had to be defenses for them. But right here and now, all she could feel was the rush of seeing them fly. But then she blinked. She opened her eyes in shock.
“Duncan? These things have only one level right?” Vivian asked a strange edge to her voice.
Duncan looked up at her and scowled a little. “Yeah, I looked over the specs, just one level. Why?”
Vivian closed her eyes and let her drones fly down. Without opening her eyes, she spoke again. “Because my little drones found a vent that goes down.”
“What!?” Duncan breathed in shock.
Vivian closed her eyes and sent one of the drones down. It flew down three feet and found a camber that was as long and wide as the capsule. It was only a foot tall, and it was full of strange machines forming small rows. Small for a human, but a drone-like hers? They were the sizes of one-story houses. And to her shock, there were openings that her drone could fit into.
“This is weird, there’s a kind of metallic structures down here. They’re only a foot tall, but they're big for my drone. I don’t know, what are these things?” Vivian asked as she opened her eyes and looked at Duncan.
Duncan stared back at her, shock in his wide eyes.
Vivian looked at him and then she felt her heart freeze. ”You’ve never heard about these things either!?”
“No!” Duncan said with anger growing in his voice. “All the blueprints I’ve ever read about these things say that they have shock absorbers down there! Nothing like that!”
“Well, I can see it! What do we do?” Vivian asked.
Duncan was about to open his mouth to speak when suddenly there was a knock at the door.
Vivian looked up as Duncan face palmed. “Oh, what fresh asteroid is this now!?”
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Leonator
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Leonator looked at the door and knocked again, this time starting to feel a bit worried. Was it possible that Duncan was out of his room? Or was he meeting Sir Bradford? He had seen Jones and Bradford talking, and that was something that he was worried about. If that man was working with Jones, then Lee1 was starting to regret voting for him the last time. Sure, Bradford lost the race but it was the principle of thing!
He looked around, wondering suddenly if the tabloid rumors were true. If Bradford had people, then his life might be in danger if people saw him. But most people were falling asleep, and the guard at the outer door was sitting down, dozing as he sat there.
Leonator was about to leave when the door opened. He blinked as he saw a woman opening the door. For a moment, he didn’t recognize her then he did. “Miss Vivian? Hello, I’m sorry to be a bother, but is it possible that I could talk with Chief Duncan?”
“Come in Leonator. What can I do for you? Come to argue against us taking fruit?” Duncan asked with a weary tone.
Leonator forced down his rage. He deserved that, after his tantrum before. He walked into the room and looked at Vivian and then at the door. She looked at him and then she looked at Duncan.
“Miss Vivian volunteered to be my aid boy. Anything you say to me you say to her. But close the door,” Duncan said.
Vivian looked at them and then she closed the door. Leonator breathed a sigh of relief,
“Thank you. No not about my tantrum, but that is part of it. I believe that I must first explain what I do for a living this cycle of my life.”
“Oh, and what’s that? Animal Rights activist?” Duncan asked.
“Board member of the Committee for Planetary Eco Crimes actually,” Leonator said.
Duncan had been drinking water and when Leonator said what he did, Duncan coughed. After a moment of coughing, he looked at Leonator as Vivianface palmed.
“You’re what!?” Duncan breathed.
Leonator only looked at him and sighed. “Yes, and some of my foes will use this against me when we’re rescued. And most of them will happily kill off pre-sentient races for a few credits!”
“Stars and Nova. You were worried that they would use the crash landing against you!?” Duncan breathed out, horror and shock in his voice.
“Of course they would!” Vivian said bitterly.
Leonator almost looked at her before he stopped himself. That was for later. “Yes, and I can see that you all understand my fears. But there is a greater concern here. I believe that Master Jones is a member of the Purity Path organization.”
Duncan looked at him for a few moments before he nodded. “So you do. But what can I do about it? The laws allow freedom of belief after all. And throwing a man out of the Shilled is something I’ll have a hard time selling.”
“Yes, but I wanted you to know sir. Unofficially I’m here to argue for mercy for the two prisoners. I trust you understand my meaning?” Leonator asked as he looked from Duncan to Vivian.
For a moment, Duncan said nothing before he chuckled. “Completely. Will you mind keeping an eye on Jones for me? And if he tries to get along with Bradford? I mean, we all heard what that rotten apple did a few months back.”
Leonator looked at Duncan and it took all his political experience to keep from screaming. Duncan wanted to protect Bradford!? If he and Jones were working together, then that might lead to something terrible! But Duncan was right? There was nothing else that he could do.
“Rest assured sir, I’ll keep an eye on Jones for you. He won’t talk to Bradford without me seeing it firsthand. But please act if I bring you anything,” Leonator said with a low voice.
Before he could turn away, Duncan barked and grinned. “I’ll do you one better! Find me proof that Bradford or Jones are planning anything that will hurt us and I’ll kick him out myself! All I want is to keep this capsule safe! So to make sure you can talk to me, you’re now my advisor on the local Wildlife!”
Leonator looked at Duncan and blinked, not sure he heard right. “I’m what?”
“My advisor! Just tell people that you once spoke for that Committee as an expert! That’ll keep what you are a secret and give you reason to talk to me!” Duncan declared.
Leonator looked at him, understanding what Duncan was not saying. And he felt a grin form on his face. This was just what he needed in a way that no one would know the truth of. It was better than he expected from Duncan if Leonator was honest.