[https://i.imgur.com/XYSVnsO.jpg]

Kumar looked up from her book when she heard the door to her study open.

“Good evening,” she said. “Please forgive my informality. I didn’t know you’d be coming this late.”

“You’d given up on me?” Fable shut the door behind himself.

“I like to take advantage of every free second I have.”

“Did you read it?”

“Yes, Vincent. I read your proposal. Every word of it.” Kumar shut her book and laid it on the table beside her.

“Is that the truth, or is that your diplomatic answer?”

“It was only five screens of text, and honestly, one of the most fascinating things I’ve read in a long time.”

Fable took a chair across from Devi.

She curled her legs up into her armchair and smiled. “I didn’t know you enjoyed science-fiction, General.”

Vincent shook his head. It was a weary gesture followed by a sigh. “It’s not fiction, Devi.”

“You’ve seen them?”

“I own them. They’re under my charge, and I’m the one hiding them.” He motioned to the pot on the table in front of them. “Please tell me that’s coffee.”

“It’s chamomile tea. Chamomile and some herb they discovered on some new planet. It’s supposed to be good for you.”

Fable sniffed the cup she proffered. “It smells disgusting.” He returned it to the table and leaned back in his chair.

“They’re real?”

“I don’t blame you for wondering. When Sipos told Gardner what happened, Gardner assumed he was deranged and had performed a chemical lobotomy on them because he thought he could turn them into aliens.” The general rubbed what was left of his hair. “Devi, it was a disaster. We lost the lab. One of our lead scientists is responsible for how many missing people? The only thing that saved us was the ten-plus clearance level.”

“Is the problem contained now?”

“We stretched our credibility and authority to the limit, but, yes. It’s contained. Now I have to figure out what to do with them.”

Devi put her elbow on the arm of her chair and raised her fist to her chin. “I thought the proposal meant you knew what you wanted to do.”

“It’s not that easy.”

“I also thought the proposal sounded good.”

This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

“You said you thought it was science-fiction.”

Kumar smiled. “Yes, well. For an imaginary scenario, what you proposed sounded very good. Methodical. Cautious. Practical. As you said, if we already have them, we might as well use them.”

“But this isn’t a fairy tale. We’d need real bodies. Real people would have to die.”

“That’s nothing but logistics, Vincent. Any obstacle can be overcome. The real question is, is it worth the trouble?”

“A few dozen lives compared to this endless war? I want it to be over, Devi. I wasn’t even a general when it started. I don’t want to retire knowing it’s still being fought! And you and your useless senate—”

“Easy now, Vincent. You know if it was up to me, I would gladly end the war tomorrow.”

“But you can’t. And you won’t. If the Senate won’t sue for peace, then we have to destroy enough of the Uprising that fighting becomes impossible.”

“And you think you can do that before the Senate is willing to consider compromising with the seceding planets?”

Fable glared at her. “I know I can. I’m one of only six people, all of us driven to the same goal—end the war. You’re two hundred and fifty politicians who don’t dare know your own minds for fear it’ll cost you your constituency. What do you think, Devi?”

“I think I never thought of it that way.”

Fable grunted and looked away. Kumar suspected he was disgusted by such a diplomatic answer.

“And you think the xenos will help you end the war?” she asked.

“At this point, I would use anything and everything to end it—any tool I can get my hands on.”

“Then we’ll have to arrange it.”

Fable regarded her for a wary moment. “You’re willing to help me?”

“Certainly. Isn’t that why you sent it to me? You at least suspected I’d be more likely to help you.”

“I don’t think the current senate will be sympathetic to the idea.”

“Be careful, Vincent. That almost sounded like something a politician would say. So delicately put. And I agree with you. Fortunately, we don’t need the senate to agree to it. You recommended we keep it as a ten-plus project under MI, correct?”

Fable dropped his chin in a curt nod.

“Then we only need three signatures. Consider that taken care of.”

“You can guarantee it’ll come under your review.”

“Yes.”

“And the other two senators won’t object?”

“I’ll get you your signatures, Vincent. Trust me. I have people who owe me favors.”

“What about the bodies?”

“Prisoners.”

Fable put a hand over his mouth and rubbed his jaw. “Yes. I could do that.”

“Lifers or those that have elected to take the death option would naturally be preferred, at least for the initial experiments—”

“It sounds like you already have something in mind.”

“I know a man who might be useful. He can get us as many—or as few—people as we would need.” Kumar tilted her head to the side. “Do you mind if I ask…you’re not planning on using that—that biologist? Dr. Sipos?”

“Never. He can stay in his cage and rot.”

“Is he dead?”

“No. He’s at Galen, on P41. But as soon as I give the word, Gardner will make it so he never existed in the first place.”

“Ah, yes. Your legerdemain man. We’ll need him. There’ll be a pile of secrets before we’re done.”

Fable frowned. “Devi, you do realize the kind of trouble we’ll be in if any of this is uncovered?”

“Oh, Vincent.” The senator clicked her tongue. “I thought you trusted me.”

“It would destroy you.”

“We’re not going to get caught. It’s all a game of checks and balances. That’s all arranging things ever is. I trust you’ll look after your end, and I’ll look after mine.”

“And what am I going to pay for all this?”

“Let’s say you owe me a favor, General.”

“That’s all you want?”

“I’m a woman that has to arrange things. It helps to have other people owe you favors.”

Kumar offered a serene gaze in return for Fable’s more thoughtful glare.

“You’re a dangerous woman, Devi Kumar,” Fable said.

“No.”

“You’ll be careful?”

The senator laughed. “The wonderful thing about working in a place as large as this galaxy is that there’s so much going on, no one can look in all the corners. No one cares about one little project.”