As the Morta emerged from the jump port into space around the Given home world, the General immediately began preparing mentally for the debrief session, considering strategy and reevaluating the data points surrounding his decision making on Rising Sun. The mission had been such a brutal failure it was almost comical, three major ambushes, dozens of lives lost, his son kidnapped or worse by an unknown alien and in the end, the target planet had not even been contained. It had been a millennium since a Given protection mission had ended in withdrawal, a historic humiliation even though their forces had not come close to being defeated on the battlefield.
The General had seen some strange customs in his day and many violent people ready to die when challenged by the Given, typically driven by primitive fear or unbridled aggression. Never had he seen such a contradictory combination of strength and weakness. The Hayim possessed powerful and unique weaponry that nearly rivaled their own in brute strength but manned them with fighting forces that mostly hid, protecting themselves with primitive guns that gave them no chance against the Given army. What kind of battle were they prepared to engage in? They were led by a commander who, as Larrz tells it, could have destroyed the Given fleet as he had boasted but who instead decided to use his power against only one soldier, the General’s son, and seemingly sacrificed himself and dissipated his enormous advantage to do it. Despite intense study on the return trip home, they still had no idea what the Hayim leader had even done to Jehz and not a clue as to why.
The Given weren’t driven off the battlefield, they were simply led by an opponent into believing they had no idea what would come next. That wasn’t a situation any Given leader would have expected his army to fight through - uncertainty and surprise made all Musa military leaders nervous. Like the predator fish of their home world, Musa only engaged in fights they could win easily or at least with certainty and historically had no fear withdrawing temporarily if conditions didn’t favor them. The problem was it hadn’t happened in such a long time, the strategy had taken on the air of failure rather than prudence. But was that deserved when the great general Rahz had himself done it? Maybe that fact coupled with their decisive military domination during all direct combat would be the key to his defense – maybe, just maybe he could walk away from this without it turning into more than a minor setback. He just had to sell it, and sell it well.
As the Morta drifted toward her landing site, the General could see off in the distance the usual enormous crowd that typically gathered to celebrate their typically triumphant return had not appeared. He could only imagine the rumors, theories, and half-truths that were circulating among the Musa on the ground about what had transpired on Hayim and hoped Daez didn’t hear them though knew she probably would. He longed to tell her the truth, they had been surprised by some unconventional weaponry and tactics, it was as simple as that. They had not been defeated in battle and he and Jehz had come home alive. But it would be hours, if not days, before he would be allowed to come home or even see her. For Jehz, it could be months.
On the ground, he slowly gathered his things and waited for his escort to the debrief to appear. Glancing out his window, he could see Jehz’s containment pod was being quickly unloaded, an unusual break from typical protocol in these situations. He clearly wasn’t going directly back to the base. “Good luck, son,” said the General under his breath. “We are both going to need it. Mighty Voz guide my hand.”
After the pod had been set on a transport ship, the driver was approached by a senior Musa officer accompanied by a Rija priest and handed an order board sent directly from the Musa high council, “Take Jehz to Rejzik immediately.” it said. The driver glanced at the Musa officer quickly and nervously, almost not believing what he was being asked but the officer calmly met his gaze and nodded. All present recognized the highly irregular nature of this order and its possible threat to the Balance. Jehz would not be brought to a military hospital or containment facility where he could be evaluated by his Musa kiln as would be the typical path for a soldier exposed to a potential contaminant. Instead Jehz was being brought to the home base of the Rija or priest kiln organization. A place that for most citizens was the center of Given society itself. Rejzik, the main Rija building was the most spectacular on the Given home world full of them and the most intimidating to those outside the priest kiln. A massive black tower building with an enormous spire reaching five miles off the mountain plateau it was built on, it dominated the horizon for hundreds of miles around it. The three residential wings cutting out from its sides made it look a bit like a spaceship about to take off, a tangible symbol of the Given’s self-appointed mission. Ironically to some, instead of housing adventurers and explorers, Rejzik was filled with the kiln members least likely to ever be aboard a space mission, the Rija. Inside its polished black granite walls there were hundreds of thousands of Rija running its many religious, research, and political facilities. Rejzik had been the central hub of both the priest kiln and the Given people for thousands of years and the Rija within were the heart and conscience for a culture that had struggled to find both. Because of this, the Rija carried enormous power and influence despite being the smallest of all the kiln groups.
During the troubled years of the Occupation, the Rija had, at great cost to themselves, provided the care and moral support the people needed to survive the trial of Syber domination. They had been the most heavily targeted of all the Given kiln and the Syber had used nearly every tool at their disposal to turn them into an agent of their twisted control. When that didn’t work, they tried to stamp them out of existence using assassination and their most brutal torture techniques. Their losses were severe, but through it all, the Rija persevered and continued their teaching, never wavering. Their message of the superiority and importance of the Given culture had been key to generating hope among their people and served to keep their culture alive under soul crushing living conditions.
After their release, the Rija had reshaped that message and guided the rise of the Given people to the level of power they now enjoyed by providing the spiritual and moral justification for the Given aggression. They were destined to be the benevolent rulers of the galaxy and eventually the universe because they had suffered though the worst occupation and enslavement ever visited on a people and come out stronger and more empathic and armed with keener insight into the nature of sentient beings and power than ever. They knew deep suffering and through that suffering had learned what it meant to lead, how important it was to lead and how to survive the enormous sacrifices that might be necessary. If they didn’t, a society much less inclined to preserve life and culture on other planets would do it in their place. One needn’t look far around the universe or too deep into the history books of nearly any planet to understand this. Should those people seizing control be anything like the Syber, the end of freedom would only be the beginning. Soon after would follow unrelenting death and destruction and the eventual termination of the millions of wondrous societal experiments occurring throughout the galaxy. Experiments that could be fostered by the Given and the beneficial results fed back into their system of protected planets to spur even more growth of their culture and influence.
The Rija felt strongly it was their role to manage this process and expended great energy in maintaining that position among the Given kilns. Only they had the perspective and foresight coupled with a commitment to modesty and restraint that would allow the Given to properly wield their enormous power. The Rija used this influence judiciously but forcefully, calling in favors when tactically it was most politically advantageous. After getting the early reports on the Hayim mission, it was quickly evident that this was one of those times, and strings were pulled to ensure Jehz was quickly sent directly to Rejzik.
***
At the top of the occupied space in Rejzik, four miles above the plateau floor, the head Rija priest or Rejiz and his Council of Eight met to contemplate the mission data. “I’ll assume you’ve all been briefed on the reports from Hayim by your staffs.” said the Rejiz, “Our final curated summary should be on your screens now for reference.”
“There is so much to contemplate here, it’s hard to know where to start. Of course, we owe our fallen brothers and sisters a moment of prayer for giving the ultimate sacrifice to ensure a brighter future for the Given and the galaxy. Let’s focus on them now and in our meditations tonight.”
After a pause, the Rejiz raised his head and continued. “At the risk of sidelining the rest of the important topics this mission has presented us with, I feel obligated to bring into the open that which many of your staffs, and yourselves have been whispering about – the legend of the Solon.”
“We have all been taught the story and counseled strongly to keep it to ourselves over the millennia, mostly out of fear of being presented as something less than the most practical and sensible kiln among the Given. It has always been curious to me how we strive so earnestly for that considering some of our teachings and beliefs, but that is a topic for another day.”
“The legend has a clear and enduring place in our Book of Stories for reasons I still struggle to understand. A fanciful race of beings, ancient but more technically advanced than even the most sophisticated modern culture, capable of miraculous feats. Saving or destroying worlds if need be. They are portrayed as generally acting for good, but vengeful and complex, driven by motives never made clear to the saved or the destroyed. An early version of our Gods, perhaps, destined to be replaced by more refined concepts as our society and culture took shape? Who can say I suppose and I am well aware of course that many would consider my interpretation simplistic and reflexive.
“Did we really believe they would be our saviors and rescue us from the trial of fire our people endured at the hand of the Syber. Were the Solon an internal private symbol of hope for our kiln, something we held on to as we tried so desperately to provide hope to others? I’ve often thought so because without them would we have had to face the reality that we had nearly no hope ourselves when it looked, generation after generation, century after century, that our modern Gods had abandoned us? We couldn’t face it so we created that crutch to prevent us from collapsing to the ground and forsaking all we had built in a previous time and all we had endured as the plaything of the Syber. Not terrible I suppose, many other people have done the same thing while knowing and understanding more than we did then. But after creating the crutch, we held on to it blindly as if it were no other source of strength possible. We did eventually learn, did we not, that the crutch sapped our power and we were weak for being drawn in since in the end, it was one our own brothers who found the strength to do what others, what we could not. That brother was the one we should have been looking for and supporting and nurturing rather than gazing at the stars from our knees hoping for a miracle.
“As we recovered as a people and began to find our way and our power grew, the Solon transformed into a symbol of fear to our leaders, the ultimate threat to our plans of spreading the Given vision for the galaxy. We taught our acolytes the legend but behind closed doors and tried to assess the risk in our own discussions and meditations. What if the Solon decided that we were now the persecutor that needed to be destroyed? Could even the might of the Given empire be bested by these legendary figures? Have we angered the Gods by twice leaving them behind when we no longer needed them?
“The parallels between the Hayim creature and the Solon legends are undeniable. The crystals in the hands, the enormous energy radiating from them, and the curious, seemingly unmovable, statue left behind when one of them moved on or transformed. However, let us not allow our imaginations to run away with themselves, brothers and sisters. We have traveled this galaxy for millennia and never seen a sign of one of these creatures. They have never been moved to confront us despite our obvious profile. There are many possible explanations for Jehz’s changes and many possible interpretations of the Solon legend. We have all seen and heard of things even more bizarre and fantastical in our journeys, you know this.”
The Rejiz stopped, looking around the room trying to gauge the reaction. There was mostly mild indifference; seemingly it was the rank-and-file clerks prone to gossip largely responsible for the chatter on this topic. When his eyes met his second in command Guz, however, he knew there was at least some cause for concern. Guz was clearly anxious to speak. Reluctantly, the Rejiz nodded.
“Have we considered, sir, that our meeting with this creature could be considered a validation of our role in the galaxy, a sign that the Gods are recognizing our efforts and providing us with the tools to continue our glorious mission? A Solon warrior leading a Given army would make us truly unstoppable. Any accidents like those faced by our soldiers on Hayim would be a thing of the past.”
The Rejiz sighed, “We don’t even know what happened to Jehz yet Guz, and there is no sign that he’s been turned into some super soldier or whatever the Solon are exactly. Remember the inhabitants weren’t exactly welcoming on Hayim and this episode easily could have ended with the so-called Solon’s destruction, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Assuming he could even be destroyed, sir. There may be many possible explanations for the resistance, perhaps the Solon himself had no control over the Hayim people. He surely didn’t look like a military commander of any kind from what I could see. Or maybe they were testing us, to see if we exhibited the judgment and restraint that would make us worthy of having a Solon in our midst. The General passed both of those tests, wouldn’t you say, in the face of some challenging conditions?”
“Perhaps, Guz, perhaps, though I must admit my dear friend that some of these speculations of yours seem as unsubstantiated as the original legends themselves. Where is your evidence? And what about the hostility of the so-called Solon toward our landing party. It sure doesn’t seem like he looked too favorably on the Given people considering some of his comments.”
“Who knows, maybe he didn’t agree with the decision to help us and was overruled by some higher power than he.”
“Really, my friend, it feels like you are walking a tortured path to establish a point about something we haven’t even proven exists yet, don’t you think? Are we again making the same mistake we made during the Occupation? Why are we looking outside ourselves when the answer to achieving our destiny is likely to come from within? Shouldn’t that be our focus Guz?” The Rejiz noticed that the other council members had looked up from their screens and were listening intently to the discussion at hand. Perhaps their indifference before has been intentionally adopted given they probably expected him to dismiss the discussion out of hand.
“Of course, sir, but is it really one or the other? Our future as a people no longer hangs in the balance as it did during the Occupation, their needs have evolved. Perhaps now is the time for us to expand our view outward?”
“Point taken, Guz, but again, we have no idea what even happened to Jehz and the suggestion has become some sort of Solon superman continues to seem a little farfetched, is it not? Again, we have never seen a being close to what the Solon is rumored to be on any of our protected worlds. Isn’t it most likely that these are the legends of primitive peoples struggling to figure out the universe? Trying to give shape to their version of God since they know not the true Gods of the Greater World that guide the Given? Those old stories we have seen and heard hundreds of times have we not? Enough indeed to fill a library with volume after volume of fantastical legends and none of them true.”
“We have heard the stories many times Rejiz, but have we ever had one of the legends come to life and be carried into the chambers of the Rejzik itself? It has to give one pause to consider the meaning, does it not?”
“We shall see, Guz, let’s at least get the report from the doctors examining him before we crown Jehz a God from the heavens come to visit. Can we at least agree on that?”
***
Jehz sat on the examining table inside his isolation pod staring at his hands and wondering if this could possibly be real. Ever since the event in the cave, he had been in shock, only his military discipline allowing him to respond to commands and keep his mind focused enough to even barely comprehend what was happening around him. The mission would be considered a horrible military failure for the General and Jehz desperately hoped that the transformation or whatever it was would not add to the blame and accusations likely to be leveled at him. He desperately wished to be by his father’s side and try to provide the strength that the General had nurtured in him during his upbringing. To Jehz, the General was a natural leader clearly loved by his soldiers and an even greater man who offered support and compassion to all who needed it. He prayed his father would come out of this with his command intact as he couldn’t imagine what would become of him if he was forced out or humiliated. Jehz had witnessed others lose significant rank or worse over far less serious outcomes but all had made mistakes. Where were the General’s mistakes in this case? He had thought carefully about the mission. He could not see any but there may be details not shared in the preliminary reports he had been able to access on the trip home.
He examined the crystals in his hands trying to determine their structure or attachment point. There were no obvious details to help him understand the crystal’s composition and no indication of how they could have been embedded in his hands. Or were they really? He could not feel them, and turning his hands over, they looked naturally integrated into his hand structure, there was no bruising or blood, no soreness. What had really happened to him? He tried to recall the moments before that Hayim leader had created the force field and what he had said but could not. Maybe this had been some kind of magic trick or illusion, a last chance effort by the leader to escape when he was clearly outnumbered and overpowered? The leader was not going to walk out of that cave a free man given the events of that day and he surely knew that. Maybe this was how he slipped away, by directing the attention toward a young officer and making it appear as if the leader had died while he was actually escaping. That cave had been his home, there were likely to be many secret passageways that could have been used. It was pure genius the more Jehz thought about it. The crystals in his hands must be some kind of holoimage the leader had stuck there. Soon they would dissolve and after a brief evaluation period by the doctors, he would be free to return home. It just didn’t seem possible that it could be more than that. He still didn’t feel any different physically and wouldn’t he have to if someone had actually embedded crystals in his hands? Wouldn’t he have felt something?
Jehz heard rustling near the doors and the notion that his situation might be quickly resolved was dispelled as soon as they opened. Even though he knew the pod was being continuously scanned using the best tech the Given owned, a team of scientists guarded by soldiers entered the room and moved quickly to set up scanner-like machines around him unlike any he had seen before. The back of the room filled with additional soldiers carrying absorbers and other heavy firepower. They were either very worried he was going to go rogue on them or protecting someone very senior, probably both.
The Rejiz swept into the room, walking quickly and confidently toward the containment pod showing none of the simmering fear Jehz felt from the others present. The Rejiz placed his hands on the pod, meeting Jehz’s alarmed gaze with the relaxed reaction of someone practiced at mentally controlling their fears and projecting an outward calm. He smiled gently.
“I know your father, the General, well, Jehz. He would be proud of you, handling such a difficult and unique situation without succumbing to fear or panic. I see great strength in you as I do in him.”
“Thank you Rejiz. Have you seen my father? Has he finished his debrief?”
“Oh, I wouldn’t know about that Jehz, you know better than I how the Musa are. They’ll want to talk about this one endlessly I would imagine. Break it down, turn it over and over and over some more. And I once thought priests were long winded!”
Jehz could not help himself from smiling slightly and the Rejiz smiled back and continued. He felt he was making a connection with the boy, that Jehz wanted him to and didn’t get the feeling Jehz was dangerous. The young soldier that had left on that mission to the Rising Sun was still there, still in control. “It’s not often a Musa attack team is turned back, now is it? Last I can remember was Somoro I believe, many, many years ago now. Surprised by the gas giants we were, hideous brutes, barely sentient but comprised of a complex chemistry, very difficult to fight with our weapons at the time. It took us nearly a hundred years to figure a way to counteract them, but we did in the end. We always do. Do you remember the commander of that mission?
“General Huutz, I believe.”
“Yes, that’s right. Very good. And do you remember what happened to him after the Somoro incident?”
“I’m sorry, sir, I don’t.”
“Wouldn’t expect you do to – didn’t myself until I decided to look it up when the first reports started coming in and you were on your way home. He took a bit of a beating in the debrief but that’s no surprise, is it? By all accounts, he conducted himself well on Somoro and that came through in the end. He went on to have a distinguished career with Somoro being no more than an unfortunate sidebar. The General will do the same, my son. Keep the faith.”
“Those are kind words, Rejiz, and I am thankful for them. It’s safe to say the Hayim mission was not our greatest moment and I worry of course that the General will be blamed for our collective lack of success.”
“Of course you are, as any son in your position would be. It’s a natural concern but let’s allow the process to take its course. The Musa council is a bit rough around the edges, but they usually get it right. We’ll be praying for him. Can we talk about what happened to you now? It’s perfectly all right if you would like to wait a while longer.”
“Of course, sir, but I am afraid don’t have much to offer that hasn’t already been reported on by others.”
“Well, let’s just see about that. Sometimes talking things through again can draw out all kinds of details you never knew were there. First off, how are you feeling, do you need a doctor?”
“I don’t think so, but I don’t really know. I don’t feel any different, but it’s strange. Everything physical seemed the same, especially at first but everyone is treating me so differently it is almost making me feel different. Is that possible? Why is everyone acting so scared of me? What are the scans showing? My personal scanner has been switched off somehow or damaged and I can’t get it back online.”
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“I don’t think it’s damaged, Jehz. I don’t want to alarm you, but we need to be honest with each other. You deserve to know. We cannot scan you at all and haven’t been able to since the attack. That’s why your brothers and sisters are here with their special tools. None of us understand what occurred down there on the planet and we are just trying to keep everyone, including you, safe.”
“I understand, sir.”
“First off, can I ask you a few questions so we can try to confirm your identity? We really have no way of knowing if you have been somehow… compromised in the Hayim attack. Do you remember the General’s favorite book?”
“The Musa Evolution: A Military History by Anoz I would say?”
“Good, and your mother’s favorite food?”
“Oh, that’s tough, not sure she has one, but I’ll say ratzos? He looked at the Rejiz, worried as he really didn’t know the answers to these questions for sure and wondered what would happen if he didn’t answer correctly.
“That’s fine Jehz, you are doing fine, please relax. The symbol on this screen, do you recognize it?”
“I’m not 100% sure, looks like maybe an old Musa battalion badge judging by some of the shapes used. I don’t recognize that as one of the current badges though or even a recent one, it’s likely to be quite old. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is”, said the Rejiz glancing back at a small group of the doctors and military leaders at the back of the room. They nodded their heads slightly and the Rejiz continued.
“Well, I think that is as close as we are ever going to get with verifying your identity until we can figure out a way to get through whatever is blocking the scans. Those crystals would be the culprit, I would imagine. Do they hurt?”
“Not at all, Rejiz. It’s like I can’t even feel them. Do you think they could be some kind of illusion?”
“Perhaps, but I doubt it, they seem to be creating some kind of force field around you, or something is. That at least we can see. I know you said you are feeling mostly fine but have there been any other physical changes you are aware of? Anything at all?”
“None that I am aware of, but I haven’t had a chance to strip down and really look at myself.” Jehz grinned slightly, embarrassed at making a small joke in the presence of a senior official like the Rejiz.
The Rejiz did not seem offended and flashed a broad smile “Of course you haven’t and that is the next order of business if you don’t mind. Jehz, I’d like to send a doctor in. He’ll be in a protective haz suit, that’s protocol, but we are going to need to seal you both in the pod. I know that is not standard but this is a highly unusual situation. Is that OK?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I am also going to ask you something else. It may sound a little strange, but I’m trying to get a sense how you may have been affected, perhaps unintentionally by the events on Hayim. When you think about the Given, your people, and what we do to help and protect the galaxy, how does it make you feel?”
“I’m proud, Rejiz, we have sacrificed so much to protect others who cannot protect themselves. So many lives have been saved, cultures protected, how could I feel anything but proud?”
“Of course, Jehz, of course.” The Rejiz glanced over his shoulder and the doctor emerged.
***
Later, in the Rejzik penthouse, the Rejiz and his Council of Eight met to review the day’s events. As the group settled in, the Rejiz stared solemly around the room as the staffs shuffled around. “My brothers and sisters, I am sorry for the inconvenience, but I must insist that this meeting by held su anon.” The reference to the ancient Given term “without help” was meant to exclude support staff from attendance. This was very unusual in Rija meetings as a transparent and open governance process was strongly embedded in the priest culture. Typically, only in cases where grave danger was present would this be invoked.
After the staff had cleared the room, the Rejiz began. “I don’t do this lightly, brother and sisters, but we need to be able to talk frankly about our charge and recent events has me concerned about the reaction among the Given people should they learn the news about our guest.”
“So Jehz has been confirmed as a Solon?” said Guz quickly. “I knew it, sir.”
“The doctors confirmed nothing of the sort, Guz, and please exercise some restraint on this, it’s exactly what I am concerned about. Actually, the doctors are not able to confirm anything about his health, his condition, or if he has been mentally or physically compromised in any way. The force field surrounding him has proven to be completely impenetrable, even with our first order tech. We have some of the best Illuta teams in existence trying to make sense of this but we are nowhere. They can’t even say for sure if it is the crystals driving it. Hopefully that will change soon.”
“So what are we going to do, Rejiz? What about his psych profiles?”
“Yes, of course that becomes paramount without the internal data, but with the biometrics missing, even the psych profiles are questionable. Or so I am told. That said though, he is testing out normally, no incongruent spikes, expected amounts of stress given the conditions. Perfect. Soooo…what do we do with him? Keep him around like our own private zoo animal, waiting for him to hatch into a Solon? Guz?”
“Very funny, sir, but nothing we have learned so far, which is admittedly not much by Illuta standards has deviated from the Solon myth in any way. If there is any chance this is the real deal, you know, we all know, we can’t turn him back over to the Musa.”
“They are going to ask, Guz, and very soon. Shortly after that, they are going to insist.”
“I know they are but we need to pull out all the stops here to keep him in house. Should the situation unfold the way I, and others on the council less verbally forward than I think is possible, we need to make sure the Rija influence is paramount.”
“And if he decides to bring Rejzik down upon on our heads?”
“Well considering you’ll likely be up on your rooftop perch, I’m guessing you’ll find a way for you and hopefully eight of your humble servants to land gently on their feet. In all seriousness, sir, isn’t it our responsibility, and no one else’s, to take this risk? Holding the Balance in our hands, we are the conscience of the Given people, the force of good trying to manage the delicate psyche of a deeply damaged people. In the end, we’ll bring him around and when we do he’ll lead us toward a future brighter than any of us thought possible or described in our most flowery and soaring sermons. A future the Gods know we deserve after our 1,000 year sacrifice. A future the universe deserves.”
“Well said, Guz, you’ve been practicing that for days I imagine and make a strong and welcome case.” The Rejiz glanced around the room. “Everyone else has been very quiet on this topic. Is Guz speaking for all of you?”
Sariz, typically a moderating voice of reason in most council debates, adjusted her robes, and stood up. “There are those, Rejiz who don’t share Guz’s optimistic assessment of this situation, but that doesn’t mean our recommended paths diverge, at least in the short term. We must keep Jehz here, at least until we find out more about his condition. The parallels to the Solon legend, or myth if you prefer, speak for themselves. But that may be the point of any intended deception. Let him stay, learn our ways and at least create the possibility of an outcome, should all of this evaporate into thin air, where a future Musa general walks out of Rejzik a strong and indebted ally of the Rija.”
“Interesting Sariz, your perspective is always most welcome, especially when it aligns so closely with my own,” said the Rejiz glancing in Guz’s direction. “Would anyone else care to speak on this topic?” There was no reaction among the council and the Rejiz felt comfortable that the two camps that had spoken through Guz and Sariz represented the dominant thought among the council on Jehz. “No? There would seem to be little to debate short-term then so my basic plan is this. After a period of observation, allowing us to be reasonably sure Jehz does not pose a clear and obvious threat, he shall enter Rija training with a focus on meditative control. This should allow us to develop him as an asset to both the Rija and the Given while also providing a notion of protection should the Solon story turn out to be one with a less than happy ending.”
“But sir, that training could take years,” said Sariz. “Surely you don’t expect either the General or the Musa to wait anywhere near that long! They’ll be breaking down the doors well before that.”
“We’ll see, Sariz. I may just have a plan to handle the situation that will work.”
***
As the General sat down at the conference table for his debrief session, he knew this would not be a standard interview but quickly got the impression it could be even worse than he thought. The Musa Vicering, second only to the Chief Officer himself, sat at the head of the table looking glum, staring straight ahead. He had met the Vicering on several occasions, but the more senior officer did not acknowledge the General or even glance in his direction. That could not be a good sign. While he expected the discussion to be difficult, he had hoped it would be manageable. That possibility was quickly fading as he read the body language and tone of the room. He might be lucky to walk out a free man.
Fleet Commander Jerez entered the room and sat down. Based on the tension in his face and the support staff pointing at various screens around his head, the General could tell Jerez would be conducting the debriefing session. Not so bad, thought the General, he’d always got along well with Jerez, no axe to grind there, and he was fair. Commander Jerez settled his staff and quickly brought the meeting to order.
“General, welcome. I’m sorry we meet again under such unpleasant circumstances. Please excuse my bluntness, but it is imperative we proceed directly to the matters at hand. It is not a pretty picture as you well know,” began the commander in a slow, matter-of-fact tone. “A Haak fighter nearly destroyed and 350 Kruz dead before even making the planet surface. One hundred of your own dead in another ambush after which you deemed it necessary to attempt to blow half the planet and its civilian population apart in order to extract yourself. Then to top it off, you lose the enemy commander and perhaps your own son on your way out the door. All of this, by the way, for a planet we cannot yet count as one of the protected.
“I apologize for what I’m sure appears to be a derisive tone and I acknowledge you are one of our most decorated field commanders but you would have to concede that at least superficially, this mission was an unmitigated disaster. Furthermore, please understand the severity of the events requires an extremely thorough review of all officer decision making during the mission, especially yours as mission commander.”
“I do, sir and welcome the questions. I don’t have anything to hide and am always willing to learn and improve as any Musa soldier should be.”
“Let’s start with the mission prep, then. Should we even have been on Rising Sun, General? Or should we have held off until a thorough review of the unusual energy signatures of this planet had been investigated more fully?”
“Not based on our current decision guidance, sir. Perhaps 3% of target planets have anomalies roughly equivalent to those on Hayim. Of those, the number where those signatures have proven to be evidence of a tactical challenge are almost too small to measure. The resources required to validate those signatures or select another target are significant as you well know and the responsibility to use our resources wisely is one I take very seriously. Based on that, I saw no reason to not proceed with the mission as planned. We are a well-off people, Fleet, but those assets came at great cost.”
“Your focus on efficiently stewarding our resources is commendable, General, but is that more important than the lives of our soldiers? Did your Planner not attempt to differentiate the reading for you and point out their uniqueness and potential danger.”
“He did as any Planner would but at those small sample sizes, they are all unique. There was nothing to back the readings up or substantiate them as being a danger. In fact, quite the opposite. The Hayim were, are, simple people with very basic tech and internal organizational structures, there was no solid evidence they were holding weapons like the ones deployed during the mission, none at all, unless I missed something.”
“But the energy levels were so high, General, higher than anything seen in hundreds of years. Shouldn’t that alone have given you pause and motivated you to ask for further evaluation? Didn’t they worry you?”
“Based on what, Fleet, simply the fact that they were high? There have been higher readings that turned out to be nothing. And some of the most dangerous situations ever faced by Given soldiers were not associated with high energy readings. With respect, there just wasn’t enough data to draw any kind of conclusion about high potential risk in my opinion. Also, we all know about the great care and effort employed by both Rija and Illuta teams to ensure the strategic importance of selected planets. These choices are not and should not be easily undone without some kind of evidence or at least the suggestion that some significant risk may exist.”
The General was becoming extremely frustrated and concerned about where this was headed. Questioning him about valuing the lives of his soldiers and quibbling with him over basic facts of the pre-mission data just didn’t make any sense. Unless they were planning to make this as bad as they could possibly make it, perhaps turning it into a criminal evaluation.
Even in his worst thoughts about this session, he hadn’t contemplated that possibility. But why would they do this? The mission had gone badly, very badly but there was nothing criminal there. They had been shot at first and given multiple fair warnings before attacking. Yes, civilians had been killed, a lot of civilians, but this has happened before with no hint of criminal prosecution. The Given had protocols. Planets chosen would be protected and that sometimes required strong, even disproportionate responses. It was all in the protocols. Blowing the situation out of proportion like this would reflect badly on all of them especially if word got out to the Rija spies, which it almost surely would.
Over the next couple hours, the debrief session continued with the tone growing increasingly hostile and combative. Logical explanations for command decisions were quickly thrown aside by the commander and a characterization that his orders were overly aggressive and reactive, almost negligently so became the roughly constructed narrative the Musa leadership were clearly forcing. At the point the commander was overtly challenging the obvious tactical withdrawal from the mountain fortress, the General was about to boil over in anger, not even caring anymore the disciplinary action that might result from his outburst. This was a witch hunt and a travesty and he was going to put a stop to it.
Suddenly, an aide burst into the room and after quickly stopping at the Vicering’s chair, he proceeded to the Fleet Commander and whispered in his ear. The commander’s eyes widened and he then looked at one of his screens for a long moment before slowly rising to his feet.
“Gentleman, let’s us take a half hour break. The Vicering and I have something urgent to attend to.”
When the Fleet Commander returned, he had a very concerned look on his face and he gazed at the General sadly before beginning to speak. “After consulting with Musa leadership, it has been decided that the mission debriefing session will be cancelled for today. It is scheduled to recommence tomorrow with General Rarez taking my place as the interviewing officer. It is expected that this session will be mostly a validation review of the General’s report and he should be considered released and excused from any further mission obligation.”
The General was beyond stunned. That the situation had gone so far in the wrong direction only to then completely turn around and end with a full release was a shock. In the Musa world, this meant no disciplinary hearing, no chance of rank or command loss, no negative consequences. He could go home to stay, and finally see his son. He walked out of the debrief room in a daze and while looking for his driver he noticed a senior Rija official lingering in the lobby, looking directly at him as if he were waiting for him. That’s odd thought the General, it not often a Rija enters a Musa command center – they usually insist on summoning all parties to Rejzik to maintain the appearance of control.
The Rija was clearly conferring with someone on a comm link, but never took his eyes off the General. As the General headed toward the door, the Rija quickly dropped his comm and moved to intercept him. “Do you need something, brother?” the General asked, annoyed that he would be further delayed and wanting nothing more than to be home with Daez, enjoying a glass of whiskey.
“Yes, General, the Rejiz would like to personally invite you to the Sentinal. He has important news about your son he would like to discuss with you. Your driver has been sent home and I have been ordered to offer any assistance I can to ensure your swift arrival. I understand it has been a trying day for you so far, sir. Hopefully the next part will be better. Shall we go?”
This day just keeps getting stranger, thought the General. A personal invitation from the Rejiz himself. He couldn’t imagine what the news could be or why Jehz would be with the Rija but he had been around long enough to know the priests had their hands in what often seemed to be the most unlikely places. He would just have to go with it. “Of course,” he responded to his Rija guide and headed for their transport.
Arriving at Rejzik, the General was quickly led to a back elevator, whisked to the top floors, and delivered into a large conference room with 20-foot glass walls. It was an amazing sight, one the General had heard described but had never seen for himself. He walked to the edge of the room and gazed down at the Musa city in the distance. Only hours ago he was starting to wonder if he would ever leave there again a free man and here he was, at full rank, and being hosted as a guest of honor by arguable the most powerful person in Given society.
“Beautiful view, isn’t it General?” He heard a voice call out from across the room. “I never get tired of it.” The General turned and watched the Rejiz approach, his hand extended, a politician’s smile fixed on his face.
“Thanks for coming so promptly, let’s sit down. We have a lot to discuss. I hope you won’t think it incredibly rude, but it’s been a difficult week for everyone so I’d like to get right to the point. Can I get you a drink before we start? The Rejiz signaled to his assistant without waiting for an answer, took a seat in an enormous high-backed chair, leaned back and studied the General’s body language while he waited for the drinks to arrive. The General did not seem unusually stressed to be called before the Rejiz after the day he had. A good sign thought the priest, this is a tough resilient soldier even for a general. The Rejiz decided to dive right in.
“So the debrief session was bad I’m told, very undeserved based on our evaluation of the data. There must be a scapegoat whenever anything goes wrong, doesn’t there? That’s true everywhere I’m afraid, not just among the Musa. Quite unfortunate. You must have been incredibly upset,” said the Rejiz.
The General eyes narrowed and he reached up to accept his drink. There was so much designed to offend packed into that innocent statement, he wasn’t sure what to think about first. That the Rija had access to mission and decision data this quickly after it ended or that he had knowledge regarding the contents of a highly classified debriefing session. This was an outrage, but something told him the Rejik had a very important reason for telling him this and he needed to hear it.
“How would you know these things, Rejik? All information associated with the mission is very sensitive and should not be available outside the highest ranks of the Musa kiln at this time.”
“Yes, that is true. Normally. But there are elements of this situation that are of special importance to the Rija and the Given. Critical importance. You know they were planning to string you up for this don’t you? It was almost guaranteed. The Kruz commanders were livid at you but also had their own errors to cover up. That’s a dangerous combination and just the start of the movement against you. You are really quite lucky to not be in jail right now but I am guessing you must know that.”
The General got the distinct sense that the Rejik was threatening him, but he was not sure why and what this could have to do with his son. His temper short, the General decided to draw the high priest out from the shadows. “I have trouble believing your information is true, Rejik, with all due respect. You would have needed unprecedented, extraordinary access to have this kind of background. That itself would appear almost criminal and most out of Balance, especially for your office, and I’m sure that would not be something you would engage in or approve of. Should I then take your comments as conjecture based on rumor?”
The Rejiz paused to consider the General’s statement. His initial impressions of the General based on their earlier brief meetings had always been positive. The General had built a reputation as a cerebral military commander, Voz knows they are always in short supply, but also with a nose for politics and controversy. The Rejiz had suspected that reputation was well deserved but now made a mental note that was confirmed and pressed on.
“Those are kind words in their own way General, but the fact is, as I am sure you would understand, sometimes you must get your hands dirty to ensure the greater good. Not filthy mind you, there are still limits regardless of the situation. But these are very unusual times, unprecedented, and we believe both you and your son have a very important role to play.”
“Oh really,” said the General feeling he now had the advantage and that the Rejiz was going to ask him for some kind of favor. “How so may I ask?”
“I’m afraid this is the hard part, General. I can’t really tell you much about it at this point. Deep, deep secrets, I’m afraid. Highly classified I believe the Musa would describe it as and terribly important to our collective future. Being a Musa you must be well-versed in this kind of situation, I presume?”
“I’m really not sure what kind of situation this is, Rejiz, but I can assure you and assume you must already know I have Level 9 clearance and a demonstrated history of discretion that speaks for itself. You should feel free to share all relevant facts and remain confident they will be handled as you would expect.”
“If were only that easy, General. I wish I could, I really do, but we all, including me, need to be very careful. What I can tell you is this. Your son is very important to us as he may very well be part of a larger, what is the right word here, let’s try situation the Rija need to stay in very close touch with. He is not in danger as far as we know, nor are you, but we need him to stay at Rejzik for a while.”
“What do you mean by a while?”
“We are really not sure, but it could be a year or more.”
“You have to be kidding, Rejiz. This is unheard of. Retaining a Musa officer without explanation or justification for over a year? That is what you are proposing? If this is what you mean by getting your hands dirty, I hope you are ready to get them bloody. This situation will never be accepted by me, his mother, or the Musa leadership.”
“Actually it will, General. Now please calm down and let’s discuss this reasonably. Please believe we are not taking these actions lightly but rather after careful deliberation. Part of that deliberation was discussions with the Chief Officer’s command staff, discussions that included the Chief himself. He has already agreed to the plan in whole with the sole provision being that you must also provide your consent.”
“Why would I ever do that, Rejiz? Allow you to kidnap my only son? I’m sorry for the accusation, but without additional information that could help me understand, that is how I would have to characterize it.”
“Because you know you will one day get him back, and I assure you General that you will. Also, because without your agreement, and I am sorry to say this, but your career is effectively over regardless of what your mission release allows. You don’t really think the course change at your debrief hearing just occurred out of nowhere, do you? We saved you General, at great cost to ourselves I might add, so that we might borrow your son for a while. It is that important. Please understand there were other ways that extended visit could have been accomplished that were not so generous to you.”
“I really didn’t want to have to threaten you, I would have much preferred a soaring conversation about the partnership between the kilns and the Balance and all the great things that could come out of this for you and the Given people. But I’m afraid your “kidnap” comment forced my hand and I take responsibility for that. I really should have set this conversation up better to help you understand, but this is all very difficult, not a lot of time to sort things out. It is of utmost importance that we keep Jehz for a time and hope you understand we would never go to such great lengths for nefarious ends. The Rija operate differently General, but we have always put the best interests of the Given people first, surely you can at least grant us that? Please give us the chance to prove that again to you personally and the Musa by providing your consent.”
“My wife is going to kill me,” muttered the General, knowing it sounded like a joke but not meaning it as one.
The Rejiz smiled the gentle smile of one used to sympathetically but unbendingly forcing others to accept and agree to his point of view.
“He won’t disappear completely, General. You’ll both be granted ...limited visits. Hopefully that fact will allow you to live and serve another day as the great officer, husband and father that you are with your honor, and your marriage, intact. Please know that your cooperation and sacrifice, even in light of our coercion, is most deeply touching and will not be forgotten.”
***
Later that evening, the Rejiz and his Council of Eight relaxed in the very room where the discussion with the General had earlier taken place.
“Very clever indeed, Rejiz, persuading the Musa warriors to overstate their concern with the General’s performance in Hayim as preparation for him to accept the decision to let Jehz stay with us. I am very curious to understand if they were really planning to discipline the General and if you actually did have the leverage to destroy his career had he not agreed?”
“No on the first count, Guz. You saw the data. Everyone was extremely frustrated with the result but no one in their right mind could fault the General. Most of his peers would have been lucky to return with half their fleet missing I would imagine. The Musa know that, all I asked for was a little harmless drama. No on the second count as well. I could have exerted some influence I suppose, but an officer like the General is tough to stop completely. His ambition is his weakness though and I had no choice but to use it against him.”
“How did you ever get the Musa to agree to this charade, Rejiz?” asked Sariz, “I’ve never heard of an arrangement like this being made before.”
“It was unusual, but their senior leaders are aware of the legend, Sariz. We could not in good faith keep it from them given their role in protecting us all. But in turn they couldn’t possibly justify keeping Jehz under house arrest in a Musa facility to assess him without exposing themselves so they were more than happy for us to remove the problem. They have required I give them expanded access to Rejzik so they can maintain watch but their presence will be discreet and limited to more public areas so we should be able to proceed without interference. Now that we have completed the first part of our mission, tomorrow we shall begin trying to discover what secrets our new apprentice Jehz has hidden away from us behind that shield of his. Guz, since you are so enthusiastic about the prospect of a Solon among us, I am expecting you to take the lead on this with Sariz as your partner.”