Clidepp Requital (7 page)

"That's Doctor Velazquez," Ruscetti said.

"Great," Burrows said in disgust. "He's going to threaten to kill the doc if he doesn't get what he wants. Well, let the games begin."

"Are you still on the line, Major?"

"I'm here."

"I have one of your medical people with me. In sixty seconds I'm going to slit his throat. Then in another sixty seconds I'm going to kill another of your people. Then every sixty seconds thereafter I'm going to kill another."

"And what are you going to do when you run out of Marines and medics?"

"What?" Klieppaso asked in apparent confusion.

"I said, what are you going to do when you run out of hostages to murder? You only have enough to last eight minutes. Or perhaps I should ask— how long do you think you and your people will live once you kill the first Terran?"

Klieppaso obviously hadn't thought through all the ramifications of his threat. Increasing his bluster, he said, "We'll get out of here and kill every Terran on this ship."

"That's it," Burrows said after disconnecting from the line. Activating a direct connection to Sydnee, he said, "Lt. Marcola?"

"Marcola here, sir." She had been receiving a feed from the security office and had heard everything said by Klieppaso and Burrows.

"As you heard, the leader of the escape attempt is threatening to kill the doctor and the rest of the hostages. MacDonald is just on the other side of the corridor door where the rebels are congregated. If I open that door, they might panic and kill the doc, so I'm going to open the door by your end. I want you to try to talk this jerk down. Stay tough. Make him believe we've already written the hostages off and that you're just waiting until he starts killing to begin a little killing of our own. If you get a shot that will save the doc, you're authorized to use lethal force. If they lose their leader, the others might lose heart and return to the hold peacefully."

"Aye, sir, we're ready," Sydnee said, as she placed her stun rifle against the corridor wall and unsnapped the flap on her holster. To her platoon, she said, "Let's put on our game faces."

Immediately, the outer front Simage on the helmet of Sydnee and every Marine with her displayed the four-four-three's battle icon. In the animated 3D icon, steam rose from the top of the skull, and the eye sockets glowed brightly with a luminescent green color. Every couple of seconds, small flames emanated from the rhinal openings to simulate exhaling. During battle, or any other extreme physical exertion, the image would automatically change slightly to show the skull laughing maniacally.

"I'm opening the door," Burrows said as he nodded to Ruscetti, who relayed the command to the chief engineer.

* * *

As the corridor doors began to open, the noise drew the attention of Klieppaso, who hadn't known what to do after the officer hung up. He smiled for a second, thinking he'd won, until he saw Sydnee and the platoon of Marines, their stun rifles at the ready, standing in the next frame-section just fifteen meters from where
he
stood. The smile disappeared from his face. He was directly behind the doctor, his body almost completely hidden, so there was no clear shot for Sydnee. "Hold it right there," he shouted. "Come any closer and I'll kill this Terran."

With the wink of her right eye, Sydnee activated the speaker on her breastplate. It had already been adjusted to speak in Yolon. "I know," she said. "We're here to take you and your people down after you do that."

"I
will
do it," Klieppaso said brusquely.

"And I can't stop you. I'm not here to save the medic. I'm only here to see you never kill anyone else."

"I've already given orders to my people. If anything happens to me, they'll kill the rest."

"Their orders are not my concern. My orders are to kill you and all of them if you kill the medic. He's the
only
thing in this galaxy keeping you all alive right now. When you kill him, there's
nothing
keeping you and the others with you alive. You crossed the line when you threatened to kill the hostages. I'm not carrying a stun weapon. My pistol is laser. When I shoot, my target doesn't take a nap. It dies."

Klieppaso didn't have a response for that, and he hadn't fully realized how precarious his position was. He'd believed the Spaccs would cave when he threatened to kill the hostages. Now here was one who seemed to be saying she didn't care what happened to the hostages. But that had to be false. Klieppaso had heard that the Spaccs would do anything to save one of their own. "All I want is to contact my leadership and be released from this ship. I don't want to kill anyone. I'll only do that if you force my hand."

"I'm not forcing you to do anything. If you kill, it's because you choose to kill. I'm simply going to wait right here until you do it, and then I'm going to kill you and
everyone
who stands with you." Sydnee felt that her statements were adequately forceful to meet the Major's orders that she appear tough, but she was having trouble figuring out where this was leading. She didn't want to back Klieppaso into a corner where he believed the only action was the final one, but her words
were
having an effect on the other rebels. They were slowly inching their way away from Klieppaso and towards the door of the hold. Already, one had disappeared into the hold.

Switching her com to connect with the Major, Sydnee said, "Sir, I've lost sight of one of the rebels who was in the corridor. Can you see him?"

"Affirmative, Lieutenant. It appears we have our first deserter. You're doing great. Keep it up. Stay tough. It's having an effect on the others, if not Klieppaso. His bluster will diminish as he finds his support disappearing."

"Aye, sir," she said as she switched back to the external speaker.

Over the next several minutes, no one spoke and no one died, but seven more of the rebels disappeared back into the hold. Klieppaso had realized it but said nothing. Finally, to stem the tide of desertions, he said loudly to his people, "Hold your positions. She's just trying to frighten you. She isn't going to shoot anyone."

Sydnee didn't want to make a move and panic Klieppaso, so she remained perfectly still, but used her eye movements to adjust her com to channel One so she could address the platoon. "I don't want anyone to use their laser pistols except as a last resort. When things start to happen, use your stun rifles. Fire on any rebel still standing or moving in the corridor. Once the corridor is clear, fire team Alpha will remain in the corridor while Bravo through Golf moves into the hold. They will stun anyone who still wants to resist and drive the rest toward the rear of the area and away from the hostages. Everyone clear on that?"

A chorus of "Oo-rahs" was the reply.

Switching to the private link to the Major, she said, "Sir, I see a fire-suppressant nozzle in the overhead about a meter from Klieppaso. Can that be activated independently? I mean, without activating the entire system and without there actually being a fire?"

"Standby," Burrows said.

About thirty seconds later, she heard, "The chief engineer says any nozzle can be activated in test mode. He's identifying the address of that nozzle in the computer and will be ready in a few seconds. Good idea, Lieutenant. Stand by."

Sydnee shifted to Com-One and explained her plan to the platoon. Then it was simply a matter of waiting for Engineering.

"The chief engineer is ready and waiting, Lieutenant," she heard on her direct line with Burrows.

"I've briefed my platoon, sir. We're ready when you are. I think it's time to build some snowmen."

The nozzle in the overhead suddenly came to life and began directing a blizzard of white foam fire-suppressant directly towards Klieppaso, Doctor Velazquez, and the two rebels still holding the sleeping medical officer upright. The foam had the thick consistency of whipped cream, and the sight dazed the other rebels in the corridor. Klieppaso was instantly blinded as foam covered his entire head.

The corridor's width allowed no more than three armored Marines to walk side by side with full mobility. With Sydnee in the center of the front line, the platoon moved in swiftly, stunning rebels as they proceeded. The Yolongi in the corridor fell like raindrops on Diabolisto as the Marines fired with abandon into their ranks. In seconds, the corridor was littered with sleeping rebel bodies. The rebels near the hold disappeared quickly inside. Klieppaso, already buried under a meter of thick, heavy foam and unable to see what was going on, was coughing and sputtering while trying to scream orders and obscenities.

As Sydnee reached the quartet near the corridor door, she stepped without hesitation into the foam, her arms extended. When she felt a body, she grabbed an arm and yanked with all her strength. As it came towards her without resistance, she stepped back and emerged from the foam mountain. The body belonged to one of the rebels, but it wasn't Klieppaso. This one was coughing from having inhaled some of the non-toxic foam and surrendered meekly as she pushed him into the arms of a Marine by her side.

Stepping into the foam again, the next body Sydnee found was drooping and felt like dead weight. She immediately knew it had to be Doctor Velazquez. She managed to get a good hold on the sleeping officer's uniform and yanked. He came free from the grip of the second rebel who was coughing and trying to get a breath while still supporting the weight of the sleeping medical officer. Sydnee suddenly found herself trying to carry the doctor's entire weight and had to settle for half dragging his body to safety.

When Sydnee again emerged from the mountain of white, a waiting Marine took one of the doctor's arms. Together, they managed to get Doctor Velazquez to a safe area in the corridor behind the platoon. With the doctor removed from danger, some of the Marines began laughing at the screams of Klieppaso and his lieutenant, neither of whom could find their way out of the thick foam. When the nozzle stopped spraying, fire team Alpha began discharging their stun weapons into the white substance until all noise and movement stopped.

As Sydnee had ordered, six of the fire teams had advanced into the hold and driven the rebels back to the far side, securing the area around the sleeping guards and two medical people.

An engineering team had been standing by with vacuum hoses since the plan had been put into action. As the corridor and hold were secured, they entered the corridor and connected the hoses to available wall sockets. Within minutes, the engineers had removed enough foam that the two encapsulated bodies were visible. When Klieppaso and his lieutenant, Duttomon, awoke, they would each be in a six by eight cell in the ship's brig.

As the last of the foam was being vacuumed up, the wide doors at the stern-most end of the corridor rolled back into their frame-section housings and MacDonald's platoon joined Sydnee's.

"Hey, Syd," MacDonald said, as she approached her friend, "have any trouble?"

Sydnee, still covered with globs of foam, said, "No trouble. Just a dumb rebel who bit off far more than he could chew. He'll be sleeping for a few hours."

"Anything we can do?"

"My platoon is in the hold, mopping up. Your people could give them a hand. We need to make sure we account for all the stun weapons and then pat down the rebels for makeshift weapons. I guess we should separate Klieppaso's chief conspirators and move them to the brig."

"Too bad the brig isn't large enough to hold the entire lot."

"Yeah, but I think we'll have less trouble now. The ones who wind up in cells are going to miss the relative freedom they had in this enormous hold."

"Can I vacuum you off, Lieutenant?" one of the engineers with a hose asked.

"Yes, Chief."

In seconds, Sydnee's armor again looked pristine.

"Thanks, Chief."

"My pleasure, Lieutenant."

"Well done, Lieutenant," Major Burrows said to Sydnee when he arrived to personally inspect the area with captains Wendham and Lidden as the last of the hostages were being removed to the sickbay.

The rebels lining the corridor had been searched, then dragged into the hold where they would sleep off the effects of the stunning. The rebels who hadn't been stunned had all been checked for weapons and a small collection of sharp objects confiscated. Klieppaso and his lieutenants had been separated for transport to the brig, fitted with transport chains for that short journey even though asleep, and then loaded aboard oh-gee sleds. They would awaken in their cells.

"Thank you, sir," Sydnee said.

"I knew you were the right officer to lead this platoon. Using the flame-suppressing foam to end the standoff without anyone being hurt was inspired."

"I don't think Klieppaso really wanted to harm our people, sir."

"Perhaps not, but when he's tried the court will judge him on his actions, not his possible intentions. Merely placing them in danger and threatening their lives will add additional time to his sentence."

"Well done, Lieutenant," Captain Lidden said, adding his congratulations to those of the Major.

"I agree," Captain Wendham said. "Very well done."

"Thank you, sirs."

"Okay, Lieutenant, " Burrows said. "Let's wrap this up. Two fire teams will be adequate to transport the rebel leaders. You can dismiss the rest of your people."

"Aye, sir."

As the three senior officers left the deck, Sydnee passed on the Major's orders to the platoon, then retrieved the stun rifle she had earlier left in the other frame-section.

A new Marine guard detail took up their posts as the door to the hold was closed and resealed for the first time since the escape attempt had begun. Sydnee and Kelly MacDonald followed along behind the small group headed for the lifts and ultimately the brig.

~ June 29
^th
, 2285 ~

The
Babbage
reached Mars at 0348 hours, exactly on schedule. Auxiliary Command and Control access was limited to
Babbage
officers, so guest officers and enlisted personnel hoping to catch a first glimpse of Mars or Earth after a long absence had crowded into the lounges reserved for their use. Despite the early morning hour, seating was limited.