Solbidyum Wars Saga 9: At What Price (16 page)

My sense of confidence about my ability to withstand the treatment vanished quickly once the treatment began.  Only seconds into the injections I realized that most of what I had assumed was healing had, in fact, been a false sense of well-being brought on by the medication.  I was immediately racked with pain and searing heat in my wounded chest and ribs.  The agony escalated to a level beyond anything I had ever experienced and I wasn’t even certain that I would survive.  At one point, I was plagued by piercing sounds in my ears and it wasn’t until I took a deep breath that I realized the sounds were screams coming from me.  I was only remotely aware of Kala, who was at my side, wiping my forehead with a cool damp cloth and had likely been doing so throughout the entire ordeal.  By the time A’Lappe finished, I was so weak and exhausted that I was unable to get off the table.  I laid still with my eyes closed, listening to the conversation between A’Lappe and Kala as the burning pain in my head and spine abated.

“I suggest that you let him rest here,” said A’Lappe to Kala.

“Yes.  I think that would be best,” Kala replied with a distressed and exhausted voice.  “Do you think he will recover in a few hours like he has in the past?”

“I believe so, but I can’t promise anything.  His ribs seem to be practically healed and the bruising has virtually disappeared, but there is no doubt still a great deal of compromised tissue in that area.  It’s evident that the treatment over-stimulated the still sensitive nerves in those areas, but by morning he should be feeling pretty good.  I recommend that he has a hearty breakfast before he heads off to do whatever he has planned for the day.”

“Thank you, A’Lappe.  I don’t know how Tibby and I can ever repay you for all the things you’ve done for us.”  I heard Kala suppress a sob.

“Think nothing of it, Kalana, really.  You and Tibby have done more for me than you will ever understand.  I’m happy to do anything for you that I can.

The two of them went on talking, but I quickly lost track of the conversation and drifted off to sleep.  I had unpleasant dreams – dreams of giant asteroid-ships the size of small moons with hundreds of Brotherhood troopers popping out of cracks, crevices and caves, all of whom looked like Ming.  Each Ming gnawed on a bloody body part while laughing insanely.

I woke up suddenly, drenched in sweat.  The strong, metallic taste in my mouth made me gag.  A’Lappe must have left at some point, as Kala was alone with me and napping in the chair adjacent to my treatment table.  I must have made a retching sound as I stirred, because Kala woke with a start.

“Tib, are you alright?!” she asked in a panic.

“Water…,” I croaked.

Kala quickly handed me a container of water.  I rinsed my mouth with it and then looked for somewhere to spit it out.  I didn’t want to swallow that first horrid mouthful.  Kala noticed my distress and quickly handed me a small plastic bag used in the med units for just such purposes.  I spit the water out and quickly took a sip of fresh water.

“Are you alright, Tibby?” asked Kala once again, this time more calmly.

I relaxed, letting the cool water slowly slide down my throat.  “Yes.  I think so.  I was having terrible dreams.  I tugged on my clothing, which was soaked with perspiration.

“I need to get out of this clothing and shower,” I said as I tried to sit up.  “How long have I been asleep?”

“About six hours,” said Kala.  “Here, let me help you.”  She got me on my feet and insisted I drink some more water.  “You had a pretty rough session.  A’Lappe said it was due to your injuries and that next time the course of the session will normal again.”

“By the stars, I hope so.  I don’t know that I could go through that again.  That is the worst pain I have ever endured.”

“Well, stop getting shot and you won’t have to go through it anymore,” Kala admonished.

Kala managed to get me back to our suite via our usual route in the maintenance tunnels.  Once there, I showered several times to rid myself of the chemical smell that always followed the treatments.  Once the last traces of odor were washed away to my satisfaction, I laid down on the bed and slept another hour.  When I woke again I could smell food and suddenly realized I was famished.  As was always the case after some post-treatment sleep, I found myself feeling refreshed and alert.  I discovered that I had only a small amount of stiffness as I put on my uniform jacket.  I felt almost like a new man.

I walked into the dining area to be greeted by Kala’s beautiful smile.  “Tib, you look like a totally different person today.  If I didn’t know better, I would think nothing happened to you at all.”

“Well, I don’t
feel
quite
that good, but I can tell you I feel better than I have in a week.  What have you prepared there?  I’m starving!”

“A’Lappe said you might be, so I had Piesew fixed up a variety of foods for you.”

As always, Piesew had come up with something exquisite.  This time he prepared a large platter of hors d'oeuvres and each one that I sampled only made me want more.  Before I knew it, I had eaten the entire trayful.

“Well, your appetite certainly has recovered,” said Kala.

“Honestly, Kala, I’m not sure if I ate yesterday, now that I think about it.”

Kala gave at me a scowl and shook her head.

“What time do you meet with the Admiralty this morning?”

“In about two hours.  I’ll have just enough time for a briefing with Marranalis and Wabussie beforehand,” I replied as I wiped my mouth on a napkin and rose from my chair.

“Tib, I know I’m repeating myself, but you really are looking very good this morning.  It’s difficult to believe just a few days ago you were so severely injured.”

“I do feel good.  Just a small bit of soreness in my left shoulder.  Otherwise I feel fit again.”

“Just don’t go trying to stop any more enemy projectiles using your body,” she said.

“I won’t.”  I gave her a quick kiss before heading toward the door.  Her kiss was so warm and sweet that I needed a second, and I felt a rush as we kissed yet again.  I was heading out the door before I asked myself whether it was the effect of the treatment or something more.  I would need to ponder it later.  Right then I needed to get to the
GLOMAR ROSA
and back into action.

“Good morning, Admiral,” said Marranalis as soon as I entered the War Room.  “You’re looking well.”

“I’m feeling well, thank you,” I replied.  “Get in touch with Wabussie and tell him I want a briefing in an hour and then come to my office and fill me in on everything that’s happened since Ming’s attack in Sector Three.”  I headed for my office and got myself a cup of foccee from the dispenser and sat down behind my desk.  Marranalis entered a moment later with his vid pad and began relating intelligence that had been gathered and analyzed since the assaults in the Malpy Solar System.

“Do we have any idea of their origin or where they went after the raid?” I asked.

“No, sir, but we could see stars and a piece of a nebula through their Cantolla Gate before they closed it.  I sent the images to A’Lappe in hopes that he might be able to identify a location from those details.  It’s a long shot at best, but A’Lappe is pretty good at pulling off miracles.”

“Indeed he is,” I said, as I flexed my shoulder a little to see whether there was any pain remaining in the rib cage.

“What are the casualties and death statistics at the Malpy worlds?” I asked, trying to get back on the topic.

“Billions, sir,” said Marranalis.  “It’ll probably be weeks before we know the full extent of the casualties, but I think it’s safe to say nearly half the populations of both worlds were destroyed.  The Leaders have used the War Powers Act to bypass the Senate in order to expedite aid to both worlds.  Food, medical supplies and disaster response teams are already pouring through temporary Cantolla Gates from thousands of volunteer groups as well as our Federation organizations.”

“Good, good!  What about the final damages caused by the God’s Sweat addicts?”

“Well, we certainly had a Federation-wide mess.  Not as bad as we feared, but still bad.  And Halfredies’ analysis was correct.  The greater concentration of drug distribution and abuse was witnessed on the larger and wealthier worlds and the smaller and more remote worlds experienced only contained outbreaks of drug-related violence.  Because of the addicts’ intense cravings, their actions were random and disorganized, so no single, large-scale events occurred.  However, there were thousands, if not millions of drug abusers going out of their minds all at once, culminating in two days filled with suicides, physical attacks, arsons, vandalism, you name it.  Most of the addicts either committed suicide or simply died, but enforcement teams were unfortunately forced to shoot and kill a few of the more violent ones that couldn’t be subdued.  You know, Admiral, Ming hurt himself as much as he did us when his drug production facilities became contaminated and he cut off the remaining supply of God’s Sweat from the Federation.  When he manages to start distributing again, he won’t have any customers.  They’re all gone.”

“I don’t think Ming cares at this point.  He’s running out of time and he knows it now.  Krossden made it clear to Ming that he’s dying and that he doesn’t have long to live.  Ming wants to capture the entire galaxy before he dies – or in his mind, the entire universe – if for no other reason than to prove himself to be the greatest.  Once he’s gone, he doesn’t care what happens.  He just wants to die the Supreme Ruler over all.”

“Do you really think so?”

“It was his goal on Earth – to conquer the entire world and become Emperor.  Learning of the existence of the Federation only made his narcissistic ambitions grow stronger; but the goal has always been the same – to conquer and dominate everyone and everything around him.

“Have you discovered anything from the data cube Krossden gave me?”

“Yes, we’ve pinpointed the location where Krossden met Ming at the asteroid field.  The field isn’t large in comparison to most we find, but the asteroids there are larger and consist of much more stable material than average and there are certainly more than enough to meet the Brotherhood’s needs.”

“How close is our nearest Cantolla Gate to this field?”

“About five days’ travel, sir, at max GW speeds.”

“Order five ships from the nearest sector that are equipped to set up stellar Cantolla Gates to set up a perimeter about a half day’s travel from the location.  Each ship is to set up a stellar gate that we can pair with gates in sectors that we’ll determine later.  I want to be able to send ships through from all sides to attack in about a week.”

We were interrupted by a signal from my comlink.

“Tibby here.”

“Sir, Admiral Wabussie is here to see you.”

“Send him in.”

“You’re looking much improved, Admiral,” said Wabussie as he entered the room.

“Thank you,” I responded.  “I’m feeling much improved.  I hope you have news that will make me feel even better.”

“Well, I’m sorry, but that’s not the case, sir.  The news I have isn’t very good, I’m afraid.  The sniper who survived the attack at the graduation ceremony wasn’t able to give us much information before he died.”

“He’s dead?  What happened?”

“He came out of his coma a couple of days after the incident.  Soon after, we were able interrogate him and did so for nearly a day, after which we put him in a cell under heavy guard.  He’d been thoroughly searched, stripped and given new clothing, so we were confident that he didn’t have anything on his person when he was placed in his cell.  What we didn’t anticipate was that he had a poison capsule embedded in flesh on the inside of his thigh.  When the guards brought him his meal, he used the blunt end of his utensil to strike and break the capsule, which killed him instantly.”

“By the stars, how does Ming get such loyalty from his men?” I asked rhetorically.

“I don’t think he does.  These men fear Ming beyond belief.  They’re convinced that he always finds those who betray him and they’ve witnessed firsthand how Ming uses the most sadistic and painful means conceivable to torture and kill those who fail him.  They would rather die quickly from poisoning than allow Ming to vent his displeasure on them,” replied Wabussie.

“Did you find out anything about how these snipers and bombers got on to the base to begin with?” I asked.

“Yes.  We managed to get the sniper to confirm that he and his cohorts came in cloaked through the Cantolla Gates with the arriving visitors before the commencement of the ceremony.  We believe we have a solution to prevent this kind of cloaked entrance in the future.”

“Well, let’s hear it,” I said.

“The gate security areas will be modified to include an enclosed booth immediately preceding the Cantolla Gate.  A door on one end allows a single traveler to step into the booth and a door at the far end opens directly into the Cantolla Gate.  The two doors can never be open at the same time.  The traveler steps into the booth, after which the door closes and a light fog is introduced into the chamber to reveal the presence of any cloaked items or individuals.  Once cleared, the door attached to the gate is opened and the individual is allowed passage into the security post on the opposite side.  The gate door closes behind them and the booth door is opened to security to accept the next traveler for fog screening.”