Chains of Destruction (22 page)

"Do you know what happened to our transport bay yet?" Briggs asked impatiently.

"We found part of an incendiary device, could have been a timed charge. I can't be sure until we find all the pieces," Sergeant Bradley answered.

"You want to tell me where the primitives got explosives?" the Captain asked, seeming to calm down some.

Golly, Sir, I ain't supposed ta know nothin' like that. I'm jus' a darn toilet cleaner, don' ya 'member? I jus' fix things
.
"I have no idea, Sir. We'll have to run some tests first, see just exactly what sort of explosives we're talking about. I'm afraid it's going to take some time," Bradley answered.

"Time is what we don't have, soldier," the Captain snapped. "First we've got a missing ship, and now we have an attack on the station, and no doubt the ground troops have all been killed."

"We found pieces of some of them in the debris. They were sent back with the gold along with a primitive with radiation sickness," Sergeant Bradley said.

"Whatever happened was quick. We only got one distress signal, and it wasn't clear," Briggs said turning his chair away from Sergeant Bradley so that Bradley had to look at his back. Bradley stuck out his tongue and almost got caught when Briggs swung back around quickly. "How many casualties did we take here on the station?"

"Ah
 . . .
We can't be completely sure till we finish doing a head count, but I estimate about thirty of our people," Sergeant Bradley reported. He saw the security officer working at her station smile at him and then stick out her tongue, and knew that she had seen what he did and obviously approved. He kept the smile off his face only with an effort.

"Thirty! Why so many?" Briggs exclaimed.

Why the hell are you asking me? Don't you know a damn thing about the way this operation runs? Don't you remember it's me – the guy you think is completely unimportant? I fix things; that's it; that's all
.
However he apparently knew more than Briggs did. "We were expecting a bunch of natives. Guards had been ordered into the area and so had medical personnel. In fact I would say our medical staff was hit the hardest."

"Oh, that's great, just beautiful! Do you know how much time and money the Reliance spends training medics? They aren't going to be happy."

It always comes down to cost effectiveness with these freaking Reliance goons, because they never have to peel someone's liver off a wall, or try to figure out whose arm that was
.
He was so engrossed in his own angry thoughts that he almost didn't hear what the idiot said next.

"I'm going to send an away team to the planet's surface. Till now I have been reluctant to keep a military presence on the surface, but it may become necessary in the near future. We need to learn more about the planet, and we need to know exactly what happened with the transport station. One thing is obvious for whatever reason this village decided it didn't want to trade people for gold."

"Maybe they realized that it was the gold that was making them sick," Sergeant Bradley said, unable to keep the disapproving tone from his voice.

"Of course they didn't, Sergeant Bradley. They are stupid primitives, savages really. They worship thermo generators for Pete's sake! How smart could they be?" Captain Briggs screamed.

With any luck smart enough to realize that you're the prick in charge and kill you instead of us
.

"I suppose you're right, Sir." Sergeant Bradley said.
Please tell me what dance you'd like me to do before I stupidly tell you what a pompous ass I think you are, and wind up spending the rest of my natural life in the brig
.

"Security officer Lieutenant Stratton will lead the away team. I want you to go with her," Captain Briggs ordered.

"With all due respect, Sir, why me? I'm not a political; I'm not even combat. I'm the maintenance Sergeant. A huge hole has been ripped in our ship, and it's my job to see to the repairs
 . . .
"

"I'm the Captain!" Briggs screamed glaring at him. "I'll tell you what your job is, and you will not question my orders. Do you understand?" Briggs levered himself out of his chair with an effort that looked like he might have been velcroed to the seat, and stood to his full height of five foot four.

Gee, let me see
 . . .
Yeah, I'm pretty sure you're a stupid fucking prick, so I'd say I've got it covered
.

"Yes, Sir
 . . .
"

"You're a simple minded person, Sergeant. I need someone who's simple to deal with these primitives. Someone who thinks like a commoner. No disrespect intended, Sergeant, but someone stupid enough to think like they think. Anyone who can handle the morons who serve under you in maintenance knows how to talk to primitives." It was pretty clear by the tone of his voice that disrespect
was
intended.

Well, go. . .o. . .lly, Captain, I'm overwhelmed at your faith in me. I feel honored that you think all us guys in maintenance are such a bunch of total ignoramuses. Let's disconnect the main gravitational transfusion junction and see what stupid fucks you think we are then
.

"You will leave by shuttle at 0800 hours. Until then go about your duties
 . . .
Oh, and assign someone else to oversee the work in the transport bay. A monkey with a pair of pliers ought to be able to do your job here, so it shouldn't be too hard to find a replacement," Briggs ordered. "You are dismissed."

Sergeant Bradley saluted, quickly turned on his heels and left. Outside the bridge door he started to mumble under his breath all the things he would like to say to Briggs. There was a bunch of static from one of the monitors overhead. Usually this would have been of concern to him, because he would have been in charge of making sure it got fixed, but as of a minute ago anything to do with the maintenance of this station had been changed to the list of
things that weren't his problem
.

The monitors usually had a steady stream of station news including who was to be where when, just in case someone was confused about their assignment. On most ships or stations this sort of system was mostly a waste of technology, but when you had a prick like Briggs running the show and changing assignments and shifts at the last minute, it was a necessary evil..

Bradley looked up; the screen had gone blank. And not just that one but every screen he could see up and down the hall. He felt somehow vindicated but then felt guilty because he would be passing this and all the other huge problems off to one of his subordinates. Just his luck – exciting things finally start happening up here, and he gets shipped planet side.

The screens all lit back up again, then went black again, and then there was
 . . .
What the hell was it? Some small alien filled up the screen.

"People of the Reliance. Specifically personnel aboard the satellite, Pam Station, which is in orbit around the planet Beta 4. I am Mickey, President of New Freedom. Reports by the Alliance are false; there is no hunger or sickness here, and we are keeping a close eye on Reliance activities. For instance, we are aware that currently the Council of Twelve has you enslaving the peoples of Beta 4 and shipping them to Earth to be used as shock troops to fight us. We ask each one of you to look deep within your own conscience. Do you think it's right to use radioactive gold to buy these humanoids and to poison their leaders? To send them to fight us – the New Alliance – the same force that the Reliance couldn't overcome? To pit primitives against lasers and plasma blasters? What happiness has the Reliance brought you? We have sent one message to you already as proof of our intentions. Stop the inhuman acts against this world and against the peoples of my country, or we shall retaliate again – this time with severe prejudice."

The transmission halted, and the screens returned to their normal duty.

Bradley had to stop himself from laughing out loud when he heard Briggs screaming and slamming things around like an angry child.

The New Alliance must have one hell of a communications system, and one hell of a spy network. Not long after he heard Briggs start screaming, MP's started running down the halls, no doubt looking for the spy amongst them.

Bradley smiled, so there was a spy on board leaking information about their top-secret mission to the New Alliance? It wasn't him, and he didn't know who it was, so it also went on that growing list of things that just weren't his problem. He hoped they didn't get the spy and that this caused them to dissolve the operation altogether. But that little bit of hopeful conjecture was between him and his brain, and so far – try as they might – the Reliance hadn't managed to do away with free thought.

Except of course in the GSH's. No doubt if they didn't cost so much to reproduce and there wasn't this hidden fear that they would somehow break their conditioning and take over, the Reliance would completely phase humans out of the military – hell, maybe they'd do away with humans altogether.

By the time O800 hours rolled around there were already rumors flying about who had been arrested. He was on his way to his meeting with Lieutenant Stratton in the hanger when Corporal Riley ran up to him.

"Sergeant! They've just arrested Harker."

"What!" Bradley couldn't believe his ears. "What in hell's name for?"

"They think he's one of the spies, maybe even
the
spy," Riley informed him.

"That's insane. I've known Harker most of my life." Bradley looked at his watch. He didn't have time to go to the brig to check on Harker and meet Lieutenant Stratton in time. "Damn it all! Riley, run tell Lieutenant Stratton I'll meet her in a few minutes. I can't leave without checking on Harker."

"Why should I tell her you're running late?" He asked.

He only thought a second about making something up. "Tell her my best friend just got thrown into the Brig. I just want to check on him it won't take me long."

Harker paced behind the bars like a caged animal. When he saw Bradley he ran up to the bars grabbing them in his hands.

"Damn, Bradley, am I glad to see you," he said.

"What the hell did you do?" Bradley asked wanting to sound supportive. It was hard because he was agitated. Whatever Harker had done had put Bradley in the position of doing something that if found out might make him a suspect.

"You know we're constantly monitored?" Harker said.

Of course he knew, but sometimes he forgot. He thought about what he'd said to Riley earlier that afternoon and what he'd done when he'd been talking to Captain Briggs and cringed. When the Reliance was on this sort of witch-hunt you didn't have to do or say much to be hauled in.

"Yeah, so?" Bradley said. "You've never done or said anything that could possibly make them think you're a spy."

"They have a record of me talking to Barry when we were working down in the engine room. I was pitching a bitch, and I said something to the tune of how if I didn't get off shit detail I was going to hook up with the New Alliance and help them bring the Reliance down."

"Damn it, man!" Bradley exclaimed. "You can't say shit like that."

"I know that, man. I didn't
mean
it. I was just tired and hot and pissed off. Hell, I didn't even remember saying it till they showed me the recording. Can you help me?" Harker asked. There was fear in his eyes and in his voice. Bradley had never known his old friend to be afraid of anyone or anything, but he wasn't stupid, and he knew damn good and well that after the events of the afternoon they needed someone to blame. If Harker became that someone, they'd space him – no doubt.

"I
 . . .
I don't have much clout, Harker. You know that. Besides which I have to go with the away team down to the surface." He thought for a minute. "I'll talk to Lieutenant Stratton. She seems like she's all right. She might be able to help, after all she is a security officer. Don't look so worried, man. You didn't do anything, and without proof they can't do anything to you. I have to go; I'm late as it is. You keep cool, and I'll see what I can do."

He reached through the bars and they clasped hands. Harker caught his eyes and held them. "Good bye, Bradley."

Bradley laughed nervously as he withdrew his hand. "Cheer up, buddy, they can't convict you of something you didn't do."

"Bradley
 . . .
you forget. This is the Reliance we're talking about."

Bradley unconsciously turned to look at the camera, and then he turned back to his friend and whispered, "Damn it, Harker! Watch your mouth. You're going to cause yourself even more trouble. I'll see you when I get back." He turned to leave.

"Thanks, Bradley," Harker said.

"No problem," Bradley said over his shoulder without turning. He took off at a run looking at his watch. If he ran all the way he'd only be a few minutes late.

Bradley threw on his flight suit and ran onto the flight deck of the skiff. He looked at Lieutenant Stratton who was waiting patiently at the controls. She indicated the seat next to her, and he sat down although he wondered why one of the Marines hadn't taken the co-pilot's position.