Star Vigilante (Vigilante Series) (35 page)

Under that veiling explosion,
Obliteration
struck back.

“Matt! Damage to AM Pontoon One,” yelled
Mata Hari
in a shocked little girl voice, just as he felt the rip of torn tendons and bone in his right arm.

“Matt?” called Eliana from her couch, concern showing for his pain-grimace.

He couldn’t talk.

He just reacted.

Like a cyborg.

“Speed up! Get closer to them faster than they expect. They’ll lose beam focus momentarily.”

“Complying.”

Mata Hari
flared its deut-li fusion drive to near-overload as the ship added its antimatter overdrive to the thrust effort. They also rotated like a gymnast arcing over the high bar. Mercury vapor fumed out. Hull adaptive optics glittered like a thousand diamonds. The still functional AM Pontoon Two changed angle, aiming at the fleeing half-globe.

Wait a minute. They were fleeing
.

The counterattack had been mere camouflage, to hide the Halicene vector change as they swung away from Halcyon and across the ecliptic. The crippled ship was heading out-system, seeking the safety of Alcubierre Drive Translation beyond any nearby planet. Should he let them go?

Eliana sat up in the accel-couch as the clamshells opened, reaching for him, her relief plain to see. “Are we safe?”

“I hope so!” Matt reached out. Two human hands sought contact.

“
Override!
” yelled Mata Hari’s startled voice.

Eliana squeaked as the accel-couch closed in on her. Inertial fields grabbed Matt.

The forward holosphere changed.

A black emblem took form in the holo, bearing the dreaded Anarchate symbol of the galaxy
crossed by a lightning bolt. A bell-like tone sounded. Concurrent with the holo and bell-tone, there appeared on his Pit sidescreen the image of a Nova-class battleglobe that had arrived into the outer reaches of Sigma Puppis system. It was a colossal globe twice the size of
Obliteration
before its splitting, and Matt suspected its capabilities vastly exceeded those available to the Upsilon Carina shipyards of Halicene Conglomerate. Concurrent with the Nova’s appearance he felt its gravity wave impact as Translation finished. In the holosphere, an alien replaced the official emblem.

“Cease all hostilities immediately, or face annihilation by Anarchate Warship
Excellent
,” intoned the tachspeed mechanical voice of a large alien who resembled a sleepy-eyed rat with a long-tail whose carnivore teeth belied its somnolent aspect. It rested a three-fingered hand on a control table, clearly ready to signal a devastating attack on anyone who did not immediately heed its commands.

“
Matthewww?
” asked Mata Hari
,
his symbiont’s voice tone wavering all across the tonal spectrum, from little-girl feminine to battle-hardened masculine.
Weird. Another software glitch.

He gulped. He had no wish to challenge the Anarchate—they had too long a memory, and humanity had no ability to fight the Anarchate. Anyway,
Obliteration
had stopped firing on him. “It’s over, partner.” With a shrug, Matt discontinued his own attack, causing any enroute munitions to explode or go inactive. The Anarchate expected instant obedience. He was not about to give them an excuse to believe any Halicene black propaganda about him.

The Anarchate alien—Matt’s onboard Intelligence CPU identified the commander as belonging to the species Spelidon—twitched long black whiskers. Its outstretched hand relaxed minutely. “Good. I see by your transponders you are the ships
Obliteration
and
Mata Hari.
Continue on your current courses and orbit the planet Halcyon at three planetary diameters. Hold position until my arrival. End transmission.”

Eliana’s accel-couch finally released its clamshell crash-arms. She cursed the couch, then looked to Matt. “Was that a tachyonic signal?”

“Of course,” Mata Hari
said in a new, masculine voice, sounding a bit exasperated. “How else would we have no lightspeed transmission lag?”

Eliana grimaced, looking up at the ceiling. “Look, you stupid machine, I—”

“Patron—please!” And what the hell was it with his symbiont’s voice changes? He was getting worried by these software glitches and persona changes in his partner.

Eliana flushed, crossed her arms and glared around the Bridge, as if daring any automaton to approach her. “As you wish.”

In the Pit, his skin had reddened from overexposure to lightbeams, the cable itched the back of his neck, and he was aware in the back of his mind of Mata Hari’s hovering presence . . . but somehow a presence with a difference . . . Shrugging mentally, Matt considered his options. His solution to the infestation of Sigma Puppis system by the Halicene Conglomerate was not yet finished. They had to be driven out completely and without any further damage to Halcyon or Zeus Station. He had—at most—one hour before the Anarchate battleglobe
Excellent
arrived and took full control of the situation. What would it do, faced with competing power authorities among both the Derindl and the humans? Matt didn’t know, but he did know better than to leave life-or-death matters to fate. Blinking, he linked into Mata Hari
but spoke aloud, for Eliana’s benefit.

“Partner, see if you can connect me with Autarch Dreedle at Tree Melisen. We must know her status.”

“Complying.” The mood of the ship’s hovering presence felt very formal and stiff, almost as if a new personality now moved in the AI.

Shit
. Now he had to deal with a twitchy AI. At least his replacement minisats fed him elint data on the armed struggle for control of the Derindl planetary capital. Pit sidescreens also showed uplinked images. Smoke rose over one-third of Tree Melisen, but the levels of electronic and subatomic communications were returning to near-normal. Someone seemed back in control. But who? And did all of the Pure Breed Greek colonists at Olympus town agree with the power grab by Nikolaos, or was there opposition in the
urbus
? Had any Pure Breeds fought against the Pericles terrorists? And what was the fate of the crossbreeds?

Matt wished he had a humint source inside Olympus itself, but time had been too short to suborn someone. He must rely on sensor feeds for most of his human colony data, though perhaps teacher Larissa could be reached. New images came online from Tharsis Plateau. They showed a Derindl armed corvette in Nullgrav Hover above the buildings of Olympus Colony. Interesting. Perhaps the Autarch stood ready to strike back at Nikolaos for his attempt to upset the power balance aboard Zeus Station. So much for sexual politics.

“Matthew,” Mata Hari
interrupted his musing, her normal feminine voice now returned with an apologetic-looking Mata Hari persona-image. “The Autarch Dreedle is on-line, but her signal is warbling and weak.”

“Good enough.” And thank the stars the real AI had returned, though he wondered again at the persona change. Could the masculine voice relate to the energy glow from the Restricted Rooms? A glow which had now returned to the normalcy of impenetrable to him and his
Mata Hari partner. He sighed. “Eliana—would you join me in pickup range?”

“Yes!” She was up and out of her accel-couch faster than a hypersonic missile. Eliana squatted down beside the Pit, one hand touching lightly his bare shoulder. Her touch felt good.

Autarch Dreedle appeared in the forward holosphere. Her long hair was tied back, she still wore her combat harness, and the organized chaos of a temporary Combat Command post moved behind her. She looked tired, her face smoke-streaked, and red blood ran from one shoulder. When she spotted Eliana, suspicion flared in her eyes. “
Mata Hari
—Spyridon’s forces have been thrown back into the countryside. My troops are now hunting them down.” She showed many sharp teeth. “You were right about the instability of human allegiances. Are you going to kill Despot Nikolaos . . . or may I have the pleasure?”

Whoa
. “Uh, Autarch, I understand your rage—”

“You do not!” she screamed, shaking visibly, then calming as icy determination filled her. “Nikolaos sold out to Legion. I care not what you humans do to each other, but when you league against the Derindl our entire society units against any aggressor!”

Eliana leaned forward tentatively. “My crossbreed cousins—are they still alive?”

Dreedle frowned at Eliana. “Do you think us uncivilized?” Her frown deepened. “We were a culture respected in the galaxy while you humans were still planet-bound! Of course the crossbreeds are safe—our people know the difference between scapegoats and those truly responsible. Like Nikolaos, Spyridon and Legion.” She sighed, looking very tired, then focused back on Matt. “A gift for you Vigilante, in return for the minisat intelligence and the orbital bombardment help from your ship. You recall the shipboard bioweapon unknowingly carried by your Patron?”

“Yes.” Beside him Eliana looked startled, then embarrassed that he’d revealed her shame to the Autarch. She hung her head, gaze downcast. But her hand stayed on his shoulder.

The Autarch watched Eliana with curious eyes. “A captured lieutenant of Spyridon informs us that was an attack by one Creon Theodopulous.” Eliana cried out with dismay. “Young Creon desired Eliana as his Trade wife. He was convinced by other forces to use her as an unwitting carrier for the weapon. Her departure to find you—without
first
seeing her brother—foiled their plans to kill Ioannis with the bioweapon.”

“Forces?” Matt recalled his puzzlement at the time. “What other forces?”

Dreedle’s expression soured. “My ex-amour Nikolaos. It seems he convinced Creon the bioweapon would kill only Eliana’s brother, leaving the way open for his marriage suit.”

Now he could see it coming. “And who convinced Nikolaos to suborn Creon?”

“Who else? Spyridon!” Fury flamed in the Autarch’s eyes. “The bioweapons they used against our Mother Tree show the same sophistication as the aerogel bioweapon that attacked you. Now do you understand why Nikolaos’ life is forfeit?”

Matt remembered Dreedle’s first question. He didn’t blame her, but he had other plans for the Greek. “Please leave Nikolaos to me. Any word from Zeus Station?”

Dreedle showed only scant interest. “They have been off Vidcast for the ten minutes. We cannot raise Despot Ioannis or our own Trade legates. Our satellites show they did not sustain structural damage. Eventually they will recontact us. And we have our own problems—earthquakes! Four Translation gravity pulses so close to Halcyon have unsettled our lands.”

Hmmm
. Would the Autarch do more for him? “Dreedle, could you have your other corvette investigate the station? I am reluctant to leave the parking orbit ordered by the Anarchate battleglobe.”

For the first time, fear shone in the eyes of Autarch Dreedle. “Vigilante, I know we called for them to come, but what will they do? Will they destroy our planet?”

Eliana’s grip tightened on his shoulder. “Matthew?” she whispered, looking to him.

He patted her hand. “Autarch, it is unlikely. As you said—
you
called them. They will investigate first, so long as no one is stupid enough to attack them. Perhaps your planet will be the true winner in this contest.”

“Winner?” Dreedle barked harshly. “With a third of my capital in ruins? Our atmosphere polluted by transuranic fallout? Our Genetic Manufactory partly destroyed?”

Matt tensed, then relaxed as Eliana rubbed his neck. “The Stripper is dead. The Halicenes are blocked for the moment. Spyridon is on the run. You control the planet. There’s an old human saying—half a loaf of bread is better than no loaf.”

Dreedle grimaced, then waved her hand. “No more human idioms and conundrums, Vigilante. I have work to do. Good day.” Her image disappeared.

On the deck beside him, Eliana reached up, grasped his chin, and turned him so he faced her. “Matt—what will you do now?”

“Get rid of
Obliteration
.”

She gasped, pulling back as dismay filled her eyes. “What! I . . . I’m worried for you. For us. Can’t this fighting stop now?”

“Not until the Mican is destroyed.” In his deep mind, Matt made PET contact with Mata Hari
,
her hovering cloud presence a patient friend. She’d tended to ship repairs while he handled organic liaison. She must think him expert in that area, though he doubted his own nature, let alone his abilities. Enough. Time to work. “Mata Hari
,
are we able to go to Stealth mode?”

“Yes,” she said out loud. “But the Anarchate
battleglobe will eventually detect our gravity wave emissions.”

“How long before they detect us?” he said. Beside him, a kneeling Eliana kept silent, folded hands in her lap, and looked depressed.

“Unknown,” said his symbiont. “My Library banks do not include any schematics or data on Anarchate Nova-class battleglobes.”

“Why not?”

“Because no one has yet defeated one.”

Great. Just great
. “Will
Obliteration
detect us?”