“I understand,” Archer told him.
Indeed, he could understand everyone’s actions—ch’Terren’s, T’Rama’s, even the shooter’s. The staged assassination attempt had clearly been meant to hurt the Federalists’ standing and undermine Rigel’s chances of admission, and possibly to worsen the existing divisions within the Federation.
The one person whose actions he couldn’t understand—the one whose actions hurt the most—was Sedra Hemnask.
June 22, 2164
U.S.S. Endeavour, orbiting Rigel VII
“I’ve located the ship,” Elizabeth Cutler reported from the science station. Thanien rotated the command chair to face her. “It’s in a mountainous region north of the main settled territories.”
“How far north?” Takashi Kimura asked.
“Not far. A few hours’ march from the nearest city.”
“Still,” Hoshi Sato observed, “that’s a strange place to set down. We know the Kalar shoot down intruders. Could they have crashed?” Thanien heard the concern in her tone: what if the abducted Pioneer crewmen had been on that ship?
The lieutenant shook her head uncertainly. “I can’t tell at this range. I’m only getting a partial read on the ship . . . it’s in a narrow cleft under an overhang, and there are refractory minerals around it that confuse my scans. Plus all the volcanic dust in the air reduces visibility.”
Thanien narrowed his eyes. “That seems conveniently well-hidden for a crashed ship. They may have evaded the Kalar’s artillery and landed there to avoid detection.”
The first officer stood and addressed Ortega at the helm. “Ensign, adjust our orbit for optimal line-of-sight on the vessel on our next pass. Altitude, two hundred fifty kilometers.” He turned to the tactical station. “Commander Kimura, prepare a team. Unless Lieutenant Cutler can offer a more definitive scan on our next orbit, I want you to proceed to the target ship in shuttlepod one to determine its status and occupancy.”
Sato leaned forward, frowning. “Sir, if the Kalar detect the shuttlepod—”
“A fast, low approach from the north may elude detection.”
“There are still other options we haven’t tried. We could send a sensor probe.”
Thanien feared the communications officer was letting her romantic relationship with Kimura compromise her judgment. He strove to appeal to her reason. “I’m concerned with the risk of tipping off the craft’s occupants, if any. If they are down there, and if they have our people, I don’t want to give them a chance to bolt, or worse. I want the team ready to strike as soon as possible.”
“Understood, sir. But maybe if we hail the Kalar, explain that we’re going after other intruders into their territory, we might convince them not to fire.”
He threw Sato an impatient look. “Do you really think that’s likely, Commander?”
“It’s worth a try.”
“And it might alert our quarry if they’re monitoring our communications.” Thanien was growing weary of this. He’d tried to be patient with Sato, but her constant second-guessing was becoming excessive. He turned back to Kimura. “Commander, ready your team.”
The armory officer glanced briefly at Sato. Thanien recognized it as concern for his lover’s feelings rather than a challenge to his authority, but it was still reassuring when Kimura looked back to him and acknowledged, “Aye, sir.”
He left the bridge, and Sato gazed after him with concern and displeasure. Thanien kept an eye on her, hoping she would offer no further disruptions.
Veranith, Sauria
Four days ago, a riot had broken out before the Veranith Parliament Building, instigated by protestors condemning the government for allowing its people to die by the thousands in the name of a historical grudge against M’Tezir. Three days ago, with the riots threatening to escalate, the Parliament announced that it had formally requested medical aid from Basileus Maltuvis and severed its ties with the Saurian Global League. Two days ago, the Veranith Defense Force, aided by the M’Tezir troops that had arrived overnight, had begun evicting all non-Saurian residents from the country, officially to protect them from the unruly populace. The claim was not without merit; on the night of the riots, a Tellarite couple had been beaten nearly to death on their way to the Federation embassy.
Today, the evacuation had been declared complete, with all offworlders successfully and safely expelled from Veranith territory. However, if anyone were to check the records, they would show that a human named Albert Sims had conveniently left under his own power four days earlier, just before he would have been compelled to leave. Further records would show that he had applied for residency and employment in Lyaksti, the central state of the Global League. If the captain and first mate of the sea shuttle on which Sims had been registered as a passenger were questioned afterward, they would both confirm that he had indeed been aboard—though the captain might be hard to find, having suddenly come into an inheritance, retired, and turned over ownership of the sea shuttle to the first mate, fulfilling both their longtime ambitions.