A Web Serial by M.C.A. Hogarth
| 17. Righteous Anger. | 19. The First Mistake. |
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18. Not Like Us
Design Lab. Peaches and Gunny enter without announcing themselves. Will Kenyan, the engineer, is working at one of the computers. He glances their way when they enter, stands.
Kenyan. "What are you doing here? No one sent for you."
Peaches. "We're looking for the alien."
"He's busy."
Peaches, impatient. "Who isn't? Where is he?"
Kenyan. "Seriously, you can't just walk in here and interrupt the research. Which we're doing for your benefit, I might add—"
Peaches, remembering herself. "This is important, Mister Kenyan. I assure you, I wouldn't have come for something trivial. Where is Samuel-Colt?"
Kenyan, throwing up his hands. "It's your ***. He's in the back room."
"Thank you, Mister Kenyan."
"Lieutenant? I wouldn't barge in there. Just an FYI."
Peaches eyes him, then heads for the back of the lab. There is a door there; Peaches hesitates, then keys the door intercom.
"Samuel-Colt? It's Lieutenant Savannah Bonnet and..." Hesitates. Glances at the gunny. "And my escort. May we come in?"
Pause. Then: "Please, enter."
Fiddler's Restroom. This room is the size of a large closet, with a single pallet and a small stereo which is currently playing a Vivaldi flute concerto. The open door sheds enough light to see Samuel-Colt reclining.
Samuel-Colt. "Please close the door, Lieutenant-Savannah-Bonnet. The light is stressful."
She closes it, discomfitted.
"How may we help you?"
Gathering herself. "We were hoping you could tell us about a situation we've encountered. We've run into a couple of new shells—which isn't new—but yesterday we picked up a King that seems to be wearing a modified version of one of them. He also has what appears to be a second brain in his thorax. Do you have any idea what that might be about?"
Samuel-Colt, strangely without fiddling. "I am sorry, Lieutenant-Savannah-Bonnet. I may not say."
"You may not?"
"That is correct."
"But... why?"
"Because we were created for technology transfer and development. Others are designated for diplomacy and personal information-passage."
"I have men and women out there getting hurt, Samuel-Colt. If you know something, it could help us."
"We regret the injuries of your people but we must not speak. Forgive us, but it is not done." A pause. "You should not stay any longer."
Peaches, frustrated but trying to keep her calm. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend—"
"It is not a matter of offense. I must molt my arm and hand, and in our experience humans find this process wearisome and unsettling to witness."
"Molt your... okay." Determinedly polite. "Thank you for your time, Samuel-Colt."
"We regret we could not be more helpful, Lieutenant-Savannah-Bonnet." A series of crackles sounds in the dark. The two leave quickly.
Outside, Peaches frowns.
Kenyan, absently, still working. "Told you."
Peaches. "You could have mentioned the part that he was... indisposed."
Kenyan. "I said he was busy."
"There's 'busy' and then there's 'I'm about to shed my skin'!"
Kenyan. "It's not my fault you didn't ask. You can't make assumptions about these aliens. They're not like us. In the end, that's why we're going to lose."
Peaches, startled. "What?"
"We're going to lose. We can't think like them. 'If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.' "
Peaches. "We'll see about that."
Outside the Design Lab, walking back.
"What do you think, Gunny?"
"I think it's funny to hear Sun Tzu out of an engineer, ma'am."
"You know what I think? I think having the guy who makes guns saying he can't talk policy or state secrets isn't all that alien." Sighs. "We're running out of options. And information. I don't want to have to fight it out in the dark, but I'm not seeing much choice."
"They've got sixty percent of the grid laid, ma'am. That's something."
"Let's hope the last forty doesn't cost us as much as that sixty."
| 17. Righteous Anger. | 19. The First Mistake. |
|---|
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