Chapter 15
Traitor
Evohn Cystrom sat at his desk pondering the loss of Earth’s Destiny and its impact on Operation Conquest Earth. He was angry at the admiral for deciding to leave it behind. He agreed that time was critical, but losing over sixteen percent of your military firepower was a big sacrifice just to make up time.
Since the failed attempt to scuttle Earth’s Destiny, Cystrom had quietly complained to everyone who would listen how poorly Vice Admiral Brunns had handled the scuttling, although he was careful not to blame it on the Vice Admiral directly.
“The ship was left wide open for anyone to go aboard,” Captain Cystrom complained to Lt. Hanze.
“Someone should have scanned for life-forms and secured the ship before we took off.”
“Exactly,” Captain Cystrom agreed. “When someone volunteers to do something they should do it right. If we can’t handle a simple thing like scuttling a ship, what’s going to happen when we get to Earth and face greater challenges? We can’t afford mistakes on a mission as important as OCE.”
Just then the ship’s steward walked in. “Excuse me, sir. I have your census completed.”
“Good,” Captain Cystrom replied. “So, who are our traitors?”
“Nobody, sir. All hands are present.”
“Really, then who was aboard Earth’s Destiny when it fired on us?”
“It must have been some of the workers who disappeared just before the raid. It’s been determined that many of the delays we experienced were the result of deliberate sabotage.”
“Sabotage? Those dirty skutz! They were trying to keep us from leaving, so the Loyalist shuttle would get a head start and beat us to Earth.”
“That appears to be the case, sir,” the steward agreed.
Cystrom stood up and began pacing back and forth.
“Is there any way we could catch up with them, sir?” Lt. Hanze asked.
“No. But we can arrange a small welcoming party for them when they get to Earth,” Captain Cystrom replied thoughtfully.
“A welcoming party?” Lt. Hanze repeated.
“Yes. We have a number of shuttles on Earth. We’ll be in communications range at least a day or two before the first Loyalist shuttle arrives, so we can set up an ambush for them and spring it on them before they make it to Earth. Shuttles aren’t great war machines, but we’ll outnumber them and we’ll have the element of surprise.”
“Very good, sir. I shall greatly enjoy seeing Commander General Lanzia blown up along with his ship,” Lt. Hanze said.
“Yes. That would be sweet revenge, wouldn’t it? But this sabotage business worries me.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, are we sure the workers instigated it on their own? It would seem they would have needed help.”
“You think one of us is a traitor?” Lt. Hanze asked.
“Think about it. How could someone hijack a Fleet attack cruiser without inside help?”
“Yes, but who among us would do something like that? What would be the motivation?”
“I’m not sure. But one wonders how so many men could get aboard so quickly and easily after the ship was abandoned. One wonders why the ship’s computers weren’t shut down and then disabled so that its systems couldn’t have been powered up again. It seems like an obvious precaution in any scuttle operation.”
Lt. Hanze pondered that thought for a moment and then replied, “You’re right, Captain. It was sloppy work, but I’m sure it wasn’t intentional.”
“Maybe not, but consider this: What if, when the time comes to communicate to our shuttles on Earth, the same person who tried to delay our departure sabotages our communications?”
“That would be a disaster.”
“Precisely. Therefore, we must find the traitor, whomever it might be.”
“Surely it’s not the Vice Admiral?”
“I don’t know who it is, but don’t you think there ought to be an investigation?”
“Yes, I suppose so,” Lt. Hanze agreed. “Are you going to suggest it to the admiral?”
“Will you support me if I do?”
“I’d support a general investigation without pointing any fingers,” the Lieutenant said carefully.
“Of course. Good. We should bring it up at tomorrow’s executive officers’ meeting.”
Lt. Hanze nodded and left the room. He was soon replaced by Lt. Lethrow.
“So, how did that go?” Lethrow asked.
“Fine. The admiral will have to order an investigation if half of his executive officers call for it.”
“Right. So, what do you want me to do? Put a bullet in his head and make it look like suicide?”
“No, no. That’s too sloppy and could backfire on us. I think you need to help the person put in charge of the investigation find some incriminating evidence pointing to our dear Vice Admiral.”
“Yes, of course. I can do that.”
“It must be something substantial that the admiral cannot ignore.”
Lt. Lethrow smiled. “Just leave it to me. I’ll make it so bad he’ll save us the trouble and just commit suicide.”
Captain Cystrom returned the smile. “That’s exactly what we need.”
The next day when Captain Cystrom arrived for the executive officers’ meeting it had already begun. The admiral was talking about the steward’s report confirming that all hands were on board and accounted for.
“This is good news,” the admiral said, “but it’s not conclusive as to whether someone on the ship was involved in the sabotage. As Lt. Hanze pointed out earlier, we can’t afford to have a saboteur aboard the ship. Such a person could conceivably jeopardize OCE. So we must find this traitor and execute him before he can do any serious damage to our mission.”
“How can we find him?” Captain Cystrom asked.
“By conducting a very thorough investigation of the incident and everyone involved in the scuttle operation.”
“Who’s going to conduct the investigation?” Captain Cystrom asked.
The admiral put his hand on the shoulder of the man sitting to his right. “I’ve asked our chief counselor, Captain Sol Lamh, to conduct the investigation, and I’ve given him broad authority to question everyone and search all personal effects for evidence. I will expect full cooperation. Would you like to say anything, Captain?”
Captain Lamh stood up and nodded respectfully. His pale skin contrasted sharply with his slick black hair. He was a tall, thin man with penetrating eyes.
“Admiral, fellow officers. I know nobody likes an intrusion into their personal lives, but unfortunately, such an intrusion is the only way to properly investigate this type of security breach. I’ll try to be respectful of everyone’s time and property if they fully cooperate with me. However, if anyone is other than open and candid, that will raise suspicions, and I will be forced to act accordingly.”
“How will the investigation be conducted?” Vice Admiral Brunns asked.
“Initially, your compartments will be searched, and then we will question you individually. If all of the officers are cleared then we will work our way through the rest of the crew. It will obviously take some time.”
“When will you search our compartments?” Captain Cystrom asked.
“They are being searched as we speak,” Captain Lamh replied.
“Now?” Vice Admiral Brunns protested. “Without giving us any notice?”
“What does it matter, Vice Admiral? You don’t have anything to hide, do you?”
Vice Admiral Brunns cleared his throat. “No, but this is an invasion of privacy.”
Captain Cystrom smiled and looked at Lt. Lethrow, who appeared bored with the entire matter. “We have no privacy, Vice Admiral,” Captain Cystrom reminded him. “We gave that up when we joined the TGA.”
The Vice Admiral glared at Captain Cystrom but didn’t say anything. He didn’t think he had anything in his compartment to be concerned about but still felt uneasy about som
eone going through his things.
Lt. Muri listened with great apprehension. There was nothing incriminating in her compartment but she knew it wouldn’t be hard for someone to plant something there. She also knew Evohn Cystrom hated her and wouldn’t hesitate to discredit her if he had the opportunity. But more than that she feared the scrutiny of her body and mind. There were secrets there she couldn’t afford for anyone to discover.
“So, that is all for now. Someone from my investigation team will contact you when we are ready to question you,” Captain Lamh concluded.
The briefing ended and everyone got up to leave. Captain Lamh stopped Captain Cystrom and asked him to stay behind for his interrogation. Cystrom nodded and sat back down. When the room had cleared Captain Lamh began.
“Ordinarily I would have Omarh Zinz here with me for the interrogation. He’s telepathic and would know if you were telling the truth or not, but I know you are telepathic yourself, so you know how to guard your mind.”
“Don’t worry. I have nothing to hide,” Cystrom said.
“Right. So, I understand you did not participate in the scuttle operation?”
“No, I didn’t,” Cystrom replied.
“Why was that?”
“I didn’t think Earth’s Destiny should be scuttled. We needed it desperately for the mission’s success. So when Vice Admiral Brunns said he would handle the scuttling himself, I was glad. I didn’t want any part in it.”
“Where were you when the scuttle operation was taking place?”
“With Rupra Bruda in his quarters.”
“What were you doing there?”
“We were discussing how foolish it was to scuttle Earth’s Destiny.”
“Did you communicate with anyone off the ship during the scuttling operation?”
“No. Not until after we had been attacked.”
“I’ve been told that you have been highly critical of Vice Admiral Brunns’ handling of the scuttling operation. Is that true?”
“Yes, that’s true,” Captain Cystrom said, and he explained that the Vice Admiral had botched the job. “But that’s just my opinion,” he added.
“Well, Tahma Bruda has confirmed your alibi and his compartment array recorded your entry and exit, so you appear to be in the clear.”
Captain Cystrom nodded. “Thank you. May I go, then?”
“Yes, you may. Thank you, Captain.”
Captain Cystrom left the briefing room and went to the bridge to talk to Lt. Lethrow. He was worried that the Lieutenant may have forgotten about the compartment security array when he entered the Vice Admiral’s quarters to plant evidence. Lt. Lethrow was sitting in the Captain’s chair when Cystrom got there. He motioned for the Lieutenant to join him in a quiet area off the bridge so they could talk. Lt. Lethrow asked his junior officer to take the helm for a moment and went to talk to Captain Cystrom.
“Did you take care of what we talked about?” the Captain whispered.
Lt. Lethrow nodded. “Yes, I did it during dinner last night.”
“What about the door array? It records everyone’s entry and exit.”
“Hey, I’m not stupid. There was a power loss for five loons last night. The array was down.”
Captain Cystrom let out a sigh of relief. “I figured you’d gotten around that somehow, but this Sol Lamh guy is pretty smart. We’ve got to be careful from now on. I’m worried about your upcoming interview.”
“Why? They won’t get anything out of me.”
“Not knowingly, but Lamh has someone on his team who is telepathic. He’ll probably be present when you’re questioned. He can read your mind, Rohr.”
“Really? So, what are we going to do?”
“Come around late tonight. I think I can teach you how to guard your mind.”
“All right. I’ll come after my watch is over.”
Captain Cystrom left the bridge and headed for the officers’ dining room to have lunch. He was anxious to talk about the investigation to whomever was there. He wondered if they’d found anything in the Vice Admiral’s quarters. Before he reached the dining room, he saw Omarh Zinz and a security officer escorting Vice Admiral Brunns to the lift. It appeared he might be under arrest. Captain Cystrom’s spirits soared.
Inside the dining room he saw Lt. Muri. He went over to her.
“So, did I see them taking Vice Admiral Brunns away?”
“Yes, they just came for him.”
“What happened?” Cystrom asked.
She shrugged. “Someone said they found something in his quarters.”
“Really? I wonder what it was.”
“I don’t know,” she said feigning concern.
“It’s hard to believe he could be the traitor.”
Lt. Muri glared at him. “He’s not a traitor and you know it.”
Captain Cystrom frowned. “I wouldn’t have thought so, but I barely know the man.”
“Well, I know him well and if they found something incriminating in his quarters, it must have been planted there!” she snapped.
Captain Cystrom raised both hands and backed off. “Relax, Lieutenant. Maybe they’re just taking him down for questioning. They’ve questioned me already. Have they gotten to you yet?”
“No, not yet,” she said, her features softening. “I’m sorry for snapping at you, Captain. I’m just so worried. It can’t be him.”
A tear rolled down one cheek. Captain Cystrom took a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped it away. Lt. Muri responded by putting her arms around him and resting her head on his shoulder. He accepted her embrace awkwardly, not knowing what to do.
The door to the dining room opened and the admiral walked in. He did a double take. His eyes narrowed and he cleared his throat. Captain Cystrom backed away from the embrace quickly, but Lt. Muri tried to hang on, nearly falling as Captain Cystrom stepped away from her. The admiral caught her by the arm.
“What in the name of God is going on?”
“Ah. Lt. Muri was upset at seeing the Vice Admiral taken away. I was just trying to comfort her,” Captain Cystrom said, recovering his composure.
“Of course,” the admiral snorted. “Executive officers’ meeting in ten loons. You both need to be there.”
Captain Cystrom looked at Lt. Muri and caught her smiling. He shook his head in disgust and left to find Lt. Lethrow. He asked the junior officer on the bridge if he’d seen Lethrow and was directed to the communications office. He found the Lieutenant and took him aside.
“That female skutz just set me up!” Captain Cystrom said.
“What? How’d she do that?”
He explained what happened. “Now the admiral thinks I’m after his bed mate.”
“She’s a sly one. So much for your promotion to Vice Admiral.”
“Don’t count me out just yet,” Cystrom spat. “You don’t think I’m going to let some little slut like that stop me.”
“No, but what can you do about it?”
“I’m not sure yet, but I’ll think of something. In the meantime, the Captain has called an executive officers’ meeting. We need to get up there right away—we don’t want to miss the Vice Admiral’s humiliation. I assume it’s going to be good.”
Lt. Lethrow smiled wryly. “Well, of course it is.”
The room was packed when they arrived and they both had to stand against the wall. The admiral was seated and had a glum look. Vice Admiral Brunns was nowhere to be seen. After a few tiks the admiral stood up.
“Ladies and gentlemen. I’m saddened to report that we have found our traitor. Saddened because it turns out to be one we all know well, one we have admired and respected for many cycles. I’ll let Captain Lamh explain.”
The counselor stood. “Yes, it is indeed a tragic day for us all,” he said. “It turns out our traitor is Vice Admiral Brunns.”
There were gasps of shock. Lt. Muri dropped her head into her lap and covered her face. She was greatly relieved that she’d escaped close scrutiny but didn’t want
anyone to know it. The admiral sank back in his chair, seemingly defeated.
The counselor continued. “In the course of our investigation, we discovered that while on Earth the Vice Admiral accumulated considerable wealth in his own name, and still maintains a family there. We found letters written to his ‘wife’ outlining his plans to desert the military and to rejoin that family. Obviously, it was the Vice Admiral’s plan to sabotage our operation and to escape to Earth. It seems his only interest in the Intergalactic Fleet was as a ticket back to Earth so he could rejoin his family.”
“But Captain,” Lt. Muri asked. “How do you know these letters are authentic? Did the Vice Admiral admit his intentions?”
“No. He denies the content of the letters but in probing his mind we found other things. He does not believe in our Purist principals. He has many mutant friends and treats his seafolken slaves just as he would his own people. We also suspect that the story of his hatred for the nanomites is a lie he made up to make us believe he was one of us.”
“I don’t believe that,” Lt. Muri said, shaking her head dramatically.
“Believe it, Lieutenant. It is very likely that our Vice Admiral would have contacted authorities on Earth to warn them of our intentions as soon as he got the chance. Over the ten cycles he lived on Earth he made many friends in high places. They may have, in fact, recruited him as a spy. You know the Americans are known for their propensity to spy on their friends as well as their enemies.”
Lt. Muri looked away and sighed. “Thank you, Captain,” the admiral said. “That will be all for now. Dismissed. Ah, Captain Cystrom. Please stay a moment longer. I’d like a word with you.”
“Yes, sir,” Captain Cystrom replied as adrenalin rushed through him. He wondered if he was about to meet the admiral’s wrath over his perceived indiscretion with Lt. Muri. The room emptied, and the admiral nodded to Captain Cystrom to sit. They both sat down.
“Admiral,” Captain Cystrom said. “I wanted to explain what you saw earlier today. I was quite shocked and dismayed when Lt. Muri embraced me. It’s the first time I’ve ever had any, uh, physical contact with her—”
The admiral shook his head. “I know. I know. That woman is so clingy sometimes. Frankly, it’s rather annoying. The Vice Admiral was like a father to her. As you can see she’s taking his treason rather poorly.”
“Yes, sir,” Captain Cystrom said, greatly relieved.
“What I wanted to talk to you about was the matter of filling in the void left by the Vice Admiral’s demotion. I’m thinking about promoting you to Vice Admiral and making you second in command.”
“I’d be honored, sir.”
“Are you up for it? It will be a tremendous responsibility.”
“I understand, sir. I won’t let you down.”
“Frankly, there are others more qualified than you, but being Videl’s adopted son, I think, gives you an advantage. The people will respect you and won’t dare question your integrity and commitment to our cause. Rupra Bruda speaks very highly of you. In fact, he has persuaded me that you should be the one to rule Earth once the conquest is completed.”
“But what about you, sir?”
“Me? I’m a military man, not a politician. I will stand aside once our mission is accomplished. I know better than to spar with a determined politician.”
Captain Cystrom smiled wryly. “Yes, sir. You are a wise man.”
“Very well, then. It’s settled. Congratulations, Vice Admiral.”