*
The Galaef was the most powerful man in the Galaxy—a Monarch. Myra thought for a moment. It's a known fact that a Monarchy can be the best or the worst form of government, depending on what type of man becomes the Monarch. If he's a fair, reasonable, and intelligent man, then it can be a great government, one that helps the people and their way of life. If he's a greedy and selfish man, the people will suffer. Oftentimes torture and mutilation, unfair taxes and starvation are forced upon them.
When the Federation computer was constructed and intellectualized by those wise scientists of the past, all these factors were understood and programmed into the computer. When the computer chooses the new Galaef, fairness and intelligence are two of the most important characteristics considered.
Once the Galaef is chosen, the computer gives him total control over more than two million inhabited planets, and, just as importantly, over it—the computer. It becomes his advisor and servant, and always obeys his commands.
The computer is programmed to recognize voiceprints and there is no way to falsify them. The Galaef's voice and no one else's can command the computer within the Computer Planet. And the most important single factor which comes out of this is the fact that no one can command the Federation warships into battle except the Galaef. For the supreme leader to declare war, the computer must not only have voice recognition, but visual recognition as well.
No single planet nor even a solar system has the resources nor the battle fleets that the Federation has, nor are they allowed to. This makes the Galaef the most powerful person in the galaxy. Unfortunately even the best of the computer chosen Galaefs can be fallible. And this one, unlike his predecessor, has a fatal characteristic flaw—he's too trusting.
Myra sat at her desk for another forty-five minutes probing the computer for information, which might help her, but the possibilities which came back were the same as before. There was no way to keep Thorne from taking the Galaef captive. I still don't understand how this will help him since he cannot command the computer on the warships nor on the computer planet.
She had gleaned earlier that Thorne's plans included her as well as the Galaef. She wasn't sure why or in what way, but since her own plans had been thwarted, she was going to make sure she didn't become his captive for whatever he had in mind.
"It's time to go home," she said to herself as she rose from behind the desk. "Maybe the council will be understanding when I tell them what happened," she paused. "But probably not."
The thought of failure and the possible consequences began to set heavily with her as she hurried down the loading tube. At the end of the tube the air lock was open revealing her personal ten-man destroyer. It was, of course, guarded by one man even as all the warships on the space platforms were guarded and kept in readiness for launch. She had chosen her ten-man destroyer because it was the smallest ship capable of hyperspace flight.
As she stepped through the hatch and set her small carrying bag on the deck her glean suddenly told her what Thorne had in mind for her. It was like being hit in the head with a large stick. She reeled in the horror of it. She had to force the hysteria away from her mind. She had to calm herself. She kept her hands from shaking. Thorne was more evil than she had realized.
The guard looked up and snapped to attention.
"Guard," she said in an authoritative tone. Mentally she was still shaking from the sudden revelation, but no one would notice it on the outside, no one, that is, except another Zorsta.
"Yes ma'am," he snapped. His thick muscular arms were rigid by his side. His chest bulged through the body suit.
Myra took control of her mental state of being and forced herself to a state of calmness. She said, "The Galaef has ordered me to take this ship to Newusa.”
Myra noted the expression on the guard's face. Something was wrong.
"I have orders that no one is to take this ship, including yourself."
"Thorne's orders?" she snapped.
"Yes ma'am," he answered.
She stepped closer to the guard. "Thorne is not the commander of this ship. Are you placing his orders over that of the Galaef's?"
The guard said nothing. Obviously Thorne had been working overtime. He had placed all the men loyal to him in key positions. It was probable that even the Galaef's personal bodyguards were loyal to Thorne. How else could he pull it off?
"Do you know what the penalty is for treason? Believe me you don't want to experience it."
"I'm sorry ma'am," said the guard.
Since her threat didn't work, her only recourse was to physically subdue him. If that didn't work, her fate would be whatever Thorne wanted it to be, and her glean had already told her what that was.
"I'm only trying to keep us both out of trouble," she said. She took two steps toward him. Now she would have to use her expertise in the martial arts. These guards were trained to be ready for anything, but Myra had two qualities which worked in her favor—first, her beauty often distracted the adversary, especially if he was a man, and secondly she had her glean, which told her exactly when and how to strike. And now it would help her to overcome this guard.
She took another step, which put her within striking distance, but she could glean the time wasn’t right. The guard suspected something. So she smiled pleasantly and said, “You look like a nice person. I think I’ve seen you before—maybe in the commissary.”
“I know I’ve seen you before. You’re not a person someone would forget.—And it wasn’t in the commissary, it was in the observation room.”
“Ah, yes,” said Myra. The memory of it quickly came to her consciousness. “You were with a very beautiful young lady, and you were observing the planet Haley of the Fifth quadrant.”
“That’s right,” said the man surprised that Myra remembered. “I was with my wife.”
Myra’s right hand shot forward, hitting the guard in the throat.
He threw his hand in the air and fell against the bulkhead. The blow to the adam's apple rendered him helpless, but she knew it wouldn’t kill him. The force she used was just enough to take him down.
She took another step forward. Her right leg kicked him in the solar plexus, and he doubled over. “I’m sorry about this,” she said. “But if I don’t leave the Commander, I will become Thorne’s slave. And after a short time, my glean tells me, he will no longer need me, and then my life will be over.”
While he was gasping for breath she grabbed him by the arm and led him to a chair inside the loading tube and sat him down. She removed his communicator and phasor. She stepped out and said to the Commander’s computer, “Shut the loading tube and make ready for space flight.”
“Yes, Myra,” said a calm feminine voice.
As the door slid shut she pushed a button on her remote and opened the door to her destroyer, then she stepped into the ship and hit another switch. The hatch-door slid into place.
Thorne will never find me now, she thought.
She made her way to the ship’s computer and sat down. She manipulated the appropriate controls. The ship raised from the platform. She punched in the computer flight plan, left the Commander, slipped into hyperspace, and was gone.
Chapter Twenty-Eight