Anarchate Vigilante (Vigilante Series 4) (23 page)

Kristen smiled broadly.
“Oh, Matthew! I so look forward to seeing Charlotte again. It’s been fifteen years!”

Eliana and Mata Hari both smiled at her, then focused on Matt as their minds joined with his in planning the computations and spatial coordinates involved in the fleet’s covert arrival.

“Matthew,” muttered Eliana, “you do like playing covert spy, don’t you?”

Matt did not answer a question to which Eliana and Mata Hari already knew the answer.

Sytoon faced the holoimage of Medun, chief assistant to Sector 14 Leader Mindstorm. Based on his knowledge of the Spelidon species, the being’s Whiskers of Distinction showed the emotional sign of Angry Frustration. Which meant there might be some data of value to him and to his Intel operation. With high emotion species, it usually took only a comment or two for a species member to spill out every planetary or conglomerate secret they knew, or thought they knew. He settled into his salty water bowl, inhaled through his gills, and proceeded to interact.

“Chief Assistant Medun, I respond to your request for a live tachlink discussion. What is your purpose in this communication?”

Medun’s long black tail thumped the metal floor on which he stood. “High Commander, my superior gave me the job of going to the world Working of Antares A system. We had tracked the progenitor of this renegade Human Matthew Dragoneaux to her presence there as a labor slave for a Mican banking executive. It seemed a simple matter to arrive and purchase the female,” the dryland biped said as its body image showed signs of anxiety. “Unfortunately, the female escaped from the Mican’s control, fled to a neighboring skyrise, and then was rescued by an Offense sled that appears to have belonged to this Dragoneaux biped. Shortly after the rescue, the Sector 14 fleet commanded by Sector Captain Running Leader fought a battle with the Human’s fleet in Antares B. His fleet lost ships, but did manage to drive off the Human fleet.”

Sytoon had wondered just what Sector Leader Mindstorm might be doing in his efforts to trap this Human infestation. Now, Mindstorm’s principal agent was calling him for help. A pleasant development since none of his t
hree operatives assigned to do an Intelligence survey of the Human colonies had reported anything of interest. “An interesting story. You have a request for me?”

“Yes!” snapped the Spelidon as its long tail flipped up to rest on its left shoulder. “I send you the recent life image of the renegade’s sibling, a person with th
e name sigil Charlotte.” The Spelidon raised his datapad and aimed it at the tachlink sensor at his end of the link. “Our intelligence sources say the genome harvester ship that captured her sold the sibling to a Meligun assets transfer specialist who lives on planet Megil, where the Flesh Markets used to stand in Halath city. However, this young Human female has also escaped from her owner during a visit to planet Module, star 51 Pegasi. We suspect a conspiracy by this Dragoneaux human to recover his two living relatives in order to avoid their use by Anarchate forces to force his surrender. Or death.”

Sytoon knew elements of what this Medun was sharing. Sector 14 Intel had numerous AI and expert software systems that monitored the galactic tachnet, and ship-to-ship communications. All that they lacked were direct sources inside the fleet of this Running Leader. Well, that would happen eventually. “We have heard of this other sibling who is seeking refuge somewhere. If you wish our help in recovering this female biped, where do you expect her to be?”

Medun’s black chest fur stood out stiffly and his two black eyes took on a sheen. His whiskers moved to the sign of Target Capture. “We suspect she has sought refuge on her homeworld of Thuringia, star Pi-3 Orion. Within the Orion Arm. I am headed there now in my fast Courier ship. Can you provide support assistance?”

Sytoon felt pleased that
his excellent control of the chromatophore color bands on his soft shell kept the Spelidon from detecting his high interest. Also, his mouth palps moved in ways unknown to other species. Therefore his eagerness would not be known to this excessively dry biped.

“Perhaps this base can help you.
Our former employee, Commander Chai, visited this planet Thuringia on an Intelligence Survey.” Sytoon pincer tapped a datapad lying next to his bowl. “His report, along with images of many Human bipeds and their name sigils, are now sent to you. You may use the office Chai appropriated at the Arrival Hall in Elios Port. Its office devices are primitive, but the report I sent you includes Chai’s password code. If more data on his survey exists on the office devices, you can access it using this code. Finally, there is an Anarchate naval base on the moon Pearl, which orbits this Thuringia. There will be armed Corvettes at that base, and perhaps a few battleglobes nearby.” Sytoon pincer tapped his datapad several times. “Also sent your way is an Intel directive to the base commander that requests urgent assistance to your mission. Satisfied?”

Medun’s whiskers flared into the emotion of
Hunt Supported. “Most excellent, High Commander Sytoon. I pledge my allegiance to your office! As you surely know, the allegiance of a Spelidon is a choice of some meaning.”

Sytoon knew that. It was also another hook upon which he could manipulate this dryland creature. “Thank you for the pledge of allegiance, good Medun. My office here in Sagittarius Arm is far distant from these Orion Arm locales, but our resources are spread across this sector. We welcome news of this female sibling’s capture.”

Medun clapped both hands together in the Spelidon sign of Promise Made. “Your office will know the results of my efforts at the same time as my master Mindstorm hears my report. I depart on our joint effort.”

The holo of the black-furred Spelidon blinked out. Sytoon inhaled the salty water of his rest bowl and gave consideration to the efforts of his three employees at visiting every Human colony planet in three arms. While a tedious effort, it was the kind of systematic effort which the Anarchate had long excelled at. This renegade Human might possess a fleet of T’Chak warships, but he was not invulnerable, as the fleet report of the battle at Antares B system demonstrated.

High Captain Running Leader had sent him a personal copy of the Observer Globe record of the battles in both star systems. While the sector’s primary fleet was undergoing repair and refitting at its base in Orion Nebula, still, there were plenty of resources available to the Intel Base for all of Sector 14. Nearly 3,000 former employees of his dead predecessor Brrzeet had been tracked down, ordered to report to the new Intel Base in Sagittarius Arm, and nearly all of the refugee staff had reported for work. They occupied dozens of habitat domes on a nearly airless world that circled the star CC 3478. Lifting up on his six pincer feet, Sytoon left his basin and moved to consult with his scientists on their efforts to replicate the nearly magical weapons of the T’Chak fleet.

CHAPTER
NINE

Charlotte looked at the holoimage of her brother Matthew that had called her over the public comlink. The contact code for the AllCall datapad given her by Governor Metzenbaum was supposedly known only to the governor and his wife Olivia. The two of them had given her the AllCall device when they dropped her off at the rocky cliff entrance to a lithium mine on the peninsula where her family had once lived. No farmstead was within a hundred kilometers of her. The mine had been shut down for decades. And her camping gear had no tracking or autosignal devices buried within them. Same for the AllCall datapad. It worked on a comsat link, not through a cellular network which could locate up its carrier signal. So the holo of Matt she now saw should be him.

“Charlotte? This is Matthew. Will you respond please? I’ve come to rescue you.”

She sat at the entrance to the mind shaft so the device could link with a comsat. Like thousands of similar devices, hers was a simple Call To/See Back device that used a coherent maser signal to contact one of the overhead comsats. There was no way someone could track her reply to her location. So far as she knew. She accepted the incoming call.

“Hello Matthew. It’s wonderful to see you!”
Charlotte smiled, breathed deep again, then wondered why her brother was wearing the white armored combat suit that she had seen in the galactic tachnet news broadcast that declared him an outlaw to the Anarchate. “Where are you? And why are you wearing that combat suit with the animal heads on it?”

Her brother’s
brown eyes blinked, but his expression stayed serious. Not happy smiling. Why not? “I’m in orbit about Thuringia, in stealth mode so the Anarchate’s moon base cannot detect my ship. Give me your location and I’ll come rescue you. Hurry! The Anarchate battleglobes may attack at any moment.”

Charlotte felt overjoyed at seeing her brother’s holo image. She wanted to reach out and hug him. But why was he so emotionless? And why had he not answered her question? Was this really her brother? “Matt, what happened to your pet back home?
When Dad found your pet.”

The helmet of Matt’s combat suit bent forwar
d. The two shoulder laser pulse-cannons pointed to either side. He frowned a bit. “Charlotte! Stop with the silly questions! I’m here! Ready to rescue you. Don’t you wish that?”

A second tachlink call vibrate
d her AllCall datapad. What the hey? Was the governor calling her to confirm Matt was in orbit? “Matthew, wait a minute. Got another call coming in.” She tapped the device, moving Matt’s holo image to one side. Accepting the incoming call, she gasped. It was her brother Matthew!

“Cha
rlotte? Please answer me. Governor Metzenbaum gave me your comlink code. I’m in orbit in my ship
Mata Hari
.”

She stared at a second Matthew. Also wearing the white armored combat suit like the other image of her brother. Damn! For sure one of them was an Anarchate spy trying to capture her
. She had heard from her owner Nak ho-mesk of expert software systems that could take a holo image, animate it and add in voice from a tachlink record of such audiovisual records. Her owner had used the false persona technique in his money transfer dealings as a means of camouflaging his species and appearance. Was some Anarchate person doing the same to her? Using public images and recent recordings of Matt? If so, time was short for her to either be rescued, or be captured.

“Matt!” she cried
out. “You are the second holo of yourself that I’ve seen! Another Matt is waiting online. He’s trying to get me to signal my location to him.” She noticed the first Matthew image was waving one arm at her, trying to get her attention. She focused on this new Matt. “Tell me quickly. What happened to your silo pet? And what are the animals on your combat suit?”

Matt’s expression took on a look of worry. Taping his helmet
with a gauntlet, the faceplate rose up and she could see the black beard stubble on his chin, and even the wetness in the corners of his eyes. “Charlotte! The other Matt is an Anarchate fraud! Don’t give away your location to him! Or it! My pet was killed by our Dad! And the animal images are the heads of wolves! I use them because me and my fleet are hunting the Anarchate starships like we’re a pack of wolves! Did the other Matt tell you this?”

“No.” Charlotte cut off the incoming signal from the first Matt. She bit her lip, then brushed back her newly red hair.
Mother Olivia had helped her get rid of the zebra stripes and clean her hair at their home. Then she’d given Charlotte a wool blouse, khaki pants and a sheepskin coat with white fur interior. Earth’s sheep were the only herd animal able to survive the harsh winters of Thuringia. Their meat and their wool were used only by citizens of her world. “I shut off the link to whomever that was. I’m using an AllCall datapad to send maser signals to our system of comsats. Where are you?”

“Orbiting above the Nidar Peninsula. Where our home used to be. Governor Metzenbaum said he had hidden you at a mine shaft somewhere on the peninsula. Is that true?”

“Yes,” she said, feeling hope at last. Her location would have been told only to the real Matt. “Oh brother! I missed you so! Can you come get me?”

“Yes,” Matt said, blinking
a lot. He then smiled big at her. The way she remembered he did when they were playing the ancient card game gin rummy. He usually beat her at that game. But she always beat him on the vidcast history tests. “Your Mom is here with me. On board my starship. You will be home with us very soon! I’m taking my ship
Mata Hari
down into atmosphere. To hell with using our shuttle. Put out something colorful near the mine shaft entrance. My ship’s AI has sensor eyesight better than any human or alien!”

“Will do, Matthew,” she sobbed, feeling her chest heave with the news her Mom was safe and her brother was coming for her.
“But . . . but won’t your ship be spotted by the Anarchate Spy Eye sats?”