Ronan: Ziva Payvan Book 3 (18 page)

-27-

Galactic Federation Martial Command

Junia, Edean

Elegant cities like Junia always overwhelmed Taran after spending time on Duruta, Aubin, and all the other backwater planets he frequented. A person began to grow accustomed to all the rocks and dirt, so being in an environment composed entirely of shiny white and silver surfaces was almost surreal. He tried not to touch anything if he could help it; the citizens of Edean didn’t actually have anyone following him around wiping up the dust and sand that fell from his clothes and boots, but he always got the feeling they wanted to.

He and Mae strode down the same white hallway toward the only office they ever visited when they came to the Federation’s military headquarters in the galactic capital. Neither of them really had any interest in exploring further, and as mere contractors from an independent world, the Feds didn’t want them doing much exploring anyway. They were always told to enter the same elevator, walk down the same corridors, and enter the same empty office space whenever they arrived to meet with the Federation’s Colonel Adrian Matney.

As usual, a security guard met them at the door, let them inside, then vanished. The office was well-furnished, but if Taran had to guess, meetings like this were the only thing it was ever used for. The far wall consisted of a large window that looked out over the Junia skyline. Perpetually sunny. Blue sky stretching as far as the eye could see. Sparkling, intricate architecture. The place almost seemed artificial.

Navigating back to the Core from Aubin had taken a bit of doing. The arrival of the Haphezians – Ziva Payvan in particular – had been an unwelcome twist, and having to spare the extra time and manpower to finish recovering the corpses of his slain soldiers in the desert had complicated matters further. He’d ended up sending the majority of his unit back to Duruta with the bodies while he, Mae, and a couple of their men returned to Federation space to discuss recent developments with Matney and receive new instructions. That meant having to meet back up with the rest of the unit later, which in turn meant more wasted time.
More time for the Haphezians to get to Ronan first
.

“Payvan really got to you, didn’t she?” Mae said, as if reading his thoughts.

It always amazed him how perceptive she was. This was the first time they’d really been alone in a quiet place since leaving Aubin four days earlier.

“This may sound weird,” he said, looking down at his hand as he opened and closed the mechanical fingers, “but it always kind of bothered me that she didn’t just kill me. The surgeons said I should be grateful that my arm was all I lost, that she’d allowed me to live. But it was almost like she was taunting me, showing me that she could have taken my life if she’d wanted to. Yes, she took my arm, but she also
gave
me that knowledge, and it’s something I have to live with for the rest of my life.” He took a moment to examine the cybernetic appendage again. “That’s the kind of person we’re dealing with here.”

Mae reached down and took his hand, interlocking her dexterous fingers with his prosthetic ones. The neural sensors embedded in the metal registered the warmth of her palm, and it brought him some comfort. “Why haven’t you ever talked to me about this before?” she asked.

“It’s not the most pleasant of subjects, if you can believe it,” Taran answered, arching his eyebrows in an attempt to lighten the mood. “And never in my life did I imagine running into Payvan again. It’s just one of those things you try to forget and move on from.” He sighed and wandered over to the window, gazing out at the dazzling mid-day view of the city. “She’s good, I’ll give her that. But I can’t let one person affect me.”

The office door opened before he could say any more and in walked Colonel Adrian Matney. He was a muscular man in his late forties with a sharp nose and black hair that had begun graying at the temples. Rather than a formal military uniform, he was dressed in a plain black shirt, gray fatigue pants, and spotless combat boots. The Special Tasks Units were his project within the Federation military; all the Durutian contractors currently employed by the Feds reported directly to him.

“Sergeant Reddic, Corporal Nasser, a pleasure to see you again,” he said, giving them each a nod. His voice was smooth and calm but he never smiled. Taran always wondered if it really
was
a pleasure to see them.

“We’ve got nothing. We just wasted weeks on Aubin – it was a dead end, and the Haphezians are a dead end as well.”

“Yes, I received your message,” Matney answered, waving them toward some plush white chairs in the center of the office. “Why don’t you have a seat, and we’ll talk.”

For a moment Taran felt guilty about soiling the flawless furniture, but the feeling was a fleeting one and he sat down without another thought.

Matney seated himself across from them and consulted a data pad. “You said you tried to track the Resistance ship that took the Delta Patrol but lost track of it in the Achiuq sector of the southwest quadrant.”

“Correct,” Taran said.

“You set up a base on Aubin—” Matney’s eyes scanned over the information on the pad “—and encountered a pair of Haphezian operatives whom you believed were employed by Ronan.”

“Considering the Delta Patrol was captured just outside the Noro system, we suspected the Haphezians may have been responsible. That theory was reinforced when we lost contact with the representative we sent to investigate Resistance activity on Haphez.” He went on to explain that Devani’s silence had in truth been due to a lockdown of the Haphezian Special Police headquarters following an attack on their military base. “It was a procedural thing. They were protecting her, not detaining her.”

“So the Haphezians still have no affiliation with the Resistance,” Matney said. “But you said in your report that a third operative arrived and murdered four of your men. Why?”

“To her credit, she was only defending her agents,” Mae said. She squeezed Taran’s arm with a firm hand when he tried to interject. “We captured those Haphezian men on Aubin because we thought they worked for Ronan. Turns out they were spying on us because they thought
we
worked for Ronan. She was merely protecting her people from a hostile force.”

Taran scoffed. “I can’t believe you’re defending her.”

“I’m stating facts,” Mae replied. She kept her voice calm but her face was rigid. “You know you would have done the same thing if you were in her place.”

“Why the hell are the Haphezians looking into Resistance matters?” Matney demanded.

“They didn’t realize who Ronan was,” Taran said. “They were just continuing an investigation for some colleagues who had stumbled onto a Res facility on Chaiavis.”

Matney sat up a little straighter. “And what became of these colleagues?”

“Both dead. Payvan didn’t give us details, but based on the way she talked about it, I kind of assumed Ronan was responsible for killing them. She said she had ‘their data,’ but I don’t know what all that entailed.”

“And none of your representatives have found anything on Chaiavis before?”

Taran shook his head. “It’s always been a bit of a problem area for our patrols, though. With no single governing entity, it’s difficult to determine law enforcement jurisdiction and figure out who’s in charge of a given area of the city. Our representatives can ask around at the embassies all they want, but the chances of those people actually knowing anything are slim. The only way to get solid intel is to send recon teams into the city, but we can’t devote the time and manpower to an operation like that without leaving holes elsewhere.”

Matney nodded and jotted down a few notes. “You mentioned Niio in your report. What’s the deal there?”

“A member of Payvan’s squad was captured by Res agents there. Surveillance footage showed that these people were wearing Durutian armor. That’s where the Haphezians got the idea that we were in league with Ronan.”

“And that armor belonged to our missing Delta Patrol,” Mae added.

The corners of Matney’s lips curled downward. “You’re saying the Resistance has now taken a number of soldiers from the Durutian Special Forces
and
a number of Haphezians, including a member of their law enforcement?”

Taran shrugged and nodded.

“Damn it.” Matney was on his feet in an instant, pacing back and forth in front of his chair. “What’s the Resistance doing attacking civilizations from independent worlds?”

“At first I assumed our patrol was taken because of our affiliation with you. That could very well still be the case, but their apparent interest in the Haphezians makes me wonder if they’ve been going after other Fringe civilizations as well. There could be a bigger picture we’re not seeing yet.”

“Like what?”

“You know as well as I do that the further they go out into the Fringe, the harder it is to keep an eye on them. The Special Tasks Units are helping, but we can’t be everywhere and see everything at once. There hasn’t been any suspicious activity on any of the Resistance-controlled Core worlds?”

“Not that we’ve seen, no,” Matney admitted. “Just the usual riots, homemade bombs, supply chain raids. Nothing we can’t handle. Someone on Yotune tried to turn a house into a makeshift nostium lab, but we’ve destroyed it and we’re watching them like hawks now.” He clicked his tongue and shook his head. “You’d think they’d have learned their lesson years ago.”

“But now we have confirmation that Ronan had some sort of project running on Chaiavis,” Mae put in, “and it’s safe to say there’s been a Resistance presence on Niio. These are both independent Fringe worlds. For all we know, they could be targeting us and the Haphezians specifically because we’re not part of the Federation. They know you don’t care. They know they’re free from your shadow out there and can do whatever the hell they want while you’re not looking.”

“Are you suggesting we look, Corporal?” Matney growled. His face flushed and a vein in his forehead was becoming more prominent by the second. “Are you suggesting we leave established Resistance groups to their own devices while we go search the Fringe for leads that may or may not actually tell us anything? We may have superior numbers but that doesn’t mean we can cover the entire galaxy. Our military forces are already stretched thin enough as it is, and I’d rather not have a bunch of Fringe races pissed at us for sticking our noses in their business. It would violate neutrality agreements.”

“Ronan is
attacking
those Fringe races,” Taran said, bristling a bit. “You’re willing to just sit by and let it happen?”

“Look, I know it’s difficult to hear, but you, the Haphezians, all the other Fringe worlds – you all knew what it meant when you became neutral. You were too far away to make a valuable contribution to the societal structure of the Federation, so you were granted independence. That means we don’t meddle in your affairs as long as you don’t meddle in ours, namely by associating in any way with the Resistance.”

Taran sighed and nodded.

“Now, I realize that you and many of your people are bound to us by contract, but that doesn’t mean your entire civilization is or
wants
to be affiliated with us. And the Haphezians?  Everyone knows they’ve spent decades trying as hard as possible to avoid any Federation or Resistance association. I can guarantee they don’t want us coming out there searching for Res activity, and with the size and strength of their military, you can be damn sure they’ll take action against anyone who interferes. We could wipe them out eventually, but the last thing we need right now is to go to war with someone other than the bloody Resistance.”

“While you make a valid point, my question still stands,” Taran said, rising to his feet. “You’re going to sit by and let Ronan kill these people,
our
people?”

“We’re supposed to be the good guys here, the foundation that holds the galaxy together,” Matney replied. “We can’t compromise that by violating neutrality agreements. No one – including our own people – would trust us again, and we don’t need more Federation worlds trying to break away and join the Resistance. I’m sure the president and the rest of our military leaders would agree.”

“Then what do you propose we do?” Mae said, standing as well.

“Here’s the thing. We can’t directly offer protection to you or the Haphezians. Who knows if they’d accept it anyway? But we
can
combat the Resistance. Ergo, if you can find the connection between your people and the Haphezians and figure out what Ronan is planning, we can stop it on our end. We can help you, just not through official channels. Understand?”

Taran wasn’t a fan of the idea of doing all the leg work, and the last thing he wanted at the moment was to be directly responsible for helping the Haphezians after what Payvan had done to his soldiers. But this was better than nothing.

“Do we have any new intel on Ronan?” he asked with another sigh.

Matney sighed as well, and a bit of the redness that had appeared in his ears and cheeks began to dissipate. “I’m afraid not. A couple of new transmissions that mentioned the name were intercepted recently, but that’s it.” He paused a moment to gaze out the window and murmured to himself: “Tav Ronan.”

“Still no indication as to why the name cropped up when it did?” Mae said.