SHIAM Conspiracy- Book 1 (10 page)

Photos of Langdin and Myria Tetherstrol
popped up on screen. Both Elves bore the same noble features they
had passed on to their son.

“
Dr. Tetherstrol graduated from the
University of Taurelasse in the Mythnol Forest with a PhD in both
Elvish Philosophy and in Natural Sciences. He immigrated to the
Aragne Commonwealth at the age of twenty-six and attended De Khant
University in the Zentan Province, where he received a PhD in
Physics. He became a professor at the University of Sol Kappur at
age one-hundred-fifty-nine. He continued to teach physics at the
University until Ninth Month of last year, when he suddenly
disappeared after a warrant was issued for his arrest by Aragne
authorities in connection with the bombing of the SHIAM
distribution center in Kornia.

“
Shortly after Dr. Tetherstrol
disappeared, the Orkensha Dhoraz claimed responsibility for the
bombing. Aragne Special Intelligence Agents later arrested Ghadrean
Khandri, a member of the Dhoraz sect, and charged him with
performing acts of terrorism. The Dhoraz sect is a known Orkensha
terrorist organization.”

“You don’t have to tell me about the Dhoraz
sect,” Zak said bitterly. It was Dhoraz terrorists who had been
responsible for the bombing that killed his mother. ASID believed
the Dhoraz were actually a branch of the Ghanstap, the Orkensha
Secret Guard, but there was never any undisputable proof of this.
Zak didn’t much care one way or the other about proof. He had
developed a hatred for all Orks and only barely tolerated them when
the need arose to have any dealings with them. He pushed his
emotional response to the Dhoraz aside and asked, “And what
happened to the good doctor?”

“
Although Dr. Tetherstrol was cleared of
the charges related to the bombing, there remain outstanding
warrants for his arrest on charges of civil disturbance and fleeing
the Aragne Commonwealth in order to avoid arrest. He remains at
large.”

“Do the feds know where he is?” Zak
asked.

“
Aragne Special Intelligence Department
public files indicate that he is somewhere in the Mythnol Forest.
There are no current extradition agreement between the Aragne
Commonwealth and the Mythnol Forest.”

Zak took a last swig of his coffee and put
the mug down. “Do you have enough profile on Elron Tetherstrol to
run a virtual clone?”

“
Affirmative.”

“Okay, run it.” He picked up the virtual
headset lying on the desk next to the comm screen and pulled it on.
The thin band was similar to a speaker headset, but instead of
speakers, two small bar-like devices were positioned just behind
each of Zak’s ears. The technology was complicated, but simply put
the transceivers in the headset created a connection directly with
Zak’s brain. Through a sophisticated set of protocols, the computer
was able to interact with the electro-chemical activity of his
brain, creating a virtual world that seemed to come alive to all
Zak’s senses.

“Good to go,” Zak said to the computer and
his surroundings immediately dissolved.

He found himself standing in a virtual
rendition of a small office belonging to Dr. Elron Tetherstol.
Although generated by computer, the data input sent to Zak’s brain
created sensory perceptions that were as real as anything he could
experience in the real world. Virtuality had become so popular that
both hardware and software support for it was built into all Comm
Net services. Building virtual clones of actual people was one
function provided by Comm Net’s support services. Of course, the
virtual cloning was only as good as the information available
within public archives found on Comm Net, which meant that the more
well known the individual, the more accurate the clone.

Elron Tetherstrol was an Elvish
traditionalist and his personality was reflected in the virtual
setting Zak found himself in. The office was a recreation from the
early years of the forty-eight hundreds, a time when real wood was
still the norm for construction. Mahogany panelling covered the
walls and the furniture was made nearly exclusively from polished
wood. The only modern elements in the room were three comm
terminals located on the heavy oak desk and the data chips that
were scattered about next to them.

Tetherstrol was sitting behind the desk. He
looked neither surprise nor displeased at the sudden interruption
when Zak appeared before him. He simply looked up from the comm
screen he had been studying. “Hello, how may I help you?”

“Tell me about EAST Group,” Zak said bluntly.
He rarely applied social etiquette in his dealings with virtual
constructs, although the virtual characters occasionally took
offence to his lack of good manners.

“Are you interested in joining our cause,”
Tetherstrol asked, apparently willing to overlook the lack of
introduction. “Or are you one of those high tech bleeding hearts
avowing free enterprise at the expense of sentient life?”

“Nope, not even close on either count.”

Tetherstrol looked at him more intently,
contempt seeping into the Elf’s expression.

“You are a half-breed.” Tetherstrol said. He
uttered the statement almost to himself, but in a clearly
distasteful tone.

Zak knew that virtually cloned characters
often said and did things that their real life counter-parts would
never consider. It was a flaw in the programming that sometimes
injected strong emotions and attitudes into the compiled dialogue
and actions of the character, even when it may be out of character
for them to verbalize it. This programming flaw was exactly why Zak
was here. He was hoping that Tetherstol’s construct would reveal
something to confirm EAST Group’s involvement with the theft or
with the Orks.

“I’m not here to discuss my bloodline.”

“Oh, I mean no offense,” Tetherstrol said,
clearly not meaning what he said. “It is simply a fact that the
races of this world would be much better off remaining separate and
pure to their own genetic code. Mixed blood does nothing to further
the evolution of any race.”

“Is that a fact,” Zak said flatly. He was
used to the prejudices from both sides, Humans and Elves alike.
Well, perhaps
used
to it
was not quite accurate. But
he had been the target of these bigots on enough occasions to have
learned not to let them get to him...at least not visibly.

“In any event,” Tetherstrol let out a rather
melodramatic sigh before continuing. “I assure you, I am not an
Elvish Supremacist. I am a separatist. It is only by keeping the
races separate and pure that they can be allowed to evolve and
prosper in their own rights. Take yourself, for example. Due to
your diluted Elvish genetics, your natural capabilities have no
doubt been diminished to the point of...”

“Look, I don’t give a rat’s ass what you
think about race purity!” Zak’s anger flowered into full bloom, but
he did his best to keep it in check. He forced himself to continue
more calmly, “I came here looking for information about EAST
Group.”

“Very well,” Tetherstrol said as he sat back
in his chair, obviously displeased at Zak’s abruptness. “What would
you know?”

“Does EAST Group sanction criminal activities
in order to further their cause against the SHIAM?”

“We are not criminals!” the Doctor said
emphatically. “Our official policy is to operate within the
law.”

“What about unofficially?”

“Every one of our protests was carried out
with government permits. We have never inspired to riot. We obey
the law.”

He was lying. EAST Group had organized
numerous demonstrations. A number of them had been staged without
permits and therefore were classified as illegal gatherings.
Several had also turned violent.

“There are rumors going around that EAST
Group broke into a high security corporation.”

“Rumors...you are here to ask me about
rumors?”

“Is there any truth to them?”

“I will not even grace that question with an
answer!”

“What’s your connection to the Dhoraz sect?”
Zak knew it was a long shot that he would find a connection, but
asked anyway. “You were implicated in the bombing in Kornia. The
Orks later took credit for. ASID must have seen a connection
there.”

“I think you are confused,” Tetherstrol said.
“The Dhoraz are Orks and terrorists. Elves are not particularly
fond of either.”

“That’s not what ASID claims.”

“ASID?” the Elf snickered with contempt. “The
Aragne Special Intelligence Department has its own agenda to
champion. You do not seriously expect the truth of things to be a
part of that agenda!”

“So, you’re saying that EAST Group is not
connected to the Dhoraz in any way?”

“The EAST Group and the Dhoraz, as difficult
as it may be to believe, happen to
share
a common concern
about the future life on our planet. That does not necessarily mean
that we agree upon the methodology of resolving those concerns. And
it
certainly
does not
mean that we tend to associate
with one another!”

“Does any of that sharing happen to include
covert operations?”

“Look, I just told you...” the doctor stopped
and smiled ruefully. “What are you, a cop? Keep in mind that
virtual profiling is not admissible in court.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard something along those
lines.”

Zak concluded that further questioning would
net him very little that would be helpful. Beyond the dogma of his
belief in racial purity, Tetherstrol’s words had been as measured
as those of his real world counterpart had been in the news clips
Zak had viewed.

He unplugged himself from the virtual world
to find Ke’aira sitting next to his chair watching him intently.
When she saw that he had removed the headset she jumped up, her
large paws balancing her weight on his arm, her tail going spastic.
It was time to play!

Z
ak woke to a pair of big brown eyes
staring back at him from only inches away. Ke’aira looked quite
comfortable lying next to him with her large head resting upon his
pillow.

“Don’t you have anything better to do?” Zak
said to her.

Ke’aira rolled over on her back, swivelling
her head in order to keep her eyes on her master, her tongue
hanging from the side of her mouth. As Zak watched her, he noticed
a subtle edginess about her. A roll of thunder caused her body to
tense. The Thunder and a steady hammering of rain upon the roof and
windows told Zak that the storm was still going strong. He reached
over and rubbed Ke’aira’s belly, a sign of affection that the dog
never grew tired of.

Her body twitched at each roll of thunder
then relaxed again as she fought against her own reactions.
Ke’aira’s nervousness continued to bother Zak. He thought back to
last night’s news cast. Dr. Raghnall had said that there was a
disturbance within the ethereal layer of the planet. Could Ke’aira
be sensing that disturbance?

It was as good of explanation as any for her
unusual behavior.

Suddenly the notion that the storm was
somehow related to the Grimrok theft came back to him. The thought
seemed just as unlikely now as it had the night before. What
possible connection could there be?

He decided that chasing a wild theory would
be a waste of his time. The sorcerer Zak had requested from the
Institute would be arriving soon. Better to let matters of the
paranormal in the hands of an expert. If there was a connection of
some kind, the wizard would find it sooner than Zak ever could.

“Computer, windows; day setting two,” he said
as he rolled out of bed.

The window setting allowed Zak and Ke’aira to
see out, while still maintaining privacy by preventing anyone
outside from seeing in. It wasn’t as though he needed the privacy,
being on the fourth floor. The only way to see into the loft would
be to climb one of the trees that separated his backyard from the
adjoining lot. In spite of that, caution and security was so
ingrained in him that Zak took precautions in his daily routine
that others would deem unnecessary, or even paranoid. The glass of
the windows cleared to another dark, stormy day. Violent flashes of
lightning tore through a dismal sky, while bloated black clouds
hung low above the city.

“Computer, news...audio only,” Zak said as he
headed toward the bathroom. He had wired the comm system so both
video and audio could be accessed from any area within the loft and
calling up the news had become a long standing part of his morning
routine.

“
Channel Four News now playing.”
The
computer voice was then replaced with the voice of a male news
commentator.

“
...the violence was limited to the
Kelthar Pass.

“
As a result of the events last night,
Darkkon Corporation announced this morning that all mining
operations within the Akkasson Mountain Range have been suspended
until further notice. Shortly after, all other mining companies
operating in the region made similar announcements.

“
Mr. Karl Redcliffe, chief representative
for the Aragne Miners Guild, told reporters that the threat of
violence along the Akkasson Mountains is just too great to allow
workers to continue with business as usual. ‘Arganite ore is highly
volatile even under normal mining operations,’ Mr. Redcliffe said.
‘The added threat of an Orkensha attack on mining operations could
have devastating results.’

“
Deputy Minister of Defense for the
Orkensha Nations, Hagg Kroll, announced that the Orkensha mines
have also gone on a similar shut down. Mr. Kroll went on to state
that the Orkensha military has been placed in a state of high alert
and any act of aggression from the Aragne Commonwealth will be
considered an act of war.

“
In response, Prime Minister Sarte has
called for calm on both sides of the border. In a statement
released today, the Prime Minister cautioned both his own troops
and the Orkensha military to use restraint during this tense
situation in order to prevent any possibility of the situation
escalating out of control. He assured the Orkensha government that
he has no intentions of sending Aragne troops into the Orkensha
territories at this time and said that he remained confident that a
diplomatic solution could still be reached.