Ragnarok: Colonization, intrigue and betrayal. Read online

  Bau’s people were thorough, Frank had to admit.

  He grinned. They might be good at what they do, but it hadn’t occurred to them to have one of these machines assembled in the hold so the colonists could familiarize themselves with the tech.

  The Quailu had an absolute trust in their training pods. It had taken quite a bit of discussion between Bau’s technical specialists and the farmers before they’d agreed to assemble one vehicle of each type in the cargo hold.

  Frank looked out the protective energy-screen of the small cab at the other vehicles. Calling it an agreement was a bit charitable.

  One of the farmers from India, the source of most of the colonists on this ship, had simply taken matters into his own hands. Sushil was sitting next to Frank in the mess hall during the meeting.

  The two men were muttering under their breath to each other in English, both equally annoyed that the techs were dragging their feet. The solidly built farmer finally stood up and declared that, since Bau had made a gift of the equipment to the colonists, there was nothing stopping them from setting up a few samples down in the cargo hold.

  And that was that.

  The hands-on introduction to these machines involved a great deal of discourse among the Humans. Frank gained much more from that than just technical knowledge.

  He’d never thought of himself as part of the minority before. On the Kuphar, as one of only twenty-three Caucasians joining an expedition of three-hundred twenty-four colonists, he was suddenly the odd man out, ethnically and culturally.

  He’d been surprised and more than a little disappointed in himself to realize he was far more concerned about that than he was about the challenges of moving to an entirely new planet.

  Examining the nanite-based farm equipment with his fellow colonists had done wonders for restoring his comfort levels. There was something about farmers tinkering with equipment, something that transcended cultural divides. It was common ground.

  And Sushil had brought along a flask of whiskey. He tapped it on the roll-bar to get Frank’s attention. He waggled the bottle, one eyebrow raised and Frank nodded in confirmation.

  Sushil hopped up on the boarding-step and handed the flask in. “No surprises so far,” he said. “You?”

  Frank shook his head as he unscrewed the flask. “Pretty much matches what’s in our heads.” He took a drink. “Damn, Sushil, this here’s a surprise! What’s this?”

  Sushil grinned, taking the flask for a sip of his own. “Paul John. I brought along a case so I’d have a taste of home.”

  “Not like any whiskey I’m used to,” Frank furrowed his eyebrows. “Kind of, spicy…”

  “Hi, Boss.” Terry’s head appeared over the left side of the vehicle. He nodded across at Sushil. “Good afternoon, Mr. Kawle.”

  “An eternal afternoon,” Sushil said. “They keep this ship away from night skies so my father-in-law won’t notice us blocking out the stars and figure out where I’ve taken his daughter.”

  “Was it hard?” Frank asked. “Not being able to tell relatives where you were ‘moving’ to?”

  Sushil waggled his head. “It wasn’t easy, signing over my land to my wife’s father, but telling them we were moving to Dubai was easier than we both expected. What about you?”

  “Hell, I had it easy,” Frank admitted. “My brother’s the only person I have to tell and he’s the one who recruited me in the first place.” The words were out of Frank’s mouth before he realized it.

  Sushil frowned. “McAdam… You’re John McAdam’s brother? The one who welcomed us aboard yesterday?”

  Damn! “Yeah, we’re brothers but that doesn’t mean anything beyond me getting the invite. I’m a farmer like you, Sushil. My name shouldn’t carry any weight with the colonial administration.”

  “Shouldn’t,” Sushil grinned, “but probably will, I think. Nothing wrong with that. If the administrators are getting in the way of honest farmers like us, we can use your connections to straighten them out.”

  “Really, Mr. Kawle?” Terry asked, eyes wide. “You think Mr. McAdam could have that kind of pull?”

  Sushil raised an eyebrow. “Pull a man by the ears and his head will follow. His brother is their boss. They can’t afford to ignore him.”

  “Sure they can,” Frank said but without a whole lot of conviction. He looked across to where a cargo transport was still in the process of assembling itself from a block of nanites.

  He forgot all about his family connections.

  A woman was peering in at the working parts of the vehicle as the pieces coalesced. Almost everyone down in the hold were men so she stood out.

  He’d noticed her when several men talking next to a mineral collector suddenly turned and stared in her direction. She looked to be in her thirties and she was talking to a much younger man about something she’d noticed inside the vehicle, completely ignoring the stares.

  Probably used to it, I suppose, Frank thought. He turned to look out the loading portal where there was only empty space visible, not a single beautiful woman with lustrous dark hair in sight.

  Be a bad start to this colony if I’m ogling somebody’s wife before we even leave orbit, he thought, congratulating himself on his restraint.

  “Whooah!” Terry exclaimed softly. “She definitely gets a huzzah!”

  Sushil grunted. “Yes, Terry. Many huzzahs but she’s not eligible.”

  “Not eligible?” Frank looked at him.

  Sushil shrugged. “She’s a widow.”

  A widow? Frank looked back at her with renewed interest but he quickly looked away before it could be called staring. Ineligible, he reminded himself. Probably means she’d never consider a man from outside her faith, I suppose.

  He sighed. “That’s a shame.”

  Sushil nodded. “Perhaps, but that’s just the way of things, I’m afraid.”

  Neither man noticed the sly look of understanding creep across Terry’s face as he glanced at his boss. Sushil probably wouldn’t have caught it anyway, since he didn’t know Terry, and Frank was almost in the same boat.

  It was so rare for Terry, after all.

  “How are you finding your accommodations?” Sushil asked, apparently eager to change the subject.

  “Not bad,” Frank said. “I’m surprised at how much room they have on these ships. I would have thought we’d be sharing rooms for the ride out but there’s plenty of privacy to go around.”

  “I’d be happier if my toilet worked,” Terry said.

  “Your toilet?” Sushil asked before Frank could.

  “Yeah, the one in my room doesn’t flush right. Kind of stinks up the place.”

  Frank sighed.

  “Ah.” Sushil nodded. “Well, I’m sure that kind of thing is easily fixed. Still, you should still count yourself fortunate. The room where my family sleeps has no toilet. We have only a receptacle that feeds down into the ship’s laundry service. It’s… just inside the door, on the left.”

  Terry nodded then another look of understanding began to dawn. His eyes darted to Frank who looked nonchalantly away, back at the widow, as it turned out.

  “I’ll, uh…” Terry muttered. “I’ve got some things I need to…” He grimaced, hopped down from the boarding-step and walked aft where a lift led to the passenger quarters.

  “I hope he hasn’t complained about his toilet to anyone else,” Sushil said quietly. “If word got out in a small group like this, he’d never live it down.” He looked at Frank. “You know, having his own toilet when the rest don't.” He held out the flask.

  Frank smiled. “Yeah. Folks would get upset, I suppose.” He took the flask, holding it up in salute. “You’re a good egg, Mr. Kawle.”

  Sushil chuckled. “What an odd thing to say...”

  In the Lion’s Den

  Lincoln Park, San Diego

  Luna parked in the driveway. “Dad’s in the garage,” she said a little unnecessarily. The large overhead door was open so Gleb could clearly see the man worki
ng on his outboard.

  “Yeah, and so are your brothers,” he said, scratching at his arm, “which makes this so much easier.”

  “Just remember,” she warned, “he likes directness. He also likes asking questions, lots of questions.”

  “Great!” Gleb muttered.

  “Hey, it’s a big part of why he’s raised four successful kids. It was hard as hell to get away with shenanigans. He’d almost always catch me out.”

  He smiled. “Almost?”

  She looked at him, seemingly on the verge of saying something… for about ten seconds. “I’ll go inside and say ‘hi’ to Mom.”

  He sighed loud enough for her to hear as she scrambled out her door. The longer I sit here, the dumber I look. He got out the passenger side.

  The boat was on his right. He had no idea what its specs were but it looked pretty nice. Focus on the mission. He’d met Eric Morales twice so far.

  Both times had been frightening and he was just the boyfriend, at the time. Now he was here to ask for Luna’s hand.

  Combat wasn’t even fractionally as scary as this.

  “Gentlemen,” he greeted them, knowing how Eric liked to make him speak first.

  “Gleb,” he grunted in acknowledgment. “Hand me that ten-mil socket, will ya?”

  Gleb turned to the tool tray, wondering what the hells a ten-mil socket was but Noah, Luna’s older brother, was holding it out to him with a wicked grin.

  Gleb had been surprised to hear similar names here on Irth but he wasn’t thinking about that now. Noah’s grin seemed a pretty certain indicator that they’d figured out why he was showing up on a Saturday afternoon. The brothers here to watch the show.

  Luca, the younger brother, was sitting on the workbench, legs dangling and teeth showing.

  “Thanks.” Eric took the socket from Gleb and snapped it on a ratchet handle. “So what’s up?”

  It was probably supposed to catch him off guard, bring things to a head before he’d worked up his nerve. Gleb was relieved, though, because his brain had responded to the stress by slipping into tactical mode. He was ready to pull the trigger and take his lumps.

  “I’m here to ask for your blessing,” he said calmly, surprising himself.

  And Eric. “Just like that?” he asked, half laughing. “I was planning on dragging this out as long as I could and you go and spoil it by just… saying it?” He nodded in guarded approval.

  “Seems a little fast, don’t you think, son?”

  “Sometimes you just know,” Gleb replied with a shrug. “I can’t imagine how it would be better if we spent years dating before deciding to come to this stage. I’d be more inclined to think we were making a mistake in a situation like that.”

  “Could be you have a point,” Eric said, tightening something in the motor. He stood and looked at Gleb speculatively.

  “The real question is what will you do if I refuse to give you my blessing?”

  “I’d marry her,” Gleb said instantly.

  “You wouldn’t let me stop you, huh?”

  Gleb shook his head. “No, sir, I wouldn’t and it’s as much for your protection as anything.”

  Eric stared at him in shock for half a heartbeat then he burst out laughing. “Oh dear God!” he wheezed, half bent over. “You know my girl, alright!”

  “That’s it?” Noah protested. “Dad, I thought you were gonna rake him over the coals for an hour at least.”

  “You can grill him if you want,” Eric set the socket driver down and wiped his hands on a rag. “Just remember your sister’s inside the house and she’s always been able to run you down.”

  “Never mind,” Noah said quickly.

  Eric shook Gleb’s hand.

  The door at the back of the garage opened and Gabriella came out, eyes sparkling at Gleb. “I have a message from Abuela,”she said, “so these words are hers, not mine.”

  Eric nodded gravely at his granddaughter. “Let’s hear it, kiddo. Don’t hold back just ‘cause I’m a frail old man.”

  Gleb had seen frail old Humans before, even on Kish where the enslaved populace were supported in their elder years. Eric was anything but frail. He could probably pull my head clean off.

  “Abuela says,” she began, emphasizing her grandmother’s title yet again, “that if you boys are finished pretending you have a say in any of this then you’d better get inside before the food gets cold.”

  “Hah!” Eric folded his granddaughter into a hug. “You understand what Gleb got right, Noah?” He let Gabriella squirm loose. “It’s a parliamentary system. I may be Prime Minister but your mother’s the Head of State. She can suspend parliament.”

  Noah frowned. “What the hell does that mean?”

  “You don’t still believe I sometimes fall asleep on the couch because I was watching hockey, do you?”

  Gabriella snorted.

  “Lead the way,” Eric waved her to the door.

  Gleb figured there would be a large spread laid on, given that they’d clearly figured out why Luna was bringing him here on short notice. He expected to find Adelina inside, seeing as her daughter was here.

  He did feel justified, however, at being surprised to find the house packed with cousins, an aunt and two uncles.

  The tactical part of his conditioning took note of the fact that there were twenty-three people there. The newly engaged guy-under-scrutiny was too nervous to care.

  Everyone was standing in a large crescent, paper plates of food in their hands and expectant grins on their faces. Luna took a look at her dad’s face.

  She clearly saw what she expected there and she stepped to Gleb’s side. “We have an announcement…”

  The packed room erupted in cheers. As soon as she could be heard again, Luna continued. “… I’m taking a new job at the launch center in Texas. Gleb and I will be co-workers!”

  The relatives went silent. They looked at each other, mouths hanging open. Most of them looked very uncomfortable and Gleb was nearly squirming with eagerness to flee the room.

  Her mom seemed to know better. She nudged her daughter and said something in Spanish, something stern.

  Luna giggled, holding up her hand to show the ring they’d bought a few days ago. “And we’re also getting married!”

  The noise-level went back up again but it was like a warm blanket after her stunt. She needs to warn me about ‘shenanigans’ like that, he thought.

  A hand fell on his shoulder and he turned to see his future father-in-law leaning in close.

  “She’s gonna put you in situations like that,” Eric warned quietly. “And you’ll piss her off too. It’s something you both need to learn to navigate. Don’t forget to work on it. Welcome to the family and may the good Lord have mercy on you.”

  Eric moved over to hug Luna and Noah gave Gleb a light punch on the shoulder. “The look on your face just now!” her older brother said. “I hope someone got a recording!”

  Noah gave him a half hug and got out of his mother’s way.

  “It’s all so fast!” Emila said, still holding onto her future son-in-law after her hug. “But I understand. You’re going off to Texas to start a life together!”

  Gleb didn’t need to read her to pick up on the reservations she was keeping to herself. He couldn’t say he blamed her.

  This was going fast.

  The Send-Off

  The Kuphar, Earth Orbit

  Frank dried his face and dropped the towel in the laundry chute. He looked down at the metal receptacle, wondering if the laundry process was hot enough to handle the occasional… mistake.

  He sighed, turned back to the mirror and splashed on a little aftershave, wincing at the small cut beneath his chin. He gave his hands a quick rinse and dried them on another towel that he left on the rack to air dry.

  The walk to the mess hall was a short one but it was crowded. More than three hundred people were attending the official departure ceremony featuring the lord of Earth himself.

  Frank felt a
flare of indignation at the concept of having a lord, a fierce resistance bred into all Americans from birth. He let it run its course, coming up against the unassailable fact that he wasn’t in the states anymore, nor was he likely to return.

  Open mind, Frank. This is how their republic works and our lord makes us an important part of it. Even though he now had an actual lord, Frank intended to live free on his new farm, lord or not.

  He rounded the corner and almost stopped, except the push of the crowd would have simply carried him along if he had. The corridor walls were gone.

  They’d been there an hour earlier but they’d disappeared while he was in his stateroom. He shuddered at this reminder of how ships were built in both the empire and the republic.

  Intellectually, he understood how reliable the logic control nodes were and that this system could repair hull damage almost instantly. Viscerally, though…

  He couldn’t help but imagine a glitch causing the hull to melt away and expose them all to the vacuum. Knowing and trusting were two different things.

  Now he was wishing he’d aimed for a spot in the middle of the newly enlarged open space. Instead, he’d gone with the flow and ended up near the large plane of shielding that served as a window on the port side of the room.

  Earth was there. Still. He was apprehensive about leaving his planet behind but he was still eager to get going. Hanging around up here in orbit while they finished loading supplies was driving him nuts.

  “Imagine how we’ll feel,” a woman said next to him, “when we look out and see our new world.”

  Frank’s shoulders released the tension he hadn’t even been aware of. His anxieties were put into perspective by one simple statement delivered in a spirit of hope.

  “Now there’s something to look forward to,” he said turning to find he was standing next to... the widow. He hadn’t thought to ask what her name was earlier. If Sushil knew she was a widow, he must know her name.

  Easy enough to fix. “I’m Frank,” he said, offering his hand before thinking to wonder if that was a proper thing in her culture. Screw it, he thought. Gonna be a lot of changes over the next few years.