Recovery

July 12 - Spinwheel City, Paquin

"Let them cudgel their conscience and say whether, on the contrary, the titles, the offices, and the hustle and bustle of the world are not sought out to gain private profit from the public. The evil means men use in our day to push themselves show clearly that the end is not worth much. Let us reply to ambition that it is she herself that gives us a  taste for solitude." - Montaigne

-----

"Are your wounds healing well?"

"Yes, thank you," I replied.

The warm afternoon sun streamed through the window. I was sitting on my bed with my legs crossed, toes tucked under the blanket. A cup of green tea with honey melon and lemon grass rested on the nightstand. An extra pair of woolen socks on my feet and fresh bandages under my sweater.

It was good to be out of the desert.



I was in remote communication with Major Aodhfionn Muircastle, UAP Monitor stationed on Araxes. It was the Major that was responsible for my extraction.

"Given the wounds," he said, "we decided to ship you off en-tubed without debrief. I don't know if you've ever debriefed someone with a morphine button."

"I can follow up some leads from here," I said.

"We had a small break with the Jades," he continued.

"I am receiving the file now," I acknowledged.

-----

It was July 11. The scene was the Laandsrat Council Chambers.

The members of the Laandsrat were busy debating a proposal put forward by the elected chamber, the Beit Dawla. They did so with their usual disdain...

- File Begins -

Time stamp: [19:37]

"... I think the Dalwa wished to tie all of our hands in the future," remarked the Magistrate, Joan al Jofar.

Taharqa Pryxis of the Myrmidon Order replied ominously, "Then let me as a representative deal with their request, diplomatically of course... as diplomatic as ... we ... of the Order... can."

Lady Reiko, the Khaliifa of House Morloch passed her own judgement, "They seek absolute power... just another grab for Empire by unseating the Empire which is already here."

Kia Marrah of the Blue Sun Corporation pursed her lips, "Then one must keep a hidden edge with which to cut such... red tape."

Suddenly, the proceedings were interrupted by a new voice.

"Tie the hands of the Laandsrat! What a wonderful idea Magistrate!"

In the center of the chambers, a column of green light appeared. Within the light stood a figure of a woman, her face concealed behind a mask of a rabbit.



It caught everyone's attention. Most looked puzzled or concerned. Only LilyBell looked pleased. "Is it time for church?" she smiled.

"What is this?" asked the Magistrate as she looked out into the gallery.

It was, in fact, a hologram. And the figure was that of Jasmine, also known as the Adherent, the leader of the Jade Revolution.

"I see the Land of Rats is in order... how wonderful," mocked the Adherent. "The Messiah once spoke of you in such glowing terms."

"What is the meaning of this?" demanded the Magistrate.

The Adherent continued, "What was is she said now....."

People were no longer staring. Major Muircastle, Colonel Aubin of the SSFS, and Ambassador John Sheppard-Criton of the Asgard began tapping their respective devices.

"...arrest the Laandsrat for treason and human rights abuses wasn't it?" asked the Adherent.

"Someone turn that hologram off!" cried the Magistrate.

LilyBell tried to be helpful. "It mean that you can't touch it," she said, "It live in the TV, Miss. Come out and get you. BOO!" She grinned wildly.

"We were already arrested and cleared," Calina replied to the Adherent.

Kia Marrah reached into a pocket to free her small scanning device which she then turned on the hologram.

The Myrmidon, Taharqa Pryxis, merely looked at the image and shook his head.

"Silence and cleared?!" asked the Adherent, "Very easy to do when the person throwing the accusations around is dead!"

"So, is that why she is dead?" asked Lady Reiko, "She was throwing accusations around?"

"And where is the physical proof of the accusations?" added Kia Marrah.

Colonel Aubin shared the results of his scan, "Signal seems weak. It'll be a bit tough to get enough packets of data to get an accurate location of the source."



Major Muircastle took a different approach. "Adherent," he asked, "will you answer our questions under oath?"

The Adherent responded, "Your questions? Who are you? I do not recognise your authority or the authority of anyone in this room."

This did not go over well with LilyBell who poked at the hologram. "HEY," she objected, "You not the boss of me little Miss." Kia Marrah tried to calm her down.

Standing now, Major Muircastle pressed on, "Do you have information regarding the murder of Jade Moonkill so that we can bring her murderer to justice?"

Taharqa Pryxis began to tap his data link. Colonel Aubin and Ambassador Sheppard-Criton did the same.

"The Messiah," said the Adherent, "in her eternal wisdom, placed the Beit Dawla in charge of this planet... and the people did rejoice!!!"

By this time, Major Muircastle was standing near the hologram. He passed his hand through the light.

"This Council is illegitimate," continued the Adherent, "and you will pay for the crimes you have so heinously carried out."

The Magistrate finally responded, her voice was the coldest thing on that hot, dry desert world. "Look at what your precious Dawla is offering. Insipid legislation designed to generate more paperwork and support the bureaucracy. Is that what your Messiah wants? paperwork?"

Lily scampered from the room.

The Magistrate continued, "And you speak of crimes. I see no crimes. Everything this Laandsrat has done is completely legal under the law."

The Adherent closed her eyes, as if meditating.

"Does your messiah want to do away with all law?" pressed the Magistrate, "Replace it with a law of her own?"

Colonel Aubin let out a groan of frustration, "It's got a scrambler..."

Ambassador Sheppard-Criton spoke up, "This is outrageous, the way you are telling the Laandsrat...."

Major Muircastle activated his communicator, "Watchtower, signal."

The Adherent answered with religious rhetoric, "The Messiah wanted peace and justice for all. What she got was the 'blood cure' and her ascendance to heaven. There is no law but the Messiah's law."

"Peace is something you have to work for," countered Lady Reiko, "It is never handed to you."

"Blue Sun didn't use any blood products," objected Kia Marrah, "in their production of the cure."



But it did not matter what they said. It might as well have been in a different language. The Adherent continued unabated. "I won't spill water so I won't spill blood."

Lady Reiko sneered.

The Magistrate reacted hotly, "Theocracies quickly turn into tyranny and despotism. Your Messiah was power hungry. The assassin did us all a favor."

"BLASPHEMY!" shouted the Adherent.

The Magistrate stopped as if rethinking her response, "I mean, the assassin was a criminal that will be brought to justice." She straightened her skirt and took her seat. "Someone shut off that device!" she cried.

The hologram flickered as the signal started to weaken.

Calina Tereshchenko looked aghast at the Magistrate. She swore in Chinese then said, "How DARE you! Speaking ill of the dead... of the elected representative of the people of Araxes. Of my dear friend who was actually acting on her beliefs! ...which is more than I can say for the Laandsrat, and possibly even the Dawla in its current state!"

In the gallery, John Red Duplin rubbed his forehead, "This is turning into chaos," he said. It may have been his first Laandsrat meeting.

Major Muircastle spoke into his communicator, "Watchtower, send out a beacon."

"I am sorry, Lady Calina," said the Magistrate, "I simply misspoke."

"No, you didn't," challenged Calina. "You said exactly what you felt!"

The Magistrate leaned away from Calina. "I simply misspoke," she repeated. She looked at the hologram and hollered, "Someone shut that device off!"

-----

- File Insert -

Watchtower Communication Log

July 11

[19:52] Major Aodhfionn Muircastle: "Watchtower, signal."

[19:52] Lieutenant Blaze Burner, Watchtower Duty Officer: "Watchtower confirmed."



[19:53] Lieutenant Burner: "Triangulating signal."

[19:54] Major Muircastle: "Get any characteristics of signal pattern, encryption, origin."

[19:54] Lieutenant Burner: "Acknowledged."

[19:56] Major Muircastle: "At least be able to send a signal back, so we can create a channel of communications."

[19:56] Lieutenant Burner: "Scanning for frequency."

[19:56] - SIGNAL LOSS IMMINENT -

[19:57] Lieutenant Burner: "We are losing it..."

[19:57] Major Muircastle: "Watchtower, send out a beacon."

[19:57] Lieutenant Burner: "Beacon away. confirmed."

[19:57] - BEACON SIGNAL: UAP only want to find Jade's Murderer -

Three minutes later.

[20:00] Lieutenant Burner: "Hologram signal terminated."

-----

Seventeen minutes later, a second hologram appeared in the gallery of the council chamber. It was Jade.

She appeared, rocking on her heels. Her teddy bear perched on top of her helmet. Her pale white skin was washed green by the light of the hologram. It greatly upset Calina and caused a flurry of comments from the members of the chamber.



The image froze as if a recording was placed on pause for a moment, then it came to life.

She spoke, "I don't think the people of the Laandsrat are evil. They are good people but they are to busy trying to keep power to see what they are doing. They are like a blind bull charging at the wall. They are sure if they run ahead blindly hard enough they can break their way out of the problems they are in."

Jade sighed and rocked on her heels "The Laandsrat has to go to protect the people, No matter if I have to die or if others have to give their lives... I understand now. You don't have to spill blood to win a war. You just have to be willing to let yours be spilled. And there is not one person on the Laandsrat that would die for their cause. That is why the people will win. They are already dieing. They have nothing to lose by fighting."

She looked off to the side as if listening to someone then she spoke again, "I am not saying any of them need to die. I don't want to see anyone hurt. But if they cannot be convinced to step down then then... then the people must fight for their freedom."

She nodded to someone else unseen, "The Emperor will not care who is leading the planet so long as he has the people's loyalty and the spice flows. A free Al Raqis governed by the people can do that for him."

Jade looked down at her hands then up, blood red tears now falling from her face. "I know I will die, too many have already threatened me. Please my friends, don't let the people of Al Raqis die under the boot of the Laandsrat any more. Rise up and take the fight to them. Free yourselves. Let my death mean something. More than any life of a moonbaby could ever be worth. Better one moonbaby than a single human. Better ....."

The image froze then disappeared.

-----

"Moonbabies......" muttered The Magistrate, "I was right. They are behind this rebellion."

The experience was almost too much for Calina. She leaned back, gasping, "I can't breathe... I can't breathe.... Jade..."

"You recognized that, Companion?" asked Lady Reiko.

"Lady Calina," said the Magistrate, "It is just a recording, a trick. It's all trickery. All of it."

Major Muircastle looked over at the Companion sympathetically.

Back in the chamber at this point, Lily looked at Calina and bowed her head slightly. "Recording," she repeated.

But Calina was still traumatized. "Jade..." she said.

The members of the Laandsrat tried to make sense of what they saw, and sharing what little information they had on the origins of the signal. Lily again bounced out of the room.

Finally the Magistrate, addressed the chamber. "I think we have had enough interruptions for one night," she said. "This Jadist business must be stopped. "

Major Muircastle twitched at the remark.

"We have important business of state to attend to," continued the Magistrate. "Mr. Muircastle. Do you have that amendment to the Dawla bill, or shall we table the discussion and talk more about lunatic ghosts?"

Time stamp: [20:31]

- End of File -

-----


I looked out of the window and considered the contents of the file. Below, in the streets of Spinwheel, office workers began their commute home, young families headed to the park.



I was still in communication with Major Muircastle. I listened as he filled in the details.

"The watchtower officer was able to narrow down a range of frequencies of a hologram transmission emanating from the Southern Hemisphere. It uses frequency jumping. But we have enough information that we should be able to create a back channel for communications. Beamed narrow enough that we don't have to broadcast to the entire planet."

"That is fortunate," I remarked.

"They want to be heard," he added, "we want a dialogue."

Something nagged at me. A turn of phrase... 

"At the Laandsrat," I began, "the Magistrate speaks of the assassin as doing them a favour. She then corrects herself."

"It provoked a response from Ms. Tereshchenko," replied the Major.

"A faux pas certainly," I admitted, "but these don't seem to be the words of someone who may have arranged the murder. One would not say 'doing us all a favour'."

"Conspiracies can be unintentional," said the Major. "Tell him to handle it, just get it done."

"It is an interesting slip of the tongue nevertheless," I said. I lived by such observations.

Major Muircastle continued, "You might not have intended for the person to kill, but you are a co-conspirator regardless, even through misunderstanding."

"It speaks to intent," I conceded.

He elaborated, "I could easily see the Magistrate or Khaliifa telling the Pryxis chap to silence the girl meaning fear and intimidation underestimated their lack of nuance and understanding of metaphor."

"We have an abundance of suspects," I admitted.

"Reverend Mother Ariadne has still not delivered her alleged evidence. Has someone encouraged her to be coy?" he suggested.

"It is also possible that someone from one of the militaries acted to incur favour with the Magistrate," I replied. "We have too many people with motive and an absence of solid evidence."

"There is also the skunk chap who used murderous means as his first resort," added the Major.

The Major referred to an independent security contractor who, according to reports, maintained the appearance of a large two-legged man-skunk, Last year, this individual had tried to burn down the medical centre and half of the Zenobian embassy in an attempt to detain someone carrying the black pox. The story was so outrageous that it was still a topic of discussion around the office water cooler.

"I need to track down the guard that found the body and start from there," I said.

"The act does not match the modus operandi of the Myrmidons," said the Major.

"Agreed," I said, "nor the Morloch who lean towards blades and formal duels."

Major Muircastle added, "The guard is also a likely suspect. There were no bullet fragments or shells found at the scene. No security footage."

"Convenient," I remarked.

"This does point back to the Magistrate," he said, "or merely a senior executive or board member of ARPharma."

"They remain the ones with the most to gain," I said.

The Major continued, "While the guard is a likely trigger man, he is unlikely to be the source of the conspiracy."

"And the question is," I added, "is he still alive?"