The peril of knowing, p.8
The Peril of Knowing, page 8
Roxal gripped the hand that was playing with her hair and asked, “What are you talking about?”
Edo continued to stare at his hand. “When you were captured and almost executed. The Keepers killed all those people in that encampment because of the actions of two people who resided there. You were almost executed by the Reps because, during our attack, you were captured and I escaped. I was the one who was the traitor. You would never have known anything about The Keepers being fake gods if not for me. But yet, you were almost killed because of it.
“That is why I fight so hard. For those who have given their lives so that Treborians, and the people of Earth, can be free. But more so for the innocent people killed in this war. People like those in that encampment. And like you.”
“But I was not killed. I managed to escape.”
“I know. And I am thankful to whatever force allowed you to do so. That is one of the many reasons why I will forever be grateful to Rodan and Gamma faction. We have been able to make a home here and be free. I do not know if there is anywhere I would rather be right now than here, with you.”
Edo freed his hand, released her hair, and looked into Roxal’s eyes. With his naked body pressed against hers, she knew what was on his mind. He placed his hand on her stomach, the heat of his touch on her flesh making her stomach quiver. Slowly he moved his hand upward. She joined him in removing her shirt. When she was topless, he leaned in and kissed her. This kiss was not playful, it was intense and passionate.
Starting with her lips, he left a trail of kisses from her mouth, along her jawline, to her ear. Edo nibbled on her earlobe. From there he moved to kiss the sensitive curve in her neck. His freshly trimmed hair rubbed against her cheek, and her nose was filled with his woodsy scent. Amid the next flurry of kisses she removed her remaining clothes and Edo reached over and turned off the light source.
“I vow to you, that I will give my life before I allow you to be harmed again,” he said in the dark.
Roxal smiled. And not just because of Edo’s words. But also because, given the choice between running away or staying and fighting, staying had been the right decision. Though fighting was the last thing on her mind as Edo’s lips connected with hers once more.
After copulating with Edo, Roxal had left him resting in the sleeping unit as she hurriedly showered and dressed for the helio. Though she had wanted to tell him about her trip to Clyr Encampment, and Rodan’s ultimatum, she had not found the right time. Now, she was rushing to meet Rodan to discuss, Roxal was sure, her more active participation in fighting The Keepers.
Her stomach growled as she ran by the dining facility. But as she was already late, she knew it was best not to chance making Rodan angrier than she already would be. When Roxal finally reached the door to Rodan’s office, she stopped for a few moments to take several deep breaths and to remember what Lauren had told her: Figure out what you want, and then make the choices that align with it.
She touched her hand to the access panel and waited for Rodan to allow her entry. When the door opened, Roxal walked in and found Rodan sitting behind a wide table, with several projected screens, showing what looked to be different scenes, behind her. Kada was standing over her shoulder, looking at something on the table. They both raised their heads and stared at her as she walked into the office, stopping her in her tracks. Her heart rate increased.
“Going forward, you will need to be on time,” Rodan said.
“I will. I would have been on time this early helio, but Edo returned from his mission, and…” Roxal’s sentence trailed off hoping neither Rodan nor Kada heard the tremble of her voice.
“I am not interested in knowing the details of anything that occurs between you and Edo, unless it involves fighting The Keepers. But from now on, know that your tardiness will be met with disciplinary action. Come in and take a seat.”
Roxal moved from the spot where she had stopped and sat in the chair on the opposite side of the table. She set her hands flat on the tabletop. Then she interlaced her fingers. Then she dropped her hands to her lap.
Kada and Rodan looked at one another. Kada nodded his head toward Rodan, stood to his full height, and crossed his arms.
Rodan looked at her and began talking, “When we were in Clyr, and I reported the details of how we were able to secure Second Gamma, several other Security Heads suddenly became interested in Gamma faction, our plans, and our capabilities.” Kada scoffed, but did not say anything. Rodan continued. “The war between us and The Keepers has been at an impasse for several annums, with neither side truly seeming to have the advantage. We know The Keepers were working furiously toward access to Earth. As for us, each Resistor faction has been working to weaken The Keepers in any way. Here along the border between Resistor- and Keeper-controlled Trebor, Gamma has generally been allowed to do what we please without the other faction Heads of Security caring.
“But now that we have been able to invade and liberate a compound from The Keepers, the other factions have been re-galvanized. Now everyone wants to follow suit.”
“They want to follow suit but without giving it the same time and effort we did,” Kada interrupted. “It took us over twenty annums of smuggling information into this compound and turning people who had access to the world outside of the compound for us to build a sizable rebellion. And even then, it was not enough. It took two attacks, the failed internal one and our larger external one, before this compound fell.”
“This is true,” Rodan said, “but no one was interested in listening to the details. You saw that during the meetings. Everyone wants action and results.”
“And what better way for you to have given them action and results than if they had elected you as High Chancellor? I know you have accepted the outcome, but I do not understand how it is reasonable that they not elect you because your successful invasion could have been a one-time fluke, but then ask you to do the same thing at other compounds in the border lands.”
“Kada, we are soldiers, and we follow orders. That is the only thing that matters,” Rodan said, staring intently at Kada, as if punctuating her statement.
Kada shook his head, and then raised his hands in surrender. He walked over to the chair that was beside Roxal and sat. Roxal did not know what to say as she saw this play out between Rodan and her second in command. Therefore, she sat, in a stupor, and watched.
Rodan turned her attention back to Roxal. “And as you heard, we have been charged with invading another compound, with none of the preparation we had before, and I am expected to succeed. What I will need from you, is to train with Civort’s team. They will once again be responsible for getting you into the control room so that you can disconnect the compound from The Keepers’ system. After our attack, I am certain they have increased their network security, so we will once again need help from your Earth connection.
“While you are preparing for our next compound invasion, Kada will be overseeing the training of our other forces. According to Civort’s most recent mission report, The Keepers have stepped up their security measures, and their response to security infractions.” Roxal saw Rodan’s eyes briefly look down at the table. On a display screen near Rodan, Roxal could see what looked like pictures. She figured they were evidence of what Edo had told her. “And that is our mission. All of the other factions will be watching us, so our success is imperative. You will be contacted by Civort later this helio to let you know when he and his team will start training again. The mission from which they just returned was a difficult one, as you may know. As a result, I have given them all a helio to rest, which means training will likely not begin until next new helio.”
When Rodan stopped talking, the two women sat staring at one another. Roxal had no idea what to do, the amount of information she had received had overwhelmed her.
“You may leave now. I have explained the mission and given you your orders. That is all we need to discuss,” said Rodan.
Roxal nodded, pushed her chair back, and stood. Just as she turned away from Rodan, Lauren’s words repeated in her head.
“But what about my current duties, working with the Unknowns?” She turned back to face Rodan.
Rodan sighed deeply. “The other committee members will take over those duties. Any other questions?”
“Yes,” she said and cleared her throat. “What is the long-term plan for them? I ask because if you are planning to invade another compound, you will have more Unknowns to deal with. Do you plan to lock those people away also?”
“Any survivors, who are not members of the Reps or the Security Force, will be confined until a vetting process can be developed to determine who is a danger to us and who is not.”
“But you do not seem to be working on that now. The Unknowns we have here are no closer to being free than they were when we invaded.”
“Roxal, we do not have time to focus on those people now. We have more pressing matters at hand. Did you not hear what Rodan explained about our upcoming mission?” Kada asked.
“Yes, I heard her. And I know it is important, but so are the innocent people caught in the middle of this war.” Roxal sighed in annoyance and walked around to the back of her chair. “Neither of you seem to understand. The people living under the Reps, people who are like I was, have no idea that the Reps are liars and The Keepers are false gods. But you are punishing them as if they made a choice to follow The Keepers. I understand that your directive from the other Heads of Security is what is important to both of you. But preventing the suffering of the innocent is what is important to me. So I will not go along with this plan unless you make a tangible effort to free the Unknowns here in Second Gamma.”
When Roxal finished talking, she realized she was gripping the back of the chair so hard that her fingers were hurting. She released her grip and stood rubbing her fingers, waiting for Rodan or Kada to respond.
Kada pushed up out of his chair, causing Roxal to jump. “I told you. Any plan that depends on her is doomed to fail.”
“No, it is not,” Roxal said, surprising herself. She briefly made eye contact with Kada. “I am willing to work as hard as I need to work to make your invasion a success. After all, I want to destroy The Keepers, too. But along with that, I want to protect the innocent. And I am going to start with those here in Second Gamma.” She exhaled loudly, feeling as if a weight on her heart had been lightened.
Rodan now sat in silence, her hands clenched in fists on the table. As the silence drew out, Roxal felt more and more uncomfortable. She had no idea what the outcome of her ultimatum would be. She hoped Rodan thought she was a key component of the invasion plan. Otherwise, she had no chance.
Finally, Kada ended the silence. “Rodan, you cannot really be taking this demand seriously. Everyone who lives within Gamma faction’s protection owes you their allegiance and obedience. She is no different.” Kada did not even bother looking at Roxal as he spoke, using his head to gesture toward her when he said “she.”
“But she is different, Kada. And everyone knows it now,” said Rodan. She unclenched her hands and placed them flat on the table. “This is the only offer you will get from me. I will allow you to remove a small group of people from the Unknowns. Kada and I will vet those you want to include in this group. You will work with that small group while you are training with Civort and his team. You will have to find a way to prove to me that they are not a threat to us or any other Resistor factions. If you can do this, I will allow you to begin clearing the Unknowns in small groups. Either agree to this, or leave. Because you are only useful to me as a connection to Earth.”
Kada made a sound and mumbled something under his breath that Roxal could not hear. But it did not matter. Rodan had agreed to her demands, somewhat. And though she knew she still had a lot of work ahead of her, at least she had made some progress toward her goal of freeing the Unknowns.
Chapter Eleven
It had taken five helios, but Roxal had managed to get Rodan and Kada to approve of a group of one hundred Unknowns to begin integrating into the free world. Excited, she bound out of the sleeping unit but was quickly slowed by the soreness and pain from training with Edo and the rest of his raid team. As she limped to the grooming corner, she heard Edo laugh behind her and say, “Do not worry. It will get better. Soon the soreness will go away.”
Roxal did not know if this was because her body would adjust, or because she would be dead; each option seemed just as likely as the other. For the four helios that she had worked out with Edo and the rest of Civort’s team, it had been brutal. And not just physically.
She washed herself. But even after she was finished, she stood in the warm water stream, letting it run over her sore muscles, and tried to steel herself for her upcoming helio. The strength training, the sparring, and the weapons training were all very difficult. But, unexpectedly, so was the mental stress. The only thing worse than constantly being the weakest person on the team was Pruda’s reaction to her weakness.
In her first training session with the team, each person had been required to spar with an automated unit set on intensity level 7. The goal was for at least five of the now seven team members to successfully fight and defeat a unit. In order to assess Roxal’s ability, Civort had instructed her to go first. She had barely lasted a fourth of a hauni before she was pinned on the floor.
As the unit was deactivated and moved from on top of her, Roxal had heard Pruda loudly proclaim, “This is what we have to work with? Am I the only one who sees her weakness is going to get us killed? Why is everyone so willing to risk themselves to take care of her?”
“Pruda, no one is risking anything. Roxal is not that bad, she simply needs training,” she had heard Nawad say in her defense, though the woman had not been able to disguise the pity in her voice.
Roxal had said nothing because deep down, she agreed with Pruda. She felt weak. She knew there was no way she could fight like any of them. Standing before the team, staring at the floor, and waiting for Civort to add his disappointment to Pruda’s, she had fought back her tears, refusing to cry in front of them. However, instead of Civort saying anything, Tano and Nawad had stepped forward, and Tano had said, “From here forward, once team training is done, you will do additional training with Nawad and me. We will make sure you catch-up with the rest of us in no time.”
Roxal had nodded in response, and then Civort had told Gerig it was his turn to fight.
“Roxal, you do realize I also need to take a shower,” Edo said, bringing Roxal’s focus back to the present.
She turned off the water, exited the shower, and grabbed a towel to dry herself as she went back into the general living area of their quarters. Edo stopped to kiss her as he walked by. “Trust me. It gets better.”
Roxal limped over to where her clothing was stored and got dressed, wincing as various muscles flared with pain. By the time she was dressed, Edo was out of the shower and following suit.
“How long do you believe the removal will take?” he asked as she prepared to leave.
“I am not sure. We are only visiting twenty-five or thirty pods, so I expect that I will be able to return to training by mid-helio meal. Possibly earlier.”
“Good. And be careful. I fear that your pity for the Unknowns and their predicament blinds you to how dangerous they can be,” Edo said. And just as Roxal was about to respond, he cut her off and added, “I know that you would like to think the opportunity to be free would be enough of an incentive for them to cooperate. But do not underestimate the fact that, one, to them, you are nothing more than a symbol of the people holding them captive, and two, everyone who was previously enslaved by The Keepers were not good people in a bad situation.”
“I hear you. And I will be safe,” Roxal replied and then left their quarters.
As she walked to the Pods Section, Lauren stretched, trying to loosen some of her tight and sore muscles. She also thought about Edo’s warning. She was not naïve enough to think that everyone being held captive in the Pods Section was inherently good. However, she did think Edo was worried over nothing. Rodan and Kada had vetted the list of people she was going to work with. And regardless of what Edo may have thought about her judgment, she knew he trusted Rodan’s.
As she neared the Pods Section, she could hear the voices of the committee members as they talked, engrossed in conversation with one another. It took Roxal’s mind off her problems and made her focus on the task at hand. She was finally making progress toward offering the Unknowns a chance to be free.
She rounded the corner and was shocked to see the size of the group waiting to enter the Pods Section was twice what she had been expecting. “Good new helio,” Roxal said hesitantly to the group. In addition to the four committee members and two guards she was expecting to see, there were eight more guards, and the guards were all carrying weapons and dressed for battle.
Everyone either said, “Good new helio,” or nodded in response to her greeting. Then Lamuta stepped away from the group. Everyone stopped their conversations and circled around her. Roxal did the same.
Lamuta looked around, making brief eye contact with everyone, and then spoke. “As you all know, we will be removing Unknowns for participation in a new program. Once we are through the security checkpoint, each committee member, myself included, will be given a list of names and two guards to escort you. You will collect the people on your list and return to the security checkpoint area. Are there any questions?”
“Yes,” Zabe, another committee member, spoke up. “How much force have the guards been authorized to use if other pod members begin to get aggressive as we take people away?”
