Unwilling From Earth Read online

“I anticipated that you might survive, as a Friend of the People. I am pleased my trust in the People was justified.” Ti’rrk said.

  “Thank you Ti’rrk and Orange, and possibly Simon. And Mike, I’m underwhelmed by your concern. How long till you and Simon are back in the real world?”

  “I’ll be OK by the time I’ve had a coffee. Even the crap that comes out of the synthesiser. I’ve nearly run out of the stuff I brought back from Earth.” Simon answered.

  “Yeah, give me ten minutes, and I’ll be back to normal.” Mike said.

  “You have a normal setting?” Mark asked.

  “Can you get a sample of Simon’s coffee?” Mark’s AI asked. “I can make a pattern that will give an exact match.”

  “Simon, while you’re sobering up, come with me.” He turned to Sally. “We’ll only be a few minutes.”

  Sally shrugged but said nothing. Simon lurched to his feet, Mark stood next to him and blinked them into the team quarters.

  “How did you do that?” Simon mumbled. He wasn’t showing much sign of sobering up yet. “Visitors can’t blink directly into living quarters.”

  “I’m not a visitor. Give me some of your coffee.”

  “You want a drink of coffee?”

  “Just give me the coffee.”

  Simon sighed. “OK.” He opened his locker and handed Mark a five hundred gramme sachet that was less than half full.

  “What now?” Mark asked his AI.

  “Put it into the synthesiser.” His AI responded.

  “No chance. I lost a perfectly good suit that way when I first came on board Mother.”

  “I have better communication protocols than you with the main AI. If you want anything done really well, do it through the main AI. It will be analysed, a pattern created that you can pass to Simon and have a few packets made to take away now.”

  “I’m not sure I can trust you now, after letting Sally hit me like that. I’m seriously considering making you dormant.”

  “Let me ask you this. If Sally had stayed to defuse the bomb and pushed you onto the lander, then just after you took off the fusion bomb detonated and twenty minutes later you were relayed a message saying she was OK, but you couldn’t contact her to verify it - as if she were dead, and a day later she turned up in your quarters, would you be a bit cross with her?”

  “Well, yes, I suppose so.”

  “Would you punch her?”

  “No! Of course not! I wouldn’t hurt any woman!”

  “Mark, re-attach yourself to reality. At least half of the soldiers you killed on Gnn’Ath were women. Perhaps you don’t think that hurt them? Anyway, putting your deep cultural double standards to one side, do you think you deserved to be punched by her?”

  “Yes, I suppose so.” Mark grudgingly agreed. “Although a normal woman wouldn’t do that.”

  “There’s no suppose to it. You forget that I am inside your brain and although I can’t read your thoughts I can sense your mood and feelings. You knew you deserved it, even though it may have been subconscious, so of course I let her hit you. If it was going to cause you real damage I would have prevented it. Now, put the coffee into the synthesiser.”

  Even though Mark’s conversation with his AI took place at the speed of thought, Simon noticed Mark pause after he handed him the coffee. “You two OK in there?” He asked.

  “Er, yes. Can you turn around a moment please?” Mark asked him.

  Simon shrugged and turned his back on Mark, who quickly put the coffee into the synthesiser before Simon noticed.

  “Kate, I hope you realise that although Simon may not be able to hurt me now, I’ll lose a friend who I value if this goes wrong.” Mark said to his AI.

  “It is a feature of AI’s that if we don’t have one hundred percent confidence in a proposed action we will always inform you of the probability of success before proceeding with it.”

  “And the probability of success with this?”

  “One hundred percent that the sample will not be damaged, which is why I didn’t need to notify you before proceeding. Ninety-nine point nine, nine, six percent probability that an identical product will be the result.”

  The seconds ticked by, which worried Mark. Usually the time between ordering something like tea, and it being ready, was almost instantaneous.

  “Can I turn round yet?” Simon asked.

  “Just a moment.” Mark answered, getting more worried by the second.

  “How long?” He asked his AI.

  “Soon.” Was the reply, which was too vague to allay Mark’s fears.

  After a few more seconds, Mark’s AI said “You can remove the sample now.”

  Mark nervously opened the synthesiser, half expecting to see a pile of coffee granules mixed with molten plastic, but it looked OK.

  “Is it ready yet.” Simon asked, turning round.

  Mark handed him the sachet. “There you are.”

  “I thought you were making me a coffee?” Simon said.

  “Er,…”

  “Well, open the synthesiser and give him the coffee.” Mark’s AI said.

  Mark took two mugs of coffee out of the synthesiser and handed one to Simon. “Try this.” He said.

  Simon took a sip. “Did the synthesiser make it?” He asked Mark.

  “There are two new patterns on Mother’s AI waiting to be downloaded.” Mark’s AI told him.

  “Is it OK?” Mark asked, hopefully.

  “Yeah, just like I’d made it myself.” Simon answered with a smile.

  “Well, give him the sachets.” Mark’s AI prompted him.

  “What sachets?”

  “The sachets in the synthesiser of course. Why do you think there are two patterns?” Mark’s AI asked.

  Mark opened the synthesiser again and took out six sealed sachets, identical to the one which he had put in earlier, but full.

  “These should keep you going for a while.” Mark said, handing them to Simon. “There are two new patterns on Mother’s main AI waiting to be downloaded, one for a cup of coffee, one for sachets of coffee.”

  “How did you do that?” Simon asked, incredulously.

  “Oh, it’s just something that comes with being a Friend of the People.”

  “You’re a genius Mark!”

  “Well, not me, it’s my AI.”

  “In that case, you’re AI is a genius, which makes up for your deficiencies.” Simon said with a grin. “Come on, my blood’s clearing now, let’s go.”

  “You need to learn to take credit for yourself.” Mark's AI told him. Then they blinked back to the meeting room.

  “You look unnaturally happy.” Mike said to Simon as he and Mark took their seats at the table.

  “Look what my friend Mark got for me.” He said, tossing the sachets on the table.

  “That’s nice. It would have been helpful if he had got a pattern to make more.” Mike said dismissively.

  “He did, and I’ve got it.” Simon said with a grin. “You can download it too, it’s on the main AI. The boy’s a genius.”

  “He’s got to have something going for him.” Mike said with a grin. “It helps make up for him being so ugly.”

  “OK children. Put your crayons down and pay attention.” Sally said. “Mark has got some strange idea that this is a democracy and he wants to run his plan past all of us. He hasn’t told me what it is yet, but he has told me I won’t like it. When he’s finished, we can tell him to leave the planning to the grown-ups and you can go back to doing whatever it was you were doing before I called you all back here. Just in case any of you think his plan is reasonable, I’ll let you know in advance that I will veto it. The floor is yours Mark.”

  “First, I’d like to thank Sally for approaching this with an open mind. There are two plans, Plan A and Plan B in case you don’t like Plan A. Any questions so far?”

  Mike yawned. “Yes. How long is this going to take?”

  “Longer than it would take if you don’t ask stupid questions.” Mark answer
ed.

  “I thought there was no such thing as a stupid question?” Simon said.

  “Mike’s just proved you wrong about that.” Mark replied.

  “You’re getting quite feisty now you’ve decided you are a soldier. At least you’ve stopped whining so much.” Mike commented.

  “Right.” Mark continued. “Plan A is simple. We launch a diversionary assault on Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s headquarters planet on a remote and lightly defended area. The team go to Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s headquarters, I get captured, you all leave and I kill him, escape, then you come and get me. Any questions?”

  Mike leant forward, clasped her hands together and looked earnestly at Mark. “I’d just like to say, you’re fucking mad.”

  “I’d go along with that.” Sally said. “That it? Finished now?”

  “There is a bit of detail to go with that. We go down while the focus is on our diversionary assault, exit the lander, stir up a little trouble, I get taken prisoner, you all get back onto the lander and leave, I kill Tk'ng Dach Rrn, you come back and collect me, we leave. What happens next is for you to decide.” Mark nodded to Sally. “I’ve asked Alan if he would destroy the planet but he said he couldn’t interfere that much.”

  Orange leant forward. “On the face of it, it sounds like a good plan Mark, but it has some fatal flaws. First, we don’t know where Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s headquarters are and if we did, we don’t know if he will be there. Second, we have tracked him down before and tried massive attacks, but he always gets away. We suspect an information leak. Third, if the team land at his headquarters we would get overwhelmed and wouldn’t be able to leave. Fourth, if you get taken prisoner, you will be slowly tortured to death. If Tk'ng Dach Rrn knows who you are, he will want to do it himself. Fifth, I agree with Mike on this one.”

  “You make some good points there Orange. Let me address those in order. First, I know where Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s headquarters are and I know he is there. Second, I am not proposing a massive attack and if he has advance notice of our plan, we make that work in our favour. We can feed disinformation that we are planning an all out assault and that we, the team.will be there. If we can identify the source of the leak, or at least, the path the information takes before it leaks, we can ensure that just before we, the team, land, he gets to hear about it as he will want to capture us, not just blow us out of the sky. Third, I will make sure we don’t get overwhelmed and that you will be able to get away. Fourth, when I am taken prisoner neither Tk'ng Dach Rrn or his minions will be able to harm me. Fifth, although I have the highest regard for Mike’s opinions, on this occasion she is wrong.”

  “Let me check those points, Mark.” Sally said, leaning forward. “How do you know where Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s headquarters are and how do you know he is there?”

  “You made the point a little while ago that you can’t even fart in this galaxy without the People knowing. That’s not far from the truth. I have access to that information.”

  “As a Friend of the People I presume?” Sally asked.

  “Yup.” Mark answered.

  “OK.” Sally continued. “Let’s assume you know where he is and that you can get us there, how can you make sure that we won’t get overwhelmed. Tk'ng Dach Rrn will have a lot of well-armed soldiers guarding him.”

  “I also have access to the People’s weapons.”

  “Show us what weaponry you’ve got.” Sally told him.

  “Sorry, I can’t.”

  “Why not?” Simon asked.

  “I can’t tell you.”

  “So, we’ve got to take you on trust?” Sally asked.

  “Yes.”

  “And why do you think they won’t be able to hurt you? I split your lip without really trying.”

  “Yeah, and you loosened a tooth, but that was you, and I deserved it.”

  “Well that’s showing some pretty good insight.” Sally said. “But it’s not exactly convincing.”

  “Like to try again?”

  “No thanks.”

  “I’m happy to help out.” Mike said.

  Mark stood up. “Thanks Mike, be careful not to hurt yourself.”

  Mike jumped up and aimed a kick at Mark’s chest. He stood still and her foot connected. Mark didn’t feel a thing and Mike’s foot dropped back to the floor.

  “That was weird.” She said. “It was like hitting a padded practise post.”

  “That’s not convincing Mike, have another go. Give it everything you’ve got but please be careful not to hurt yourself.” Mark urged her.

  Mike sprang towards him unleashing a flurry of kicks and punches to all parts of his body while Mark stood, relaxed and unmoving. Finally she pulled out a short bladed knife.

  “No!” Shouted Sally, but too late, Mike had already stabbed at Mark’s shoulder. The knife point held at his skin for a moment then slid off. Mike sprang round, picked up her chair and swung it at Mark. It connected hard and bounced off as though she had hit a concrete block with it.

  Mark smiled. “Thanks Mike. Would anyone like to come down to the firing range and try their weapons out on me?”

  ”We don’t need to do that.” Sally said.

  “Good show Mark.” Mike said with a smile as she picked her chair up off the floor.

  “They may not be able to hurt you, but that doesn’t stop them taking you away and locking you up.” Orange said.

  “That’s true.” Mark answered him. “But that is part of the plan. Just to set your mind at rest Orange, would you like to show how you would take me away to lock me up?”

  Orange chuckled. “Sure.” He got to his feet and reached for Mark’s shoulder. As he closed his fingers to grasp Mark, they slid off. “Hey, I can’t get a grip!” He bent down and wrapped his thick arms around Mark, who helpfully lifted his arms to give Orange more grip. Orange tried to stand to pick Mark up. “Shit, I can’t move him! What are you doing to me Mark?”

  “I’m not doing anything to you Orange. If I don’t want to move, I don’t.”

  Orange let go and sat down.

  “So this is People’s phase shift armour? I’m still not convinced. What’s Plan B?” Sally asked.

  “Well, if you don’t buy into Plan A, Plan B is - I go by myself.”

  Everybody started talking at once, except Ti’rrk. Finally Sally banged the table with her fist and shouted. “Everybody shut up! Mark, Mike was right in the first place. Your plan is crazy and you’re not going by yourself. That is a direct order soldier!”

  The room quietened and when it was silent Mark spoke. “Sorry Sally, but as you have pointed out, I am not a member of your army and not subject to army orders or discipline. This has to end now and I’m the only person who can and will do it. It won’t be fun but I’ll be safe. On balance, it would probably be better if I went by myself, there will no risk of any harm coming to any of you. If it did, I would never forgive myself.”

  Sally looked shocked at Mark’s words and sat speechless.

  Ti’rrk spoke up. “What Mark says is true. If we don’t put an end to Tk'ng Dach Rrn, this war will never end. The People and particularly Alan have assisted you many time in the past Sally, and I have been privileged to have worked alongside them in Ant campaigns. They will not take direct action themselves for good reason. They have terrible weapons, but will only use them as a last resort. As a Friend of the People Mark will have access to the People’s technologies. I am not aware of them making a warrior a Friend of the People before and I am not sure they realised what Mark was capable of when they granted him this honour. However, he would not be able to take this course of action without their consent. If you were to ask my advice, and you haven’t yet, I would advise you support him in this endeavour.”

  The room remained silent for a few minutes. Simon stood up without a word and walked out. Mike and Orange looked at each other, then followed, leaving Sally, Mark and Ti’rrk.

  “I’m sorry Sally, I handled that badly.” Mark said.

  Sally looked at him then looked down at
the table. “No Mark, I shouldn’t have made such a circus of it. I should have had this discussion with just you and Ti’rrk and maybe consulted Alan. Mark, I really don’t want to lose you. I think it is too dangerous to put the team into Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s headquarters. I don’t want you to go. I don’t know what to do.”

  “I should have outlined the plan to you first. I guess I didn’t really think that through. I’m not proposing we take the team into Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s fortress, I’m not a military expert but even I can see that would be extremely risky. I’m proposing we land far enough away to not get tangled up with the guards around the fortress, but close enough that they can get soldiers out to tackle us fairly quickly. We put up a spirited defence but retreat fairly quickly and evacuate, but I get separated and captured.”

  Mark paused.

  “I have to do this Sally, because I’m the only one who can. If I don’t, I’ll have the blood of every one of your soldiers and every civilian who dies at the hands of Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s army of thugs forever.”

  Sally nodded. “Give me half an hour. We’ll meet back here.” She blinked away.

  Mark looked at Ti’rrk. “I fucked that up, didn’t I.” He said to her.

  “Perhaps next time you plan to undermine the leader of the most powerful army in the galaxy in front of her most trusted team you’ll discuss it with me first. I am a diplomat, you are clearly not.”

  Mark looked down at the table. “I feel ashamed Ti’rrk.”

  “You do not need to Mark. It was unfortunate, that’s all. We can all learn from it. If necessary, we’ll work out a plan for damage limitation. In the meantime, take a break and get back here in twenty minutes - Sally will be here early. She might want to talk to you but if she doesn’t, at least your Peoples armour should protect you.”

  Mark walked over to Ti’rrk and put his arms round her neck. “You are the best friend a man could have.”

  “I trust that what you are doing is a sign of affection in your species Mark.”

  Mark smiled. “Oh yes Ti’rrk.”

  “That is good Mark. We don’t have emotions like mammals, but I have a fondness for you. You have a good heart. Now go and clear your mind and clarify your thoughts before coming back here.”