The Impossible Future: Complete set by Frank Kennedy (mini ebook reader .txt) 📕

glory: All forty worlds achieved stable economies, and the great migration was complete. He admired its vision, the consistency of tradition, the time-honored symbols of its permanence.

He also realized, as did many, that the great institutions of the Chancellory would soon crack at their foundations. He feared the day but vowed never to witness it. Now, as he stood at the base of the Atrium Aeterna and looked skyward to forty flights of forged crystals from every planet, Perrone contemplated his gamble. He studied the hundred-meter brontinium statue at the center of the atrium and wondered what Johannes Ericsson, the UG’s founder, would think of coming developments. He tapped his internal stream and dictated in silentium to his personal log.

“I lost a wife and child today – not that they were ever truly mine to lose. Nonetheless, I have no personal investment in the coming generation. This proposition liberates me. Whether to unleash a catastrophe that will kill millions or a genocide targeting billions, I cannot say. I will see the future take form today. For the sake of a boy’s life, I had best be impressed. End log.”

 The cavernous central promenade of the GPM harbored a continuous echo, as the hushed tones of the hundreds of Chancellors at its ground floor drifted skyward to form an incoherent music amid the crystals. The music calmed Perrone until his aide arrived.

Major Sexton Marshall, 9th Battalion, Inner Colony Command, saluted the admiral with a side-nod. Above average by peacekeeper standards, he stood 7-6, an inch taller than Perrone, 400 pounds of muscle. His officers called him The Monolith.

“They are being prepared, sir. The facility is combat-ready. We may commence at your command.”

“That level has been cleared of non-essentials?”

“Yes. Fortunately, the chamber was undergoing a refresh cycle. Three Solomons on duty. We dispatched them to new assignments.”

Perrone winced. “I have always objected to Solomons working anywhere in the GPM. Mark these words, Major. Our liberal policies  will have consequences someday soon. And what of the brothers? Do they realize what will happen next?”

Marshall frowned. “Difficult to say. Specialist Bouchet has been asking questions. He strikes me as a man who expects answers from his commanders, especially when he is assigned to an admiral. As you predicted, stripping him of his uniform and nullifying his amp have left him feeling somewhat vulnerable.”

“And James?”

“Stoic. I would expect a boy on this side of the fold for less than two hours to show terror. We have stripped him bare, stranded him in a frigid isolation cube, and yet …”

“Out with it, Major.”

“Something familiar in his eyes. I’ve seen it before battle: Peacekeepers who have faced death and now honor it by preparing to inflict it upon others. He is not of this Earth and yet …”

“He is. Yes, Major, I saw it when I first met him near the IDF. He spoke with poise, lied to me with grace about my wife and child. What he seeks goes far beyond you and me. Perhaps I should fear him. Or perhaps I should slice off his head and be done with it.”

“But there’s far too much at stake. Yes? We have to know.”

Perrone sighed. “Indeed. We should be going.”

As they joined the moving spiralcase toward the underground levels, Perrone calculated as far ahead as he dared.

“Are the last of our people positioned in SkyTower?”

“They are, Admiral. However, I have concerns.”

“Such as?”

“I question their loyalty, should the worst-case orders be given. If they believe they can negotiate a better deal for their descendencies, they will turn.”

“Yes, and every Presidium within twenty light-years will demand our heads. Therefore, the next two stages must be executed with precision. Agree, Major?”

“Naturally, Admiral. Which brings me to the latest concern. I have been monitoring your circastream, as you asked. Most of the contacts have been routine. But as I prepared to join you, I captured a transmission from Dr. Tomelin. She believes you targeted her ship with orbital slews. She …”

Perrone froze. “She what? They were attacked? Their status?”

“None harmed, but she is put-out. It was him, yes? Bouchet.”

The admiral snapped his fingers and smirked.

“He played his hand too soon. The man is desperate. Is there any way he knows we have the Jewel?”

“No, sir. Not James. Nor Valentin.”

“How soon before we have the Ukrainian package secured?”

“Scorch is underway now. I expect finality within the hour.”

He slapped the major on the back. “You’re a fine officer, Sexton. I have worked with three Marshalls in my time – brilliant, the lot of them. You have a proud descendency.” He leaned in and lowered his voice as the spiralcase dropped near his level. “Return to your station and establish a full surveillance on Tomelin’s team. Analyze the bleeders I planted on the Pynn girl and that strange proto-African boy. Pass along anything actionable.”

“As you command, Admiral.” He glanced toward an upcoming corridor blocked by the red glow of a cascade shield. “Best of luck in there, sir. May the results go our way.”

Perrone stepped off the spiralcase and descended a bridge into a sector set aside for classified interrogation and re-education. He opened his amp and disarmed the cascade shield. He took a tube down six flights and stepped out onto a control balcony overlooking a stark, oval chamber cast in spotlights. A barrier of two-way glass on all three sides hid the balcony’s occupant from the open expanse below. He took a seat and swiped his hand across the glass, forming a rectangle. The chamber’s holo-controls flared into action.

He tapped the open comm. “Are they ready, Lieutenant?”

The voice of his Scramjet pilot returned. “In position, sir.”

“Escort them in. Ten meters and hold for my command.”

He closed the comm and spoke to the glass. “Open InterStream diode. Command authorization 1-9-Perrone-X-Invidious-AdmSync.”

A holographic window, three feet square, separated