Operation Arrakis: Yelling Simultaneously

by Prophet Kristy and scifantasy

The news spread like wildfire in Mendel City. As some have observed, the term "secret" has a slightly different meaning in Mendellia: a secret is something people will, if you are lucky, not discuss in your presence.

This piece of rumor was little different. In the Royal Palace, the word was damped by the presence of the Dictator and his closest friends; but in the streets of the city, there were no such factors.

Sci went walking in Mendel City the day he returned. He needed to walk under his birth sun again, and besides, he always wanted to stay on top of things happening under his nose. (Mike had had some comments about physiology when he heard this.) Although his name and rank were well-known in the country, his face was not as familiar; he found this useful when he wanted to simply sit and listen. He had taken what amounted to his usual seat; a table at the Flying Finch bar. The bartender, Charles Niwrad, did know who the black-clad patron with the young face was, but he had his own reasons for keeping silent. In the mind of the big barkeep with the perpetual smile, the fact that one of the biggest celebrities of the country was a patron would be bad for business. Also, everyone knew that Sci didn't drink alcohol almost at all; why would anyone seek him in a bar?

Good thing, too, since the Finch was one of the best places for the dissemination of information the city had, and probably the best for news of his team. Sci was sitting at the table, sipping a virgin Transfusion, when the group of people walked in and took a nearby table. Sci recognized some of them--workers in the High Palace. Noitisopxe, one of the ubiquitous butler-type staffers, was there with a few minor maids and some friends. Sci smiled to himself--this would be a chance to get some real news. Sci's long readings of fantasy had made this simple fact crystal clear, and he had backed it up with empirical evidence: No one gossips like maids, and they're rarely wrong about the concepts. Specifics are hit-or-miss, but what can you expect?

Noitisopxe spoke first. "What a day, no? And it's only the afternoon."

One of the minor maids, Ednasse, spoke next. "At least a good portions of those foreigners are out of the Palace."

"That may be good news for you, my dear, but with his wife out of town again, Chef Boyd's temper has shortened substantially." That was a minor functionary in the cooking staff. "Either way, it's bad timing. The major himself returned just today, with the newer members."

"Him," said a friend of theirs, voice dripping with contempt. "The worst of the lot. No one knows who he is, where he's from...what his intentions are."

Niwrad placed their drinks on the bar. "I don't know if he's that bad," he opined. "Seems to me he proved what his intentions are when he came here two years ago."

"You only say that, Niwrad, because your business has gone up as a result of them." The bartender smiled.

"Well," said the large man, "I can't deny that since they've come I've been doing better. They're a source for so many stories, and stories are part of the Finch."

"Speaking of which," cut in Noitisopxe, "do you still have that offer of free drinks for the best new story of the night regarding Terra Group?" Niwrad nodded. At the same time, he noticed Sci's drink was empty and headed over.

"Another?" he asked, eyes twinkling. He knew Sci wouldn't leave for a while, not after that exchange.

Sci smiled back. "Just water for now, thanks. I'll take something else later."

Niwrad nodded and walked off. When he came back with Sci's drink, however, Sci barely noticed.

"...Got back to the city with a baby in tow." Gasps of delighted surprise rose. "Of course, Captain Nolan insists the child's not hers. But Lieutenant Cochran was being protective of her. There is something odd between the two of them."

"And then, there's the news about Lady Leannan and the Lord Atner you were telling us," cut in one of their friends.

"Oh, yes. While the team was in Paris, the City of Amore, the Lord and the Lady slipped off for a private getaway there."

Sci blinked at that one. He suddenly decided to get his news elsewhere today, and he slipped out, leaving more than enough money for his drinks on the tabletop.

Charles Niwrad frowned. Odd. And a shame. He could have stayed for hours. He's missing important news... At Noitisopxe's next statement, though, the one that really set the new bar for shock and surprise, he grunted. On second thought, if he was here he'd most definitely have blown his cover.

Then, reluctantly conceding that the story would be nigh impossible to top, he started drawing many, many drinks for Noitisopxe and his friends.

Kristy sat back from her laptop and rubbed her eyes. Helix had taken an extra day to get the results of Wee One's DNA tests, due to the wrong temperature being set in the hybridization oven. Being a droid, though, he didn't need sleep, so a new Southern blot had only been the work of a few extra hours.

In the meantime, Kristy had been busy being undercover, almost blown up, and patched, so she hadn't noticed the delay. Still, it was surprisingly fulfilling to have tied up one small loose end in the midst of all the mysteries swirling around Terra Group lately. Helix had been very clever in his choice of probes, and the RFLP results were quite conclusive, even without the controls they should have run.

Speaking of controls, now that they had the results they'd been in a rush to get, there was no reason not to run the controls now. Kristy flipped windows back to her secure email and glanced over the message she'd skipped in the excitement of finally seeing the attached data.

TO: Capt. Kristy Henscheid <one@terragroup.nri.me>
FROM: Lt. Nick Coghlan <six@terragroup.nri.me>
SUBJECT: From Helix

Here's the results you were waiting for. I think Helix is having some sort of catfight with the main Palace computer, and trying to blame it on technical problems. There certainly weren't any problems with uploading the info to my datapad.

Anyway, I'm still working on the identity hunt. Tell Mike I'll send him my next batch of messages before long.

Stay safe, Moonchild.
Wizard.

Hmh. No further comments about Helix doing any controls. Well, she'd make sure they got run, sooner or later; though, given the clarity of the data, they were probably unnecessary....

"What the HELL?"

He was a half a block away, but Niwrad knew the voice when he heard it. Inwardly, he both smiled and winced. I hope he doesn't do anything permanent. Still, maybe he can make sense of everything. He's very levelheaded.

Usually.

He looked back at Noitisopxe, and smiled. "I don't know what that was about, but I'd be careful. Your night of free drinks might be in jeopardy."

Sure enough, within hours newcomers had streamed in, with their stories. The Major, Scifantasy, the one no one knew about, had suddenly appeared in the street and screamed. No, according to someone else, he had pulled a weapon and fired it, causing a huge boom. No, he had been talking with a jeweler who had irritated him, and he shot him. No, he had flown overhead in the triskele craft of his and blown up a jewelry store.

Finally, Niwrad decided that the version which said he had been talking and suddenly burst out in a massive scream was the most likely, and therefore the one deserving of the prize. The recipient, a young waiter named Satirev, had smiled at his luck. He had seen the whole thing from the restaurant he worked at, next door to the jewelry store he was sure he had seen the Major in. Apparently, he had been asking about a ring resembling the royal ring of the Queen, and the jeweler, one of the more notorious gossipers in the city, had given him a full history--up to and including the end of the Dictator's engagement.

Glancing back over the email before formulating her reply, Kristy frowned. Rumors of Becki and Thayer ending their engagement? The Palace gossip-mongers must really be stretching for material these days. Though there was that kiss Lenka saw, and she wasn't wearing her engagement ring anymore.... The back of her neck felt vaguely tingly, her usual unsettled-for-no-reason feeling. But who believed rumors anyway? At least there weren't rumors of her night spent with Nick after making landfall from her stint on Luna.

A grimace crossed her face as she remembered the Sithly headache she'd had the next morning. She really wished she'd gotten more rest that night, considering that she had immediately followed up that adventure with a long, involved shift in the lab tinkering with Wee One's DNA. But they hadn't gotten to sleep until the wee hours of the morning, and that after more Irish Creme-spiked hot cocoa than she cared to remember.

Of course, she couldn't fault Nick for the late night. On the contrary, he'd been extremely sweet and understanding, especially given her innocence. She was very grateful for his gentleness. He'd been willing to take things slowly, making sure she was comfortable. But that wasn't very conducive to a full night of sleep.

Her mind tried to drift toward the reason she'd been with Nick that night anyway--JoshN's near-death and her failure in preventing it--but she sternly turned herself away from those thoughts before she curled up into a useless little ball of grief and guilt. She ached--bitterly--deep down, but she had to concentrate on their mission and her duty, or else she'd cause someone else to be hurt.

Feeling fragile, like a papier-mache sculpture that was empty inside, she swiftly typed an acknowledgement to Nick and sent it, then stood and stretched. She was stiff; she'd spent more time poring over scans of Southern blots than she'd thought.

A blast of heavy desert air came down the corridor from the direction of the Red Home's hatch. Kristy wrinkled her nose, catching a whiff of the promised rainy season threatening. She hoped they wouldn't have to do much more hiking along scary windy roads. In the wake of the fresh air she'd let in, Becki entered the Red Home's common room, returning from her rounds carefully scouting out the city for any sign of the trail that the group had so disastrously lost yesterday.

"Any luck?" Kristy greeted her, easing kinks out of her back.

Becki paused in her stride, blinking out of the slightly distracted look she'd had. "Nope. We're not the only ones laying low."

"Oh, hey, Nick sent me the DNA test results finally. Plus he tells me the rumors in the Palace are even wilder than normal. Apparently you and Thayer broke off your engagement!"

Becki's eyes went wide, and Kristy could only think that she looked like the proverbial headlight-skewered deer. That was all it took for the full situation to come crashing down on her. Oh, no. I suspected--especially after what Lenka said--but nerfsith. This can't be happening.

Sci raced back to the High Palace. He sidestepped techs, hurdled over droids, and came within a hairsbreadth of clotheslining a minor-level functionary who had the misfortune to be walking in the opposite direction. Finally, he reached the Office of the Dictator. Stopping to catch his breath, he straightened into military-straight posture and opened the door, walking up to the desk of the Dictator's secretary. Since Lenka Leannan was with the team in Jerusalem, there was a temporary replacement in the chair. Sci looked at him with an icy glare perfected for use on stubborn subordinates. "I will see Dictator Atner now."

The secretary flinched at the Major's glare, but he managed to stammer, "The D-d-Dictator is b-busy now. If you would c-c-care to make an app-p-ointment?"

"I will see Dictator Atner now," Sci repeated in a monotone. The secretary couldn't respond, but he managed to shake his head. Sci tired of repeating himself and drew his blaster.

As the secretary dove under his desk, Sci fired at the door, blasting the lock. As the bolts hit he was already in motion, slamming the door open and storming into Thayer's office.

Thayer was looking at the door--and the entrant--in shock. "Major," he said softly, formally, and in a dangerously controlled tone, "are you out of your mind?"

"One of us is," answered Sci with a heat in his voice Thayer had never heard. "What's this I hear on the streets?"

Thayer's heart lurched at the realization of what Sci was upset about, and the host of temporarily scabbed-over emotions it released. "Rumor is the true currency of Mendellia, Major."

"Lord Atner," Sci responded with mocking formality, "you know full well what I'm talking about. The story of the hour is that your engagement with Lieutenant Bush has been broken off. Is this true?"

Thayer could not speak for the sudden lump in his throat, but he nodded slowly. He also fingered the blaster he kept under his desk, making sure it was set to stun, just in case.

To his sudden surprise, Sci sagged, collapsing into a chair. "What happened?"

Thayer suddenly felt his own strength slip from him. Drained, he sat back. "I don't know, exactly. We met just before the team left for Jerusalem, and it all just..."

Sci waited patiently.

"It unravelled. She started complaining about how hard it is to be secretly engaged and at school, I started complaining about how hard it is to keep defending her to the Council, not to mention my mother..."

"Hm."

"That wasn't the breaking point, though. The breaking point was what I saw in Paris."

Sci blinked slowly. "That being?"

"You did break up with Thayer," Kristy blurted out, her tone more accusing than was probably appropriate. They had been so perfect together, and the romantic in her had adored their fairy-tale story. She didn't want that to change. But Becki turned away, dropping her gaze.

"It just--I didn't--I didn't do anything," Becki babbled out in a voice taut with tension. "Things just happened. I hadn't heard from Thayer in so long, and he didn't even come to see me in Mendellia before we left for Paris, and then I was in Paris with Josh, and he was so....and then he kissed me, and I kissed him back." There was no use in asking which Josh she meant--Kristy already knew part of this story, after all. "And Thayer saw us! I don't know why he was in Paris and how he could possibly have run into us, but he did. And he confronted me with it, as if I'd done something wrong! I was just so angry at him. And he was angry. So he--he 'released' me. And I let him." Becki hadn't looked at her at all, hadn't even looked up from where her unfocused gaze was riveted on the holochess table across the room. But now her hands came together, her fingertips circling her left ring finger as if to twist the ring that was no longer there.

Kristy felt her heart sinking down somewhere into the cargo bay. "But you're still in love with Thayer, right?"

Becki's voice was so quiet it was barely audible. "I don't know."

Kristy clenched her fists, searching for calm. If Becki started crying, she was likely to start herself. "Do you love Josh?"

"I don't know," repeated Becki miserably.

"Becki, this is insane!" Kristy exploded as anger won out over confusion and heartache. "You've been engaged to Thayer for a year! If there was any doubt, wouldn't that have come up way before this?"

"Long-distance relationships--"

"In our day and age? Not to mention the extra gadgets we get? No problem." Kristy bit down on her next potential comment before she blurted out something about Nick that didn't need to come up right now. "You have to try, at least a little! I may be a hopeless romantic, but even I can see that."

Silence answered her, and for the first time Kristy thought to be grateful that the rest of Terra Group was elsewhere. Becki's reticence, however, wasn't encouraging. She took a calming breath and made one final attempt.

"If it helps any, Becki, Thayer does love you," she said softly. "Deeply. He's not just a prince, he's your prince."

Sci exhaled slowly. "That is news."

"So you can see my dilemma." Sci had not thought Thayer could look more exhausted than he had been.

Sci thought about it. "Maybe. I can think of a couple of reasons besides the obvious, though. And William of Ockham would probably tear his hair out if he ever met us."

Thayer couldn't help it; after all, he knew Sci was thinking the same thing. "Hence, Ockham's Razor." He smirked slightly, but it came nowhere near his eyes.

Sci slowly shook his head. "Do you still love her, Thayer?"

"I don't know, Sci. I've not been able to think straight since she left."

"You have to figure that out first. Everything else takes a back seat. Once you know that, the rest will happen of its own accord." Sci slowly got up and turned to the door. He stopped near the smoking frame and turned back. "If it helps you figure it out, she loves you. With a passion rarely seen outside of storybooks."

"I wish I could believe you."

"You will. Everybody eventually sees that I'm always right." The major walked out of Thayer's office, leaving the Dictator alone with his thoughts. After a minute the Dictator left his office slowly, lost in though.

The hapless secretary crawled out from under his desk, heart racing. He needed a stiff drink. A grin slowly crept onto his face as he thought of the perfect place for one.