EVE Fiction

...
Derek rushed through the door and stopped as if he had ran into a wall. His face became chalk-white, he took a few steps backwards, turned and threw up.
Tedeya Derek pushed him aside, grabbed a sheet lying in the vicinity and threw it over the operating table. The sheet rapidly turned to red-stained. She glanced at the instruments and associated equipment. Apart from the brainwaves all other readouts ran in almost flat lines.
"As often as I am recently in the intensive care, I should think about a permanent position," she murmured.
"Where is the clone transfer unit? Nama!"
Nama operated a terminal.
"I did it! Three floors below us. A sector on!"
Tedeya threw Ryeks pad to Nama and took the 'e-pen' herself.
"What are we waiting for? Nama. Show us the way."
Namas eyes shone with an unearthly fire.
"Let's go."
Tedeya pushed the table into the hallway. The others were grouped around it.
Derek picked up the blaster he had dropped, and fired at the security forces, who came around the corner. Nama ignored the fighting and went ahead.
"Put down your weapons and lie on the floor! Immediately! Then nothing will happen to you!"
When they arrived at the crossing, the guards were trembling on the ground, hands over their head as if they feared the ceiling would fall down at any moment. They took the weapons lying around and ran to the nearest elevator at the transfer area.
"The elevator is blocked, we get stuck here!"
Yolanes voice cracked.
Tedeya had an idea.
"Down the fire escape and keep free the path to transfer area! I solve the problem with the elevator!"
With a smooth cut of the 'e-pens' laser she removed the operating plate of ​​the elevator.
"Hurry up!"
Nama nodded, knowingly.
"Yes. Go!"
With the exception of Tedeya and Ryek they ran down the emergency stairs. Derek blew up the door to the clone-transfer device and kicked the trash to the side. Nama and Yolane secured the passage. Derek entered the room and activated the transfer system.
"How far are you?"
"On target. The way is clear and assured."
"Is the clone transmitter ready?"
"Yes. But the control unit is locked."
"Start the system and disconnect the control unit. I'm with you in thirty seconds and will assume control."
"Please?"
"Just do it, dammit!"
Derek did as he was told. He heard the hiss of the laser in the communicator. Then quick steps. On the fire escape!
"Tedeya, no!"
"Yes!"
Tedeya ran past him, Ryeks head wrapped in her jacket. She grabbed him out, put it on the chair and activated the emergency scanner that looked like a butcher knife, coated with fine wires .
"If Ryeks implants are damaged, then it's over. We do not have much time."
She pressed the scanner in Derek's hand.
"You know what to do when the system is ready to send."
Derek nodded and tested the activation switch. The wires stiffened, and formed about the shape of a human skull. They laid themselves down on the blade when the switch was released.
"Ready."
Tedeya pulled the control cable from the control panel, hesitated a moment, and then connected the system with the universal port on the back of her head.
"Are we all not a little virtual?"
She grinned wolfish and sat down on the floor. Her body turned to standby.
Derek counted in thought. The others had entrenched at the front door.
After a minute the "Ready" LED was shining. Derek pierced the scanner through the skull of Reyeks head. Tedeya screamed. Nama jumped to her and held her. After ten seconds it was over.
A computer voice answered.
"Transfer complete. Target could not be validated. No feedback data available. Transfer could not be confirmed."
Derek pulled the plug out of Tedeyas head and knelt beside her. Nama let Tedeya go , and shook her head dazed. Tedeya came to mind.
"He's gone. Where he is, and whether he has arrived, no idea," Tedeya said weakly. Then she was blacked out again.
Derek paused for a moment.
"We must walk on. I carry Tedeya. Yolane, Nama: We go back to the ship. Romar can not sustain the overload eternally, without at some point blowing up everything."
Nama muttered to herself.
The others looked at her quizzically. With effort, she brought her thoughts back to the present.
"We first need to get out of here. And then I need some rest. And advice and a good idea."
She had tears in her eyes.
Derek's communicator buzzed, and he listened and nodded.
"It's Romar. CONCORD has stormed the station. And the Amarr have cordoned off the system, but do not seem to work with CONCORD."
Nama sobbed.
"Damn, Damn!"
Yolane took her blaster and went to Nama.
"We have to get out of here, and we must deliver ourselves by no means to CONCORD."
Derek looked at her in surprise.
"Why?"
"Because then we have the first total war in the history of New Eden. Let's go!"

They reached the exit of the area without further incident. There Mr. Smith and a CONCORD vehicle were waiting.
"Stop! Do not shoot!"
"Why should we not do that, Mr. Smith?" Nama spat.
"Because you do not come out here without me."
"What is this? You work for CONCORD."
"That's right. And so we have to be far from here rapidly before the traitors in CONCORD realize that I have a different agenda. CONCORD will cripple any other ship here."
He hesitated.
"At least until the Amarr war fleet of this sector appears here. If it calms you, let the weapons directed at me. But we have to go now!"
He looked at the team.
"Where is Ryek?"
"Away. Far away."
Derek's patience was nearing the end.
"Mr. Smith, we have no strength for discussion! You have thirty seconds before we leave you dead!"

Nama hit her head on the console, and hid it between her hands.
Derek looked at Romar, then at Mr. Smith.
"Forget the ancillary systems. Derek, fly us out of here."
"Aye."
He gave the coordinates and handed over the ship to Derek.
"Romar: In the cab on the right you will find something suitable, the blue pills on the table. Only one."
Romar looked at Mr. Smith questioningly.
"She will sleep for a while. We need some time until we know how we can go from here. She will not miss anything."
Romar nodded and wanted to help Nama.
"Do not touch me!"
Romar backed away.
"Excuse me. Help me, please."
He led Nama out.
"Did you intend to put us all knocked out so?" Yolane asked.
"I planned it, originally. But the situation is now different. Help me to carry Tedeya. I hope that no important fuses have been blown inside her."
Yolane and Mr. Smith took Tedeya between them and carried her to the Med Department, which was located a few doors behind the command center. There they laid her on a couch. Yolane had a searching look around at the facility. She nodded approvingly.
"You appear to be medically well equipped. Better than standard."
"Yes. Far better than standard."
He looked at Yolane.
"I know of your successes in the field of technical and biological systems integration, Yolane. You will find some stuff of whom I know you have it, even though it officially does not exist."
He smiled knowingly, Yolane nodded and smiled back .
"This ship has only one purpose, the people who are here now on board, especially you, Yolane, and Nama and the crystal. Tedeya is a - bonus. The others are just tools, supplies."
Yolane had almost leaped on him.
"These are the facts. Nevertheless, it is unfortunate that Ryek is not here."
"I did not know that CONCORD is so monstrous," said Yolane.
"CONCORD is the lesser evil for most. That's all."
"And what do we do now?"
Mr. Smith activated some devices. With a soft hum, a scanner slipped on a suspensor-field over Tedeya , and remained over her head. On the wall a two square meters large display lit up. It showed Tedeyas body structure, and the enlarged tomography of her head.
"Interesting," said Mr. Smith.
"Very interesting. I did not know that you can combine these implants with one another."
"You choose your words very carefully, Mr. Smith. In particular, as half of them are prohibited."
"This is not important right now. Look: The computer indicates a likelihood of recovery of almost ninety percent. The other ten we create with the technology here"
Yolane breathed.
"At least something positive today."
Mr. Smith operated the systems so that Yolane could see it.
"For an artist, you understand a lot of these things."
"Yes. I use technique to address to the feelings of my clients. But I'm doing the modifications outside of bodies. Ethics, if that tells you something."
"Only on an intellectual level."
"I thought as much. When will she awake?"
"In four hours earliest."
Romar entered the room.
"She has - been strange. Has said no more coherent words before she fell asleep."
Yolane turned to the CONCORD agents.
"Mr. Smith?"
"Yes?"
"Do you have musical instruments on board?"
Mr. Smith looked at her in surprise.
"Please?"
"Do you have or have not you?"
"An Amarrian claves set," he said, somewhat embarrassed.
"Now do not hold me for a very religious man. But the parts are easy to transport, and it distracts me from time to time from the dreadful things I've to do."
He looked at Yolane.
"You find it in the locker in my cabin, where Nama is now. Just search for it, my other things are not worth talking about. Can you do something with it?"
Yolane smiled.
"Not me. Romar."
"After all, I am the son of a musical mother," he said with shy pride.
"Romar. Mr. Smith. To put it technically: Nama has done some things for which she had not been configured. She is as congested as Tedeya. But this we can not fix with technology, without destroying her."
She looked at her son.
"How well do you get along with her?"
"Hard to say. She always is right or wants to kill me."
He gave a short laugh.
"Yes, I like her. How can I help?"
"Divert her a little bit. And watch out for her."
"Yes, absolutely. She is one of the keys. Without her, the mission is failed," added Mr. Smith.
"Mr Smith. I expect that you explain us that once we are operational again."
"Most you have figured out by yourself until now, Yolane."
Yolane gave Romar her blaster.
"Mr. Smith is now here to take care of Tedeya. Shoot him if he is behaving suspiciously."
"Aye."
"Do you have it with you, Romar?"
"Yes."
He pulled the crystal out of the inner pocket of his jacket. A soft red light played across the room. Yolane suddenly seemed to be everywhere.
Mr. Smith took a step back.
"I want to avoid being killed by accident," he said, but his eyes were glued to the crystal. Yolane took it and put it into her pill box, next to the Vitoc. She closed the lid, but a weak presence remained.
"It can hardly be shielded. Only by the desire of the wearer," said Mr. Smith.
The presence disappeared, and all breathed sighs of relief.
"I was so close to you recently when you have dragged me with you," Romar said, confused.
"But I can not remember so well. "
Mr. Smith talked.
"I'm doing a few more settings. Do not worry, I can put all the rooms on the bridge. We will not miss her waking up or when she needs something. Romar, please do not panic, the pointy things that I now affix to Tedeya are necessary. After that I prescribe to all of us some peace. If it calms you, you can lock me up in a cabin. "
Yolane nodded.
"Good idea, accepted. And then we try to figure out where Ryek is, and whether he is still alive."
She turned to Romar.
"For you I have a special task."

Yolane entered the bridge.
"And?" asked Derek.
"Nama is awake and Tedeya still asleep. Tedeya can be repaired, and Nama needs a shrink, if we are unlucky. Romar just cares about her. And I can now save the world."
She sighed and gave Derek a gentle kiss on the forehead.
"I would now like to be somewhere else. Far away, and not in a spaceship. I hate spaceships."
"Looks like you've to learn to love them. In the near future we will not get rid of them."
She smiled.
"Aye. And we have no rest."
"What are you planning?"
"I must find out whether our lost team member is still alive."
Derek's face darkened.
"Why? He's also just a CONCORD henchman, such as Nama."
"Derek."
"Yes. Here. Still."
She took him by the shoulders with both hands.
"Derek, we are not there yet. I'm still Vitoc dependent, and Mr. Smith's stock will not save me in the long run. Also, I do not think he supplies me by pure charity."
"Meaning?"
"Mr. Smith has a job to do, and he has not called us yet. For this he needs the crystal, and Nama. And maybe much more. Anyone who fails kan not be replaced. For any who fails the others must share the burden . "
"Have you actually noticed that Mr. Smith does not act in a way one would have expected from a CONCORD agent. He has not killed us -?"
He parried her reply.
"Do not be childish. He leaves us in faith that we have the situation in hand."
Derek continued.
"And he's obviously no friend of Amarr. If I, as bystander," he grinned.
"put two and two together and then five comes out, if you understand what I mean."
Yolane took a deep breath.
"We need to clarify at the next opportunity, but now we have to do the obvious. Playing along with the currently applicable rules. And they say: We need to know how many we are and who are our friends"
She went to the console and run a name search for Ryek Darkener.
"Aha," she said sarcastically.
"Freighter pilot, Charon class."
"After all," added Derek, not without envy.
"A Caldari pilot who can use an Amarr specialty ship perfect? Very, very unusual."
"His hobby perhaps?"
"And what are your hobbies, pilot?"
"Women. You know that."
He grinned broadly. She grinned back.
"Ok, but I would had expected from a freighter pilot, that he can also fly the models of the other races. Rather than highly specialized battle ships. How old is he really?"
"Right."
"And why does CONCORD, sorry, Mr. Smith, assign just a freighter pilot with a killing mission?"
Derek bit his lip.
"Damn, I almost forgot!"
"His corp is also a very interesting bunch of individualists, the management structure rather pro forma, no equity -."
"Have you gone to the accountants?"
"No, but my first partner was something like an accountant. Some rubs off when you talk about the daily work."
"This means that his corporation has a tax-efficient structure to make that each can do what he wants?"
"Exactly. And no information about the jobs they have ever taken. No references unless sanctioned kill missions."
"And?"
"And now I call there and ask where Ryek is."
"And why should someone respond to your call?"
She paused.
"I do not know yet. I hope to be able to cast a lure that helps us. Because - because we need someone who gets us out of here, and fast. For that we need bystanders."
"This will become expensive."
Mr. Smith entered the room, together with Romar.
"Romar, put away the blaster."
"Mum?"
"Before Mr. Smith is doing us harm."
Mr. Smith did not flinch.
"Mr. Smith, how deep are your pockets?"
Mr. Smith thought for a while.
"Very deep. Almost bottomless. But only for the purpose of the trip."
"Aye. I am now trying to make contact with Ryeks Corp. Perhaps we will learn how he is. Since our pursuers know anyway in which system to find ourselves, it increases the risk not more."
Yolane sent a short note, explained the situation and asked for contact. After surprisingly short ten minutes the connection established.
The woman at the other end called neither name or position.
"I've got your message, but do not understand what's at stake. Who are you and what do you want? "
"That's not easy to explain," said Yolane.
"To begin with, I will not call my name for now. Your employee, Ryek Darkener, has been killed as a team member in action. There was an emergency transfer. We do not know whether he has survived and where he now resides. "
She banged her fist on the table.
"Damn! Why should you want to help me! You know us not! "
"Exactly. So we have a problem. We never talk to others about what our people do, and for whom they do it. "
Yolane looked at Mr. Smith. He shook his head.
"I understand your position," admitted Yolane, and changed direction.
"One request I have then. If Ryek is employed by you, and if he survived the transfer alive, he should contact us as soon as possible, because his job is not yet finished. Can you make it convenient? "
It took a while before an answer came.
"Yes, under the conditions you mentioned. Anything else? "

"I am sure there will be a rest of the hundred billion after deducting the costs."
"Who are you?"
"Mr. Smith, of CONCORD-DED."
"Well, the name sounds familiar. Have we had the pleasure?"
"Sure."
"I shall support an agent of CONCORD, not to fall into the hands of CONCORD, and also a trick an Amarr fleet in the Amarr area, which is struggling with CONCORD?"
"Currently nobody fights. If the action succeeds, it will remain so for a while. However. If not ..."
Mr. Smith left open the answer.
"Understood. Standard contract?"
"Probably not. Then immediately all the spies know who helps us."
"And how do I know that it is not a huge trap? I do not put dozens of people at risk on the basis of a conversation with strangers!" Hypatia hissed.
"I have an idea," Derek reported.
"Hypa? You have business partners with whom you have no business officially, but those you trust? And maybe are already in the vicinity of the planned route?"
It took me a minute, until the answer came.
"The payer is CONCORD, right? So all up officially and legally?"
"No. The payer of the amount is CONCORD. And everything is illegal and secret on the scale of Concord, but will not be prosecuted because CONCORD does it."
"Quite a slant, Mr. Smith, if you ask me. Not to say: Paranoid."
"This is the thing. Do you know someone whose thoughts are moving in similar orbits? I think so. And even if it goes wrong, you lose not much. As I heard the property of your corp is among the employees. No Risk no Fun. "
"What you said about a bonus, Mr. Smith?"
For a moment Mr. Smith struggled with his composure when he looked in the faces of 'his team". He remembered then that a member of a superior race had to be above Schadenfreude. Furthermore, it was not his own money.
"I said nothing at all, but I am willing to negotiate a bonus if you agree that your corp supports us through until the successful completion of the contract. When you get out earlier - No bonus."
"Aye, that's fair."
Hypa called the name of her informant. Mr. Smith went briefly through his data, then he nodded.
"Confirmed. I immediate confirm the transfer of twenty-five billion ISK. That should cover the costs. Hypa, please do no cost savings on the wrong end. That would be the end of many. Even many who do not know what we just have spoken. "
"Are you threatening me?"
"No. Not now. That was a factual information."
"I agree. I discuss with my people now, and then we make ourselves on the way. I will send you the alternative route. The other you will not know because you have to trust me."
"No problem," confirmed Yolane. Mr. Smith closed his mouth again.
"Besides us, no one in this universe can even try to get the job, Mr. Smith."
"You're right, Yolane. Hypa, we'll see you at the destination in order to clarify the matter with the bonus."
"Aye. So stay alive until we are with you."
"Thank you. We hope to hear from you."
The conversation was over.
Yolane picked up the thread again.
"Mr. Smith, what do you think how long it takes until we can out here?"
"I guess one or two days at least. All this would indeed be threaded inconspicuous. If I have the route data, I must instruct CONCORD to look past us and stop our opponent. This is no easy thing."
"I have thought myself. We should spend the time here not meaningless, I suggest that we prepare ourselves for the things to come."
"And would it be?" said Derek.
"Derek? You serious?"
Derek grinned broadly.
"No. I just do not want us here to be looked upon as idiots, babe. I suggest that we make a proposal which is acceptable for Mr. Smith, who pulls the strings here. I have heard that the Jove sometimes react strangely when they feel pressured. "
Mr. Smith Mine was unmoved.
"Not only Jove. Continue Yolane."
Yolane relaxed.
"Sorry, it was just so nice to ride. So. I suggest that Nama, Tedeya and I retire, to deal with the possibilities of the artefact. Can we use your equipment without restriction, Mr. Smith?"
"It's there."
"Derek and Romar should get to know the ship and its technical possibilities. Maybe you might need help. And maybe you have some tips about tactics and battle, or a simulation program, whatever."
She looked at Mr. Smith.
"Of course, not the Jovian component, if present here."
Mr. Smith nodded. Yolane playfully shook her head.
"Always the same. Small men with big clubs," she muttered. Nama bit her hand.
"I inform you once we have results. If we do not, then I see pretty black for Ryek. And also for the job."
Mr. Smith nodded. And looked at the others.
"Is she always like this?"
"You should see her when you had tried to disagree ," was Romars comment.
"Fascinating. Then we make it so."

***
"They tricked us!"
"What is the next target?"
"Probably Nardiarang."
"We hunt them through the entire Amarr space, and we can not catch them?"
"No. The enemy uses the size of the solar system to gain more time. Until we do not know exactly where they are coming out in the next system, it is almost impossible to apprehend them. We had to split the fleet, and we had expected that they would take the shortest way. "
"If they want out of the Amarr region I assume they'll be flying over Sahda. Nardiarang is our last chance to catch them."
"I just get a message from Nardiarang. Ten decloaked Covops, four stealth bomber squadron and a fleet of at least twenty battleships. All freelancers. We neither can make a faction or CONCORD responsible, and it will take time to destroy this fleet."
"I can see that. This round goes to Mr. Smith. But the game is far from over. Pull together the fleet, while I'll get to the Imperatrix to get approval for the next step."
"To HER?"
"Yes. If I was not surrounded by a bunch of amateurs, it would not have been necessary. Now I need the support of the Amarrian empire, and what is worse, I have to share the fruits of my inevitable success with others. I will find the culprits, and punish them hard for their failures. "

***
In Aliette a blockade runner came alongside of the Pilgrim.
"Mr. Smith. Our crew will move you on. Please open the airlock, hand over the ship and take your team into areas that have no access to the ship's control. You are under surveillance, until we reach the destination."
Mr. Smith had no objections.
"All right. We go into the research area. The door is open. Help yourself."
"Just so?" Tedeya asked surprised.
"Yes. This ship nobody can take away, and the passengers are protected, no matter who comes on board, apart from a supernova, perhaps. Only the outer defense is not much better than the standard model. So, why resist the helpers?"
They welcomed the group of heavily armed soldiers in the reception area and were accompanied to their destination. However, Mr. Smith denied them access to the research area. The discussion was brief, and Mr. Smith's subtle hint, whom they held, finished it quickly.
The Pilgrim crossed the next camouflaged jump gate with secret destination.

***
"Were there any problems?"
"No, Hypa, none whatsoever. Mr. Smith has given us full access, with the exception of the research area."
"Good. Fly the ship to our outpost, as planned. I will ensure that the clones are ready, and Ryek in the wet grave. We leave him in the clone module, until Mr. Smith asks for something else, or until he dies."

"And? Will it work?" asked Tedeya.
Yolane made a confused impression.
"What? Yes, I think so."
"Is something wrong? You look as if you had met a ghost," said Nama.
"A ghost? Sure, I have. Several."
Yolane shrugged.
"What the hell. We will first take a scan of the clone, to see what we find. The method is based half on technology, and half on things that we can not measure."
"I only believe what I can measure," Tedeya said with conviction.
"If you measure all you measure nothing" was Yolanes answer.
"Can you please put yourself on the table, Tedeya?" Nama asked in an innocent tone.
Tedeya got up, climbed on the chair and then on the table. Then she looked at Nama in amazement .
"I - what - you!"
It looked as if she wanted to pounce on Nama the next moment .
"And now tell me what you've measured," countered Nama.
Tedeya stopped in the middle of the movement. Then she carefully stepped back off the table and sat down.
"Your imps have - perhaps - noticed a change in your hormone balance, but they do not say what triggered this," said Nama.
"The artifact can handle this - vibration. It can generate them as well as storing them. That's the reason why a clone transfer can be done so much better by it than with a known technique. In order to control this part, you have to have my skills, but without your interface you would not come into an other clone."
She shuddered.
"We can only hope that we never will meet the people who built it."
"Yes," agreed Tedeya.
"Somehow that reminds me of the Jove, to Mr. Smith," noted Nama.
"Only a lot more. Pre-Jove? Has Mr. Smith commented upon?"
"He said it would be a very good idea for all of us not to pursue this line of thought ," Yolane concluded the discussion, and ignored the questioning faces of the other two.
"Can we? I'll now describe the process."
She took a deep breath.
"Firstly: I steer the stability of the system from the next room. Secondly: Tedeya goes via the neural interface into the system, and then into Ryeks clone. And stops immediately if she finds something unusual. With immediately, I mean automatically. Configure your imps accordingly. "
Tedeya nodded.
"Nama: I assume that the crystal will produce a field that can be synchronized with your brain wave patterns."
"Aye."
"How you establish and keep contact with each other, I do not know. If you can not get a contact immediately, stop!"
"Why?" asked Nama.
"Because you'll otherwise will find yourself in the crystal. At least your consciousness. And then we have unfortunately no one who could control the re-transfer."
She nodded as she saw their terror.
"I hope to be able to record enough to perform certain functions on a technical way, later. But at the moment -," she left the sentence open.
"Right now, we should take one step after another," repeated Nama.
"If everything remains stable, then we try to use Tedeya as a probe. Inside Ryek," continued Yolane. She blushed.
"It's like cybersex. But here the john is not at home. Damn, what are we doing here?"
"I think it is more pleasant that way. In my experience," objected Tedeya.
"The system will create a 'blank' Ryek inside the clone, a record with no connection to the trapped information. I will try to visualize it as far as possible, so you'll have the impression of seeing something, Tedeya. And within certain limits, you can then control the environment. "
"Let's start before I get scared," said Tedeya.
Nama Tedeya and lay down on the prepared couches, Mr. Smith and Yolane connected the contacts and checked the design of the device.
"We play it safe," warned Yolane.
"And then can we decide whether we are able to help him. Two more brain dead do not bring us further."

"So what?"
She threw back her head.
"Hey, he could be my father, by his clone age!"
Nama swallowed the 'so what?' down and relented.
"I wanted to say that you should take care of yourself. And of me. And Yolane. Technically, I will be the foundation on which you work. So. Don't. ****. Around!"
It took Tedeya a few seconds to transfer the concept to her implants and to accept.
"Aye. Now I've got it, I think. Let's start, before I change my mind."
Nama reached out both hands to Tedeya, and they clung for a while. Then she nodded to each other.
Nama sighed.
"If it helps you Tedeya: I have asked myself many times, if I'm still a human. The answer is simple: It's my decision."

***


"Ready?"
"Done."
Again it was the white space. But this time Tedeya kept the walls at a distance.
Yolane made the connection to the clone device. Inside the space a structure originated, remotely male.
"Hey, are you kidding me?"
"What do you mean, Tedeya?" Yolane asked.
"My anatomy knowledge goes far beyond of a five year old! Mother, please! We here are all grown up!"
In the background Nama was giggling .
"Fortunately, you can only read the thoughts which I direct to you! I hope!"
The image became a vivid and lifelike, Tedeya contributed the data remains, which she had saved.
"Was not all that difficult so far."
She walked around the image.
"Looks good. I mean, complete. You can dress him now."
She looked down at herself.
"And me too, if you're at it."
"There was no response? He must be dead," quipped Nama.
"At least somewhere else. How strong is the image anchored here? And how well does it respond to stimuli?"
"Hard to say."
Yolane looked through some of the data.
"From the consistency it is comparable to a real person but he will not fall over, because I fixed it on the grid -."
"- That would not have to be, Ted."
"I could have kicked him somewhere else."
"Please remember, that he will feel all the injuries, if we're successful."
"Yes, I know. Excuse."
It did not sound very bent.
"You can clarify that in real life. If you dare that."
"Hey! What the ****! For what I'm doing here for people and our country, I sometimes got a lot of ISK! And my counterparts were significantly more agile! And have never tried to kill me!"
Tedeya was really angry.
Nama tried to calm her.
"Ted, go slow. I can hardly control the data stream, and the crystal absorbs everything like a sponge!"
"Ok. Then just the tender way. With a lot of contrast. Do you have an idea what can we take?
"Tedeya? I just can not follow."
"Mam? High contrast is black and white, same as the old movies. Is there anything in the station database, really cheesy, at least twenty thousand years old?"
Yolane looked around in the database. Tedeya heard her gasping as if she stood by her side.
"Argh, no! Ted, you're sure you want this?"
"Will it help? Mr. Smith?"
Yolane looked to Mr. Smith and showed him on the monitor what she had dug.
Mr. Smith cleared his throat, his lips twitched.
"If that does not help, nothing helps."
"But you must leave the scene to an end differently than the original, Tedeya. Happy ending with all the bells and whistles, but a clean version. Please."
"Why that? And what you're talking about?"
"Ted, the answer to your first question is that your hormones in your real body reflect what you do in the matrix. So think exactly what you're doing and what you want. And the answer to the second question is that I'm now downloading a scene, it is in black and white. You will have your text in some seconds. Actually you're a little too young for the role, and in the original it is a singer. Doesn't matter. Make the best of it and do not lose your head or heart. Once we detect a reaction, we get you out of there."
"I configure my interface for greater throughput. Mr. Smith, there is something underway in the background, you keep a look?"
"Yes, Nama. So far everything is under control."
"Well then! I always wanted to do that."
Yolane smiled broadly, took a deep breath and whispered, for all well understood.
"Roll sound! Roll camera! Aaaand - Action!"
The world was changing around Tedeya. The scene became black and white, but Tedeya and Ryek kept the image of their real appearance. The contrast was almost painful in proportion to the familiar colors of the world. The clothes fitted to the scene. Old era. 1942. In Casablanca. Rick's Café Américain. And a perfect virtual Tedeya sits down at the piano and sings 'As Time Goes By '...

As Hypa came into her office, Mr. Smith was sitting at the desk.
"How have to got in here?"
"What do you mean?"
"The alarm was not triggered."
"Why should it? I'm not even here."
Hypa understood. On the table lay the crystal. Small and red. And this tiny thing was the cause for a possible collapse of the Empire? Unbelievable.
"What do you want?"
"If I were here, I had a job that you can not refuse."
Hypa nodded and sat down.
"Go on."

***


In the meeting it was very controversial, but Mr. Smith had explained his plan and prevailed in almost all respects.
"I sum up," said Mr. Smith.
"We make our way with small accompanying forces, to the locked solar system in order to find the super weapon and, if possible, to destroy it. A weapon of which no one knows to this day how it looks and how it works.
We stay together on a ship to not to give an opponent the opportunity to catch a single of you for blackmailing. If you must die, then together.
The ship we fly will have equipment for emergency clone transfer, although it swallows a huge amount of energy and will only work if all the other modules offline. I care for myself, how, you do not need to know."
"Objection!"
"Later, Yolane and Nama.
In the target system first let us look at the destroyed planet. Perhaps there Nama finds something that the scientists have overlooked in the past fifteen years.
The ship which will carry you can, in theory, be flown by Ryek in the pod. But currently only Derek is operational, and he lacks the skills. So make the best out of it as team. Taken together, your efficiency should be comparable.
But I hope for a speedy recovery of Ryek, " Mr. Smith said.
"And what about us? "objected Nama.
"Youcan forget cloning for us. Yolane and I have disagreed to this in principle."
"Your objection is noted, but not accepted from my side."
Mr. Smith was angry.
"But no matter. First, according to the plan, all other members of the team will be clone synchronized with the help of the crystal, here in the cloning facility. The environment has been enhanced specifically for the far larger amount of data. Then we'll see. Maybe you two change your minds. Two at a time. Tedeya and Ryek first, then Derek and Romar. I ask Yolane and Nama to be there to support the system and to watch me. "

***

"Ryek?"
"Yes, Ted. What?"
"Why will you not get into the pod?"
"Because I'm not sure if I ever get back into my body. I have narrowly escaped the wet grave the second time, which should be warning enough. Why do you actually have a clone created? You had not to. If you die here then be it so."
"I," she faltered.
"I do not know. One more option, who knows."
"You have a beautiful voice."
Tedeya blushed.
"I hear that from a man the first time. The other usually had other parts in mind."
They laughed.
"No, I'm no different. But at least your voice brings the dead back to life."
"It was not just the voice. Are you suffering from memory loss, sleeping beauty?"
Now he blushed.
"No. I was just trying to push it and still be nice to you, but non binding."
"Has not worked out well."
"You ride at a fairly vigorous pace."
"Ryek, have you ever considered how much time we have left? Weeks, and if things go badly, days. What do you expect? And you still owe me a rematch!"
"I agree. But until then we remain good friends?"
"If it is absolutely necessary."
"Now be not spiky. Business is business, and I am Caldari, after all."
"Coward!"
"OK, if you like."
Mr. Smith came.
"The data transfer is complete. Can I let you both go, without you trying to kill yourselves?"
Tedeya and Ryek grumbled a "Yes, all right," got up and left the room.
After the data transfer from Derek and Romar, Mr. Smith was left with Yolane and Nama.
"How did it go?"
"Perfect," said Yolane.
"I had not to intervene at any stage. The automatic works well together with the crystal. If the patients had not talked it would have gone faster."
"Nama?"
"No problems."
"Glad to hear it," replied Mr. Smith, and put both of action with his shocker.
He laid them on the couches, then connected the systems and started the data transfer. Outside, the rest of the team was waiting.
"We are going to fly. The two ladies will wake up when we're on the road. I do not think this action is more damaging to my reputation compared to what I've done so far."
"We do really not like to be used that way by you, Mr. Smith."
"Ryek. On the day when you like my approach, I'll shoot you. Stay vigilant, and find my mistakes. This is our life insurance. Your clones stay here in the station."
"Why do we have to continue so fast?" Romar said.
"I thought we could still allow a few days preparation."
Mr. Smith looked at them very seriously.
"CONCORD has been undermined. The Charta has been suspended."
"WHAT?"
"The factions have agreed to accept the Charta until further notice, but not more CONCORD as executive organization. We are limited to our own solar systems."
"Damn!"
"That was the good news."
"You're joking!"
"No, Derek, I do not. The bad news is: All fractions, except Jove, have placed at least a strategic expedition fleet in our target system, including several Titans. We are nearing a global war."
"And the Titan can bring any number of supply into the system."
"Yes. But my greater fear is that something may now leave the system, which we all do not want that it does that."

At dinner, the ship's commander explained the further course of the action.
"This ship is equipped with enough units to explore the surrounding systems, to build and use jump bridges and has enough resistance and firepower to stand up to a small fleet. Some other fleets with carrier ships do some fuss elsewhere in order to distract from the route we fly, but I think that our opponents already know where we want to go. It's just a matter of time until they can predict our route. We move disguised until we are jumping, and hope to have enough firepower to get ahead rather undisturbed. CONCORD will, as far as politically possible, support the whole thing, and will at least keep your back free against the pirates. If we are apprehended, you must continue to fly with Mr. Smith. "
"Why does CONCORD support that at all? That Mr. Smith is not doing his job as ordered should be clear to the dullest of them now."
The captain cleared his throat and glanced at Mr. Smith, who nodded.
"Policy. CONCORD is the only group without own power claim, as strange as that may sound. In how far the Amarr favor Mr. Smith's action , when all this is over, I dare not to estimate."
Nama was going to say something but stopped at the last second.
"Yes?"
The captain looked at her interested.
"Excuse me. Quite frankly: To what extent are you convinced that Mr. Smith is acting in the sense of CONCORD, and not in the sense of Amarr?"
If the captain would have been a little less focused on Nama, he had noted the relief at the table.
"And quite frankly: I'm not sure, but my order come directly from CONCORD. An order is an order, for that I get my ISK. And our course takes us not even in the vicinity of the Amarr territory. Who will await us at the end of the journey, who knows? Mr. Smith? "
"I do not know. But I reckon, as always, the worst. There are now enough vessels in that a system to conquer whole sectors. Everyone is looking, nobody knows what he wants. The risk of 'incidents' is enormous. "
"Then I come to another point. Is I've heard that some of you are not familiar with the basic operation of a space ship. Because your lives may depend on at least to put a course to a given point, I expect the persons concerned to make up for the knowledge. "
He looked around. Tedeya and Yolane looked embarrassed at the table.
"There is nothing what you can not learn in the course of a day. Also, I would be happy if Yolane would make a few suggestions for the artistic design of the ship. Yes, I've heard of you."
Yolane bowed slightly.
"It is an honor and a pleasure."
"My pleasure. Your team is able to conduct a training simulator session?"
"I think so," returned Ryek.
"Derek and Romar will definitely want to train Yolane, and Nama and I are very excited to see what Ted has as a pilot."
Tedeya smiled and moved her lips silently.
"I kill you."
Ryek smiled back.

"Sabotage? We have examined the ship thoroughly before departure. And it is only particularly cleared personnel on board."
Tedeya laughed joyless.
"Commander. This ship is about three kilometers long. The part that will destroy it is that big."
She opened her hand. There was an implant.
"And no one is able to distinguish this from the original."
"Extermination? Without bomb or attack from outside?"
"Yes commander. And soon."
"Explain it to me."
"Yolane wanted to connect Imps with the ship. They must be synchronized. And that was not possible. It was not because the imps have their own timer, which is not infected, in contrast to the ship. Here are all the timers involved. Of such a thing I never heard of, there is a gradual process, like a snowflake that triggers an avalanche. The ship's systems have built-in safeguards to keep them functioning in case of errors, for example, caused by cosmic radiation. The sabotage module has taken over the corrective systems. Triggered after a certain date, or by a signal, the repair will stop working, and then we're stuck in a dead piece of metal ship. "
She rocked her head back and forth.
"To do that, you have to work with highly miniaturized autonomous systems. Imps, perhaps even nanobots to invade structurally secure areas."
"Commander, does CONCORD experiment with Sleeper technology in this direction?"
"I know nothing. But I do not know, of course, anything that is running in CONCORD. If so, then it is surely only a very small group of people who know. But why would they want to stop the own ship?"
He looked at Tedeya and Yolane.
"Can you stop it?"
Tedeya shook her head.
"How long do we have?"
"I do not know. Have it checked by your technicians. Something between hours and a day."
"I will prepare the evacuation of the ship."
"Where is Mr. Smith about?"
"On the road in this system to scan. What he did not say. Oh, I notice that our scouts in the next hopping systems are overdue."
He contacted the bridge. The answer to his question was not in his sense.
"We have no contact for more than an hour. Problems with the interstellar communications equipment of the ship."
Yolane jumped.
"Commander! Call our team together on the bridge, and pass the command to Ryek! You and your crew leave the ship. Now!"
"Yolane, you can not give orders to me so easy."
The attack alarm rang through the ship. Yolane looked intensely at the commander.
"Save your lives, for us you can do nothing."

***