Chelen City: Interlude 5: Kieron

 Notes: GET READY FOR PLOOOOOOT! Things are about to get messy, my darlins. And exciting! Can't forget exciting ;)

Title: Chelen City: Interlude: Kieron

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Interlude 5: Kieron

 

It wasn’t the most comfortable space flight Kieron had ever had, seeing as he made it in a secure storage locker, but it was at least short. Only a few minutes after takeoff from Chelen City and the pilot announced their arrival at the Stellar Cabinet. He was unloaded—rather roughly, someone should have put a damn “Fragile” sticker on this locker—and transported via hovercart to a quiet, almost noiseless place. A few moments later he heard a door shut, and shortly after that the locker was opened.

“Mr. Carr.” A rather attractive face looked down at him—elegant squared jaws, high cheekbones, and a sweep of glossy black hair that coiled like dozens of snakes around xir head. Xe was smiling just a bit. “Thank you for joining me on such short notice.”

“I’d say it’s my pleasure, but it isn’t.” Kieron ignored the hand xe offered and got out of the locker on his own. “Mx. Sanclare.”

“Restaria, please.” Xe pointed at a cart over by the wide, oval window on the far wall. “May I get you a drink?”

Eh, Kieron was the one who’d agreed to have this meeting, he might as well keep up with the trappings of one too. “Fine. Whiskey, straight.”

“A man of strong tastes,” Restaria murmured as xe walked over to the cart. Kieron joined xir, vaguely aware of a series of sounds starting up in the walls around them. They were rhythmic pulses, a bit clunky here and there—some sort of pressure plates, perhaps?

He forgot about the sounds as he got to the window, though. He could see the beautiful arc of Gania spread out before them, its clouds swirling mosaics of grey and blue and even pink in places, and he was struck for a moment by the incredible beauty of the place.

“Lovely, isn’t it?” Restaria handed over his glass, then lifted xir own in a toast. “Cheers, Kieron.”

“Call me Mr. Carr,” he said before drinking. He filtered the alcohol slowly over his tastebuds, testing for additives…but no, this seemed to be nothing but exceptionally good whiskey. In fact… “Elanus has the same brand,” Kieron said, looking at the glass.

“He and I share many of the same tastes.” Restaria motioned at the couch beneath the window. “Please, sit down and allow me to explain the position we find ourselves in.”

Kieron sat, but he found it impossible to relax. He felt as though he was a mouse lured into a catterpet’s lair. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so quick to agree to come up here. “I think there’s not much more to know,” he said after taking another sip. “You’re working to perpetuate an endemic illness in the population that serves no purpose other than to keep your cleverest people from achieving everything they could. It’s sick, it’s eugenics, and it’s going to be stopped.”

“That’s one perspective on it,” Restaria said, eyes pensive as xe stared into xir glass for a moment. “Allow me to present you with another one. Originally, Elfshot Disease was truly endemic in the population of Gania. It occurred naturally at the levels you see it recreated now. What you might not know is that our scientists successfully ended the natural strain of this illness several generations ago.”

Kieron frowned. “Yeah, and then you continued to poison children despite that. I’m not sure what you’re getting at, but—”

“Allow me to finish,” Restaria cut in smoothly. “As I said, we ended the endemic version of this illness over eighty years ago. However, shortly thereafter, Gania submitted an application to be accepted into the Central Planetary Alliance. We’re not far out enough to be considered Fringe, but not being an actual part of the Central System, the application process was a long one. We were promised great rewards as a result of our membership, including heavy investment that would particularly benefit the most…elevated members of our society.”

“Bribery. Got it.”

“Admission to the CPA came with a price, however.” Restaria’s deep blue eyes glittered, perhaps with sorrow, perhaps with anger. Xir face didn’t give anything away. “We were ordered to reinstate our ‘population controls,’ or face a denial of entrance that would leave us destined to become the favorite hideaway of every smuggler and mercenary this side of the galaxy.”

That…hmm. “But why?” Kieron asked.

“Gania has one of the highest collective intelligence quotients among all inhabited planets,” Restaria said. “No one is sure why, exactly, but our people are more clever, more resourceful, and more daring than the average population on every other planet in the CPA. The planets of the Central System, particularly the big, establishment places like Olympus, disliked the very idea that we might be able to go head-to-head with them in any way, but particularly in terms of innovative technology. They couldn’t get away with giving us less than they’d give another member of the Alliance, so they opted to require us to make ourselves less.” Restaria sighed and took a sip. “And our leaders did.”

Kieron shook his head. “That’s completely fucked up.”

“Not everyone has the strength of will to go it alone in the galaxy,” Restaria murmured. “And even then it rarely works out for the best. Look at your own colony.”

Now wasn’t the time for thinking about the abysmal ruin that was Hadrian’s Colony. “So, fine, your leaders accepted the bribe and instituted a system that let them inflict generational pain on the smartest of your own people. But you’re a part of that system now. You, who have personally been given Elfshot Disease by your government, are colluding with them to infect others! Innocent children who’ve done nothing except excel at the tasks they’ve been presented with.” He set his glass aside, suddenly unwilling to keep drinking with someone he inherently despised. “How do you justify that?”

“I don’t,” Restaria said. “But that’s not an entirely accurate picture of the situation, either.” Xe set xir own glass aside as well. “It all comes down to Elanus, actually.”

“To Elanus.” Kieron raised an eyebrow at xir. “Don’t get me wrong, I’d never underestimate his importance, but he’s just one man.”

“One man with a revolutionary idea.” Restaria smiled. “I knew him in school, and I saw the seeds of determination then that I was certain would carry him to greatness…as long as he lived, of course. And because he got a powerful patron whom he made very, very rich, he did live, and thrive. Then he struck out on his own, and…well. Lifeship Enterprises is one of the largest and most profitable companies in the entire CPA.”

“Yes, it is. What’s your point?”

“My point,” Restaria said, “is that I, and some others, feel like it’s past time to push back against the draconian rules the Alliance put in place as a condition of membership. I was overruled, however, by the members of the ruling class who benefit from the status quo.”

“You are one of those members,” Kieron said, not able to let it go. “You’re in charge of the program! We checked, and…” His voice trailed off as he looked at Restaria’s impassive face. “You knew we were looking,” he finished. “Didn’t you?”

“Of course.” Xe shrugged. “I told you I know Elanus. He never relinquishes problem once it captures his imagination. Once he was caught, it was just a matter of triggering massive action.”

Kieron stared hard at Restaria. “I’ve got to warn you, you’re going to get more than you bargained for since sending that virus against our house.” And Catie.

“That wasn’t my idea, but it was one I had to support under the circumstances, or risk being removed by President Moreno. And Elanus rose to the challenge.”

“You traumatized him,” Kieron said angrily. “You traumatized his children, you—” He stopped too late, but Restaria just nodded xir head.

“I thought he’d managed it,” xe said quietly. “After Deysan’s brazen theft of the ship, giving up everything he’d worked for for a single piece of technology…I knew Elanus had to have done it. Mr. Carr, you’re rubbing elbows with truly extraordinary people.”

“I know.” It wasn’t like Kieron didn’t understand how incredible Elanus and the girls were. “And you’d better get to the point, because I’m sure they’re already plotting how to get me out of this.”

Restaria nodded. “I’m sure they are. I’m counting on it, in fact.”

Umm… “Why is that?”

“Because the president has put me under an assassination order, effective as of this morning,” xe replied. “He moved before I had all my contingency plans in place, and I didn’t have time to fully realize my exit strategy. I even had to dismiss my bodyguards, since Moreno has been footing the bill for them. I wanted to do this politely, but that turned out to be impossible. Hence…” Xe gestured at Kieron. “Utilizing you as a part of my exit strategy.”

All of a sudden, the sound in the walls increased ten-fold, and the lights went from warm and natural to blinking red and yellow. “Moreno’s first assassin has arrived,” Restaria said. “And we’re cut off from contacting anyone on the planet. I programmed a series of failsafes into my quarters here, but they won’t stop the most determined from killing us.”

Kieron stared at Restaria for a long moment, marshalling his sense of purpose through the confusion, fear, and desire to punch this person in the face. “Fine,” he said at last. “Where are your weapons?”

Restaria finally looked a bit taken aback. “There’s no need to worry about that, I’m sure no one will get close enough for individual combat.”

“I don’t care how sure you are, I care about making sure I live through this. Now give me a weapon, I’m sure you have some nearby.” In a culture accustomed to assassination attempts, it would be foolish not to.

Xe got up and led the way to a cabinet, where xir palmprint opened it up to reveal an elegant display of state-of-the-art weapons, including an energy pistol and a lightsword reminiscent of a children’s movie. Kieron ignored them in favor of a set of hypodermic darts, a single-edged dagger, and a baton that extended up to five feet long.

“My bodyguards preferred—”

“I don’t care what they preferred,” Kieron said briskly. “They’re not here. I am. Unless you’re good with any of those other things, then close that up and find a place to hide. We’ve got to survive long enough for Elanus to rescue us, at which point you better be ready to defend yourself again, because he will be pissed beyond all measure at you.”

Restaria nodded. “I understand.”

Kieron laughed. He knew he sounded a little insane, but he didn’t care. “Oh, I don’t think you do. Not yet. You will, though.”