Jack's Wage Slavery Pt. 02

"WHAT?!?" First bellowed as it surged to its feet. Its voice, amplified by its position, shook the room and the occupants.

"They reported for refreshing but... the Prime Source has been poisoned. They died," it said carefully.

"What... did... you... say?" First spoke softly as it descended the dais steps towards the waiting center.

"They are dea-"

"NOT THAT PART!" First screamed into its hood.

"Ah- the- the Prime Source... has been poisoned. Some kind of biological contaminant is spreading uncontrollably throughout the cloning chambers, boosted by the growth nutrient bath. It's reached critical levels... we're unable to purge it! The contaminant is growing out of control, feeding off the nutrients and its by-products are poisoning the Prime Source biomass faster than we can- EEERRRKKZZZzzz!"

First drove his fist through the head of the messenger who died immediately and dropped to the floor. The leader flicked clear the organic remains from its gloved hand and looked at it to make sure it was clean. It gestured to the other two to take the body away. They did so quickly and didn't stop moving until they exited the room with the corpse.

"Guards, take the slaves back to the barracks." When they moved to collect them First held up the hand which it had just used to killed the unfortunate messenger. "Except Jack. Jack will stay here to have a little chat with me."

First's voice was cool and smooth and emotionless. Jack felt a cold sweat spring up over his body. He heard Eve make a noise but Jack shook his head minutely and Kekk gently guided her past. Stella watched him with large worried eyes but he gave her a nod as she went by. Jack held still until he heard the door close on the far wall behind the throne.

"Would you care to say anything about this latest development Jack?"

He kept his eyes on the floor and simply shook his head.

"I'm going to find out. I simply need to speak to the guard-" First stopped talking when it realized the ones it had ordered to watch Jack were dead as were fifteen others. The only evidence, destroyed in the explosion.

Jack found himself on the floor. His body ached like he'd been punched from all sides at once. He moaned.

"It doesn't have to be this way Jack. Simply tell me what you did and I will send you back to the others."

Jack could hear the lie and just laid still as his muscles trembled.

There was a hesitant knock on the main doors.

"I'M BUSY!" First screamed.

"Apologies, First. The Prime wishes to speak with you."

First made an involuntary sound. Jack thought it very much sounded like 'no' but he kept that observation to himself. He might just get out of this alive-

Burning! Terrible, terrible heat ripped at his limbs, devouring his flesh and tearing screams from his body. Then it was over and Jack lay panting and gasping on his back as his consciousness began to slip away.

Before he slipped away he saw the dark hood of First peering down at him and heard its words.

"Put him into a containment cell in the sub-level. I'll deal with him later."

Then nothing.

Chapter 19

Gee and Bal sat in Hellna's office sipping tea and eating sandwiches the staff had brought in for them. The commando squad had been escorted to the fitness facilities in the lower level to take showers and have their clothes laundered.

The Tik had powered down to maintenance level and were enjoying a trickle feed from the power outlet on the wall in the outer office.

As they were finally alone Hellna did her debriefing with them while they ate and was pleased with their report.

Gee was stuck with a feeling of futility she just couldn't shake.

Hellna noticed her discomfort. "Gee, what's on your mind? Speak freely."

"We know who's responsible for Jack's abduction. We now know the secret network of spies on Earth that are working against us and the best interests of Earth. We even know the planet Jack is likely on though we don't have its location. The Tik are now willing to open Gates for us to investigate. All of this is wonderful but to actually retrieve Jack it's not enough!" she growled in frustration and Hellna's eye brows went up in surprise.

"We are not warriors. Outside of agents like Bal and I that is but there aren't enough of us to win a battle like this!"

The door opened and Queen Elissa walked in. "My apologies for overhearing your last comment but I agree with you. Altarians are sadly lacking in warriors. We are blessed with agents like you and Bal and rely upon you very heavily. I want to personally thank you for everything you have done so far and for what I will be asking of you in the near future. I'm afraid your skills may be put to a very severe test."

Gee and Bal were on their hooves and smiled at the Queen. "We are yours to command."

Elissa smiled at them in return. "Thank you. I have been working on something that will hopefully expedite our 'rescue mission'. The Tik are fully supportive of our efforts to get Jack back. As long as the mission falls within those parameters we have their help."

Gee frowned. "That may not be enough."

Elissa smiled enigmatically. "You'd be surprised what fits into those parameters."

Gee and Bal gave her a curious look.

"I can't say more until we have secured the assistance of our newest allies. You were right. We need more warriors-"

At that moment Major Ash, Nann, Maxim, and Leo walked back into Hellna's office looking refreshed and alert.

"What better warriors to call upon than those from the other planet under attack by the Mahrell Drun? The rescue mission will be led by the Altarians but Earth will be represented... if we can make them understand. What do you say Major? Can we make them understand?"

"Yes, but we are going to have to act fast. They killed Ray. They immediately discredited us. When I tried to contact someone I could trust in the military they tried to kill him. When we collected the cache they sent four Earth Security Force commandos who firebombed an entire level of a building to stop us. They are escalating their efforts to stop this information from getting out. I need to get this data to my contacts in the military so they can get it to the top levels of their governments. That's the only way the Earth Security Council will listen. If the message comes from their leaders."

"Do we need to go back to Chuuruthia to contact Earth?" Gee asked.

"I'd like to try contacting Brigadier General Rosseau's direct line from here. He contacted Chuuruthian Secretary of Defence Kressel with it after our initial call and I noted the comm ID so I should be able to reach him."

Hellna nodded and led the group over to the conference room where she set up the call on the large display mounted on the wall. The Major gave her the contact details.

The call went through and was picked up on the third ring. Voice only.

"Hello?" Rosseau's voice.

"General? This is Major Ash."

The screen flicked on and they could see the General with three other men. She recognized MacDenny and thought one was Thane but the fourth was new to her.

Rosseau spotted the Altarians standing to the side and addressed them first.

"Greetings Queen Elissa, Minister of Security Hellna. I'm Brigadier General Phillipe Rosseau of France. May I introduce Brigadier General Roger Thane of the USA, General Dalawar Singh of India, and Colonel Duncan MacDenny of Canada."

The Major looked to Nann who was checking the new name against their list and relaxed when Nann shook her head with a smile.

The French General turned back to Cha'Risa. "What the hell is going on Major? First I hear of an attack at Ray's parent's place in New York- don't worry, they're fine! Roger's people got there in time to pull them out," he added to calm her dismay. "Then there was a destructive chase through heavy traffic in an illegally modified truck, the rear cabin of which mysteriously disappeared when it crashed into a dead end alley. Next I hear you were spotted in Tokyo! A firebombing of a floor in a downtown hotel, three civilian deaths, and four Earth Security Force commandos taken into custody. When my team got there they found the ones in custody weren't you and your team! Obviously you're using Gates but how are you getting past the heavy security that's been added to all Gate terminals?"

"We have assistance of the Tik sir."

"You're going through the cargo terminals? They are under guard as well." Thane spoke up.

"The Tik elders on Chuuruthia assigned us two Tik who are opening independent Gates for us," the Major explained.

"Combined with the initial data you received regarding the Mahrell Drun, does not the direct support of the Tik lend credibility to our claims?" Queen Elissa asserted.

"It does for us." Rosseau said and the other men nodded. He looked back to the Major.

"We tried to get to Ray's primary data cache in New York but the house was under surveillance. We entered the house and spoke with his parents and a digital simulacrum Ray created of himself. He- I mean it informed us there was insufficient time to get the cache and escape so he- gave us the next location, Tokyo, and helped us escape. We managed to get access to the data cache Ray hid in the hotel in Tokyo. I retrieved the files and confirmed they were legitimately signed by the man. Most significantly, the files contained a list of names and a ledger of payments to these people. I'd like to send the data to you. You need to get this to the leaders of your respective governments. If you could also get them to Colonel General Zutkov-" She saw Rosseau suddenly frown. "What?"

"Yuri was killed in a 'tragic hunting accident' this week. I'd be interested to see if his successor is named in this report you have." Thane growled.

"The center of the web points to Ruan Steyn's executive secretary Avery Mansfeld. Steyn wasn't mentioned in either the contact list or the payout ledger but that may not exclude him from being involved. I am going to ship you the files now."

Rosseau nodded and prepared his comm to accept the files. Nann started the transmission.

As the files moved Rosseau addressed the group. "What do you suggest is the next move?"

Elissa stepped forward. "You will need to begin the process of identifying and dealing with the Mahrell Drun's agents within your society. We will reopen trade with Earth the moment that has begun. While that is happening, before the Mahrell Drun have a chance to change their game we take direct steps to find their source and prevent further incursions. The Tik support the removal of the Prime while we attempt to rescue Jack."

"That sounds very good but the Tik have been very clear on their refusal to allow us to use our Gates to move military forces between worlds. They are not for military use. To abuse this is to lose access to the network entirely. That's not something we are willing to risk."

"We will not be invading. We are on a rescue mission. The mission will be led by Altarians. As you know we are not an aggressive people and have no military forces of our own. We will not be attacking. We will be asking nicely for the return of our Ambassador and your Trade Commissioner to Altaria."

The four military leaders blinked at the Queen with confused expressions. Dalawar cleared his throat and brushed his bushy mustache back from his mouth. "Excuse me but they- may we be blunt and just say the Allsa Komanae for clarity?" He received nods for this. "They aren't going to just hand him over considering the efforts they made to capture him. Especially to such a polite and peaceful group as the Altarians."

Elissa nodded to him with a smile that made the men take notice. "Indeed but I never said we'd be going alone. We would welcome assistance from our good friends."

"We aren't invading so how many would be allowed to participate?" Rosseau asked carefully.

"Just a security detail to protect the peaceful Altarians. And as one of those Altarians will be me, a royal security detail should be reasonably expected to be in the range of no more than 100 highly trained... security specialists."

Hellna's voice rose above the others protesting the Queen's involvement. Elissa just held up her hands until quiet was restored.

"It is non-negotiable and the only way the Tik will support us... in the way they will," the Queen said calmly.

"The Tik are going to allow us to walk 100 armed troops through a Gate onto Allsa One?" Thane said with a doubtful tone.

"Heaven's no! We will invite your security specialists to join us on Altaria. Then I will get us to Allsa One via an independent Gate. I cannot go into details at the moment but you may trust that we will arrive on the Allsa Komanae world as promised. We will also keep our promise to the Tik that we will not be an invading force. We will not claim territory. We will not commit random and wanton acts of violence. We will address the local authorities to return Jack to us. How they respond to this will determine the course of action we may take. We will not leave without our Ambassador. We have proven to the Tik's satisfaction that the Allsa Komanae have kidnapped him. They will assist us in getting him back." Queen Elissa watched the faces of the men on the screen. They all seemed determined to be involved in this mission. That was good. Keeping the number down to 100 was going to be their difficulty.

"General Rosseau, please be aware that the six of us," Cha'Risa gestured to her team and the two Altarian agents, "are going to be counted in the 100." The man measured her with his eyes then her teammates and finally nodded.

"We have the data, will review it now, and will get it to the people who need to see it as rapidly as possible. Expect a call from us within the next few hours. If the Mahrell Drun are as organized and mentally agile as you say, we agree that our best defence against them is a rapid response, not giving them time to adjust to their new situation. We'll have your 'security detail' assembled quickly." Rosseau stated. With a final nod he broke the connection.

Hellna looked at the Queen hesitantly. "Would you care to tell us how we are going to get so many soldiers to Allsa One?"

Elissa smiled enigmatically at her Minister of Security. "It's been done before and we have friends with long memories."

Chapter 20

"FUCK!"

Jack woke with a start and gasped as he looked down at his body. It seemed to be in one piece and wasn't a burnt cinder. The terrible burning sensation was gone and he felt... fine. He looked around and saw he was in a small, square room which was open on one end. There was a water dispenser in the corner and what looked like a place to 'dispose of wastes' as the Allsa Komanae put it. Other than that there was no furniture in the room.

He stood up and walked towards the open end and saw something as he got closer to the opening. There was a slight orange glimmer over the space like a thin wall of light. Standing just inside it he felt an odd pushing sensation on his horns. It felt like something was pushing his head back and away from the opening. He carefully reached forward and-

"FUCK!"

Jack danced back from the light wall shaking his fingers which tingled from the shock he'd received.

"Everybody has to try that at least once," said a voice from outside.

"Hello? Who's there?" Jack asked.

There was a guttural rumbling with several clicks thrown in for fun. "Can you pronounce that? No? How about Ghia?"

Jack moved closer to the opening and peered across the dimly lit hall. There was another room like his and inside was... someone like Kekk! "Hello Ghia! I'm Jack. Do you know someone named Kekk?"

"KEKK? How do you know that name?" was her excited reply. Jack got the impression that his fellow prisoner was female.

"I was confined to a building with him and some others just... uh, how long have I been down here?" he said.

"Time is difficult to track in this unchanging place but I believe it has been roughly a day. Kekk is my mate."

"Ah! He isn't aware that you're here. He told me he had to return to you on your home planet." Jack explained.

"I'm leverage then. A means to control him," she said contemplatively.

"From what I've been told the Prime selected us for unknown purposes," Jack suggested.

"Oh, I know why my people were chosen. The Allsa Komanae need warriors. Our planet is within their area of control. They see us as a slave race of warriors. They intend to breed us and create their own armies."

"That... makes sense I guess. You are very physically intimidating compared to them," he offered.

"Except we aren't aggressive. We aren't suitable as warriors. Also, we have long gestation periods with just a single offspring and only go into heat once every four years. We breed too slowly for this plan. They did not think that one through."

"They aren't too bright when it comes to biological processes. The Prime is supposed to be brilliant in comparison."

"Which means she will quickly determine we have no value in this plan and will likely dispose of us. We must escape before that happens."

"Uh, the last update I got was that the Prime was just two days out and you say I've been here for one," Jack replied.

There was silence as Ghia absorbed this.

Jack leaned closer to the light wall so he could see the other cells down the hall. That pushback was still forcing his horns away from the field but he leaned in ever so carefully as he thought he saw someone watching him from inside a cell just-

SNAP!

Jack's head was spinning and the short hairs all over his body were standing on end as a high pitched whine buzzed in his ears. He tilted his head up and discovered he was lying on the floor of the room halfway back from the light wall.

He could just barely make out the sound of someone calling his name. He sat up and rubbed his arms to get the hairs to lie down. His tunic clung to him due to the static charge he'd picked up.

"Jack! Can you hear me?" a faint voice called from across the hall. Ghia.

He pushed himself to his feet and walked closer to the opening. He stayed back and peered across. She looked excited for some reason. The buzzing was finally settling down and his hearing was coming back.

"Wow! That force field really packs a punch!" he called out.

"Jack! That wasn't normal behavior for the force field! It gives painful shocks but not huge flashes of light and certainly not a momentary weakening across all of the doors! What did you do?"

"What do you mean, what did I do? I ignored the push back and got too close. It shocked me."

"Push back? What are you talking about?" she asked eagerly.

Jack blinked at her. "The push back. When you get close to the field it pushes back." Then he thought about that and it hadn't pushed his hand back. "Well, it pushes my horns back."

She was looking at his horns. "What are those shiny patches on your horns?"

He reached up and yanked his fingers away as the silver was cold! "GEEZUS! That's cold!" He looked across at Ghia. "It's pure silver."

"It reacted very strangely with the force field. The arc in your field caused ours to weaken momentarily. I believe if you struck your field hard enough with the silver you might overload the field and cause a massive electromagnetic pulse. We might all be able to exit from our cells.

Jack looked across the hall at her excited expression and shook his head. "Didn't you see what happened to me from just a small touch? It knocked me across the room on my ass and I passed out. It may completely fry my brain if I hit it harder!"

"You said yourself. The Prime is coming soon. She's smarter than the others. If we don't make an attempt now we may as well give up! Besides, the field will collapse before it can do you any serious harm. You didn't see it dim like I did." She paused as she thought of something. She looked towards the end of the hall. "Come to think of it the Allsa Komanae will likely have noticed that fluctuation and are probably on their way to investigate. We have to move NOW!" Ghia insisted.