{"id":255,"date":"2012-09-30T00:00:52","date_gmt":"2012-09-30T04:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=255"},"modified":"2012-09-29T19:26:05","modified_gmt":"2012-09-29T23:26:05","slug":"chapter-thirty-nine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=255","title":{"rendered":"Chapter Thirty-nine"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

There are some people who will continue to deny the truth even when it hits them squarely in the face.<\/h3>\n

— Ambassador Alexander Channing, Psychean Guard, c. 5201<\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00a020 Novem, 5249 PD<\/strong><\/p>\n

D\u2019Arcy and his team of \u201cexperts\u201d had been presenting for nearly an hour before the first consul reached the limits of their patience.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is insane,\u201d Kara said flatly, glaring across at D\u2019Arcy.\u00a0 \u201cYou actually expect us to believe that nothing happened?\u00a0 Half the people in this room felt it and the other half probably watched while someone else did.\u00a0 Why are you wasting our time?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOn the contrary, Miss Grace-Forester, I do not actually believe that any such large-scale assault took place.\u00a0 Further, if something did happen, I fail to see how anyone this far away could have felt it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kara opened her mouth to respond, but Mugabe beat her to the punch.\u00a0 The dark-skinned man\u2019s tone was deceptively mild.<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps the elder Farragut could enlighten us on that count with some examples from history?\u201d<\/p>\n

Rachel cleared her throat and took time to apparently gather her thoughts before she began speaking.\u00a0 \u2018There are several examples from Post Diaspora history when psychics perceived major events from great distances.\u00a0 LeSarte\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh hell,\u201d D\u2019Arcy snapped.\u00a0 \u201cWhen in doubt, fall back on LeSarte.\u00a0 You know there are people who think he was a charlatan.\u00a0 A clever actor.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced pointedly toward Lindsay.<\/p>\n

Oh he didn\u2019t just start this game, did he?<\/em>\u00a0 \u201cI hope you\u2019re not implying the same of me, Consul.\u00a0 Everyone in this room has been a witness to what happens when the goddamned visions come.\u201d\u00a0 If not for Brendan being here the last time, I don\u2019t\u2019 know what might have happened.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYes,
\nthat act you and your pilot pulled off was quite the show,\u201d D\u2019Arcy said, voice dripping malice and sarcasm.\u00a0 \u201cHow long have you been\u2014what is it you refugees call it?\u00a0 Bonded?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lindsay went cold.\u00a0 All she could do was stare blinking at him for a moment before her heart began beating again.\u00a0 \u201cYes, that\u2019s what we call it.\u00a0 Why does it matter?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI would imagine that the Council is entitled to know when an\u2026asset such as yourself chooses to take up with a refugee and potential spy for a hostile power\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cConsul Morgause,\u201d Sergei interrupted.\u00a0 \u201cAre you implying that Commander Cho is not entirely loyal to the Foundation?\u201d<\/p>\n

D\u2019Arcy shrugged, attempting to appear nonchalant, pretending that he hadn\u2019t just accused Brendan Cho of betraying everything the young man held dear.<\/p>\n

Aidan Church snorted.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s no way,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cThe man is the best flight instructor we have.\u00a0 Every native-born pilot we\u2019ve got, he trained.\u00a0 Spies wouldn\u2019t do that, not at the level he\u2019s performed at.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot to mention his volunteering for the mission to liberate Senator Farragut\u2019s daughter and Ambassador Channing\u2019s son,\u201d Amelda said.\u00a0 \u201cReally, D\u2019Arcy, I think your suspicion in this case is sorely misplaced.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRegardless, I think we are entitled to know what our lauded and coddled Oracle does beyond these august chambers,\u201d D\u2019Arcy said, staring at Lindsay once again.<\/p>\n

Stay calm.\u00a0 Stay calm.\u00a0 You can borrow someone\u2019s sidearm and shoot him later.<\/em>\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t see why it\u2019s anyone\u2019s business but mine.\u201d It was a struggle to keep her voice even.\u00a0 \u201cBut if you absolutely must know, going on seven years, and they\u2019ve been fantastic.\u201d\u00a0 Her eyes narrowed.\u00a0 \u201cHow long has it been since you had a woman in your<\/em> bed, D\u2019Arcy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sergei cleared his throat.\u00a0 \u201cThat was uncalled for, Oracle.\u201d<\/p>\n

She folded her hands in front of her and looked toward the Speaker.\u00a0 \u201cNo more or less so than the rest of this conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Frederick leaning forward, whispering something in Adam\u2019s ear.\u00a0 Adam just smiled and leaned back to murmur something in response.<\/p>\n

Wonder what they\u2019re saying.<\/em><\/p>\n

Lindsay took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly.\u00a0 \u201cConsul Morgause is trying very hard to pull wool over all of our eyes and deflect this council from the matter at hand.\u00a0 All the evidence not<\/em> marshaled\u2014indeed, ignored<\/em> by Consul Morgause\u2014points toward a massive attack on one of the outlying worlds.\u00a0 We haven\u2019t been able to confirm which one because is scrambling to make sure it wasn\u2019t one of theirs<\/em>.\u00a0 Everyone here knows that something happened, though, whether we want to admit it or not.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut where is the evidence<\/em>?\u201d\u00a0 D\u2019Arcy demanded.\u00a0 \u201cAll you have are rumors and headaches.\u201d<\/p>\n

The door into the chamber creaked fully open then.\u00a0 Adriano Scarelli looked grim as he stepped into the room, swinging the door shut behind himself with a loud bang.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t want to interrupt,\u201d he said as he strode across the floor.\u00a0 \u201cBut it seems I picked a good time to do it.\u201d\u00a0 He stopped in the heart of the room, standing at the center of the rose.\u00a0 \u201cIt was the Whispers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI beg your pardon?\u201d\u00a0 Sergei said, half rising from his seat.\u00a0 \u201cWhat<\/em> was the Whispers, Mr. Scarelli?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe planet someone killed,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cIt was the Whispers.\u00a0 Mission Systems has a ship coming in as we speak carrying refugees.\u00a0 Found a crippled ship on the edge of the system.\u00a0 They saw it happen.\u201d\u00a0 He drew himself up a little straighter.\u00a0 \u201cFurthermore, I am here to inform you that Mission Systems has begun to dismantle its operations in the inner homosphere and is in the process of transporting our personnel and shipyards to the agreed-upon position in orbit of E-Trel five.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lindsay watched D\u2019Arcy Morgause collapse back down into his chair, cotton-pale with sweat beginning to bead on his brow.\u00a0 His specialists were looking at each other nervously.\u00a0 One woman gnawed at her lip so hard that Lindsay was sure she was about to draw blood.<\/p>\n

The room was dead silent for exactly fifteen seconds before Adam Windsor stood up.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the ETA?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur ship from the Whispers should be here in thirty-six hours.\u00a0 As I understand it, the system has become an even larger navigational hazard than it used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no guarantee\u2014\u201d\u00a0 D\u2019Arcy began to say.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat we will take on any survivors from the destruction of our nearest neighboring system?\u201d\u00a0 Amelda interrupted, voice tart.\u00a0 \u201cConsul Morgause, you are not the one who makes that decision, now are you?\u00a0 That is left to a very specific subset of this Council and you<\/em> are not a part of it.\u201d\u00a0 Her gaze sharpened as she turned her eyes toward Scarelli.\u00a0 \u201cDo we know how many, Mr. Scarelli?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cIf I can get estimates before they go to jump, I will certainly do so.\u201d\u00a0 He swallowed, Adam\u2019s apple bobbing as his gaze swept the room.\u00a0 \u201c\u2026I\u2019ll let you get on with your meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n

He spun on his heel and walked away.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There are some people who will continue to deny the truth even when it hits them squarely in the face. — Ambassador Alexander Channing, Psychean Guard, c. 5201 \u00a020 Novem, 5249 PD D\u2019Arcy and his team of \u201cexperts\u201d had been … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-last-colony"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p25yjF-47","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=255"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":256,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255\/revisions\/256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}