{"id":396,"date":"2013-07-21T16:27:38","date_gmt":"2013-07-21T20:27:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=396"},"modified":"2013-07-21T16:27:38","modified_gmt":"2013-07-21T20:27:38","slug":"twenty-six","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=396","title":{"rendered":"Twenty-six"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Some secrets are buried for the good of all.\u00a0 Others are meant to be rediscovered when the need is dire and the time is right.<\/h3>\n

— Erich Quizibian, c. <\/i>5067 PD<\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00a016 Decem, 5249 PD<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s with us,\u201d Rachel said, crossing her arms. \u201cThat\u2019s something, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Frederick nodded slightly.\u00a0 \u201cIt certainly is.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have to leverage it for all it\u2019s worth, though, and at this point I\u2019m not sure how much that will be.\u201d\u00a0 The former Commonwealth inspector frowned and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s all in worse shape than I imagined.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow\u2019s that?\u201d\u00a0 Grant asked, turning away from the windows and toward his old friend.\u00a0 \u201cHow is it worse?\u201d<\/p>\n

Frederick exhaled, rubbing his forehead.\u00a0 \u201cI somehow wanted to believe that things would get better, that the Inspector General\u2019s office and the Commonwealth government would see sense and start to protect those who couldn\u2019t protect themselves\u2014that the regulations that bind the congloms would somehow be better enforced.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was wrong.\u00a0 I suppose I always knew I was wrong, but I held out hope.\u00a0 Now it\u2019s completely in my face and it\u2019s disheartening.\u201d\u00a0 His lips thinned.\u00a0 \u201cWhile he\u2014and Sephora\u2014are on our side, how can we know that they\u2019ll find support back at the heart of the Commonwealth?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t,\u201d Rachel said.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re on our own.\u00a0 We\u2019ve always been on our own.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTruth,\u201d Frederick said softy.\u00a0 \u201cI suppose I never wanted to believe it.\u201d\u00a0 His gaze slid toward Grant.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re right,\u201d he said after a moment.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s time to start reassembling the database.\u00a0 It may already be too late.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grant frowned, leaning back in his chair.\u00a0 \u201cHow many of the components have already made it here?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSix of the nine,\u201d Adam said, joining the conversation without looking up from the reports spread across the kitchen table in front of him.\u00a0 \u201cTwo are on base, one\u2019s hidden at one of our other bases, and three are hidden elsewhere on private property.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat leaves three unaccounted for,\u201d Grant said.\u00a0 \u201cWhich ones?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBlue, Infrared, and Green.\u201d\u00a0 Adam glanced up for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cI have Red and Ultraviolet on base here.\u00a0 Purple\u2019s on the other coast.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes drifted back to his reports.\u00a0 \u201cAnd looking at the strength reports, I\u2019m not sure I\u2019ve got anyone I can spare right now to send after the other three.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere did we hide those ones?\u201d\u00a0 Frederick asked, brow arching.<\/p>\n

\u201cInfrared\u2019s still on Mimir.\u201d\u00a0 Adam exhaled a sigh.\u00a0 \u201cWe couldn\u2019t get it out.\u00a0 Aidan\u2019s the only one who knows where Blue is.\u00a0 Green is on Catullus III in a vault.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy the hell did we leave one on Catullus III?\u201d\u00a0 Grant asked, blinking.\u00a0 Rachel snorted.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause we gave it to Adam to hide.\u00a0 He took it with him when he was doing some final negotiations for weapons systems with Icarus Munitions.\u201d\u00a0 She leaned against the back of her husband\u2019s chair, running her palm across his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s our disposition with Icarus these days?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDara Verrit is on the board these days.\u00a0 I think we\u2019re all right.\u201d\u00a0 Adam\u2019s brow wrinkled slightly as he looked up again.\u00a0 \u201cBut we won\u2019t know until someone goes there and tries to use our deposit key to get what we left in their bank out again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we don\u2019t have anyone to spare, you said,\u201d Frederick said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0 Adam looked back down at the reports.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re already short bodies to defend this planet.\u00a0 We\u2019re trying to find a way to delicately ask for volunteers without sounding desperate and without things sounding dire.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut they are<\/i> dire,\u201d Rachel said softly.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course they are.\u201d\u00a0 Adam leaned back in his chair, massaging his brow.\u00a0 \u201cBut that\u2019s the one thing we don\u2019t want to let on to, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat about Alana?\u201d\u00a0 Grant asked.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s technically retired.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a mess,\u201d Adam countered, shaking his head.\u00a0 \u201cHas she even turned up again?\u201d<\/p>\n

Rachel nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI saw her come back into town with her camping gear when I was on my way home.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure what kind of shape she\u2019s in, though\u2014you never know with her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a mess,\u201d Adam repeated.\u00a0 \u201cAnd she will be until that arm heals.\u00a0 I\u2019m not going to ask her to go anywhere until that happens.\u00a0 It\u2019s too dangerous for her and it\u2019s too damned dangerous for us.\u201d\u00a0 His gaze flicked toward Grant.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m surprised you suggested it.\u00a0 She\u2019s your niece.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grant closed his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cBy all accounts, she\u2019s extremely good at what she does.\u00a0 I imagine she\u2019ll be just as unstoppable as she was before once her arm heals.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head, crossing his arms and turning back toward the windows.\u00a0 \u201cWe have to reassemble the database.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou say that like you know something that we don\u2019t, Grant,\u201d Frederick said.\u00a0 He leaned back in his chair, studying his friend\u2019s profile, half in shadow, half illuminated by the afternoon sunshine.\u00a0 \u201cI think you know that there\u2019s something in the database that will give us an edge in the war that\u2019s coming.\u00a0 Going to share what it is?\u201d<\/p>\n

Grant\u2019s lips twisted into a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cOther than the tactics of three or four thousand years of human warfare?\u00a0 One or two things.\u00a0 A map or three to buried treasure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBuried treasure,\u201d Rachel echoed, her tone flat and disbelieving.\u00a0 \u201cDid I actually just hear you say that, Grant?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHear me out,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cThere are things that the Foundation and the Guard hid away just like we hid the database.\u00a0 Clues to how to find all of that are in the database if you know where to look and what they hid could save us all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs in all of humanity,\u201d Rachel said, her tone still disbelieving.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what your sister and I always believed, yes,\u201d Grant said quietly, making eye contact with his sister-in-law.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t expect you to agree since you\u2019ve never seen the evidence.\u00a0 But I hope you won\u2019t stand in our way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rachel exhaled.\u00a0 \u201cIt might be a moot point, Grant.\u00a0 We don\u2019t have anyone to spare.\u00a0 We don\u2019t have anyone to send.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cExcept Alana.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not sending her without her consent,\u201d Rachel said, striding toward him, shoulders square and expression like a thundercloud.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I\u2019m not going to let you guilt<\/i> her into going, either.\u00a0 She\u2019s paid her debt to you and everyone else, Grant.\u00a0 Let her live her life and make her own choices.\u00a0 You gave her that after she brought you home.\u00a0 Let her have her life<\/i>.\u201d<\/p>\n

His expression grew hard and cold, jaw tight and eyes narrowing.\u00a0 \u201cI have no intention of using guilt to make her do anything, Rachel,\u201d he said, his voice low and dangerous.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019ll make her choice on the merits of the choice.\u00a0 She doesn\u2019t have<\/i> to do anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he knows that she will if he asks,\u201d Adam said quietly.\u00a0 \u201cBecause that\u2019s Alana\u2014that\u2019s how she is.\u00a0 He knows that all he has to do is ask and she\u2019ll do it and damn the consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDamn the consequences, though they may be dire,\u201d Frederick said, staring at his hands.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll have to hope that she\u2019s up to the challenge, old friend\u2014and that she doesn\u2019t decide that whatever time that\u2019s given to her with Ezra Grace is more than enough to make her happy for the rest of her life\u2014however long or short that may be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d\u00a0 Grant asked.<\/p>\n

Frederick shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s in love, my friend, and he loves her back.\u00a0 She may decide that the risk isn\u2019t worth it.\u00a0 She might tell you to go take a hike.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe won\u2019t,\u201d Adam said.\u00a0 \u201cTrust me.\u00a0 She won\u2019t, no matter how much both she and Dr. Grace may want her to.\u00a0 She\u2019s duty-bound, regardless of what she personally wants\u2014and whether or not she\u2019s already paid her debts to all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t be the one to ask her,\u201d Rachel said, glaring at Grant.\u00a0 \u201cIt has to be someone else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grant just stared at all three of them for a long moment.<\/p>\n

Then he turned and walked away, out the door and out of sight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some secrets are buried for the good of all.\u00a0 Others are meant to be rediscovered when the need is dire and the time is right. — Erich Quizibian, c. 5067 PD \u00a016 Decem, 5249 PD \u201cHe\u2019s with us,\u201d Rachel said, … 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":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-two-ashes-to-ashes"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p25yjF-6o","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396","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=396"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":397,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396\/revisions\/397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}