“Conflicts,” Maverick’s tone heightened again with the return to their discussion. Maverick’s arm swung out, pointing at the image. “Look at that, Sawyer. That’s not a conflict; it’s a massacre.”
“Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence little brother,” Sawyer attempted levity fell flat. “It’s my duty to protect the people on this base, including you, and it would be a lot easier if you weren’t always causing problems.”
“Sorry, I didn’t realize my breathing was a problem for you,” Maverick pouted, showing the spectacle of his angst.
“Stop being so dramatic; you know what I mean!” Sawyer’s voice rose as Maverick rolled his eyes. “Come on, breaking into Administration buildings? Stealing Administration property?”
“Are we still on that?” Maverick groaned. “There are more important things to talk about here!”
“More important than your future?”
“Well, I’d say yours is more in question right now, wouldn’t you?”
“Do you want kicked off the base? Do you want to go back out there, to the wilds, to the savages?”
“Yes!” Sawyer cursed his brother’s swift response, prompting Maverick’s explanation; “If it means you don’t get your head blown off, then damn right I want it!”
“Seriously, enough!” Sawyer tossed his arms out to his sides, all attempts of reasoning gone in the fury of his frustration.
“Exactly! Enough! I’ve already lost everyone else; Mom, Dad, Ella, all my friends, my home. I won’t lose you too!”
“You’re not going to lose me, Mav. The Lieutenant is a smart man, I’m sure he knows about Beta Sect and has a plan of action.”
“There is no plan, Sawyer! The Lieutenant isn’t even going to be on-world!”
“What are you talking about?” Sawyer’s brow furrowed.
“Carl intercepted a brief from the TSS,” Maverick sighed, his voice shaking with the emotion he clung to. “They’re evacuating all Admins and senior militia ranks. The TSS is scheduled to leave orbit at the end of the cycle.”
“That makes no sense; they can’t do that,” Sawyer shook his head. “Flamouria doesn’t have enough resources – no fuel, no reliable agriculture, no workable metals – we can’t survive without the supplies the TSS provides.”
“Carl thinks they’re abandoning the planet because they know it will never be sustainable.”
“Well, Carl’s crazy, and not in a fun way,” Sawyer snorted. “They wouldn’t kill an entire civilization of their own people. Besides, Earth is dying; they need Flamouria.”
“No, they don’t,” Wil spoke softly from the doorway, the paper he held in his hand creased and shaking with his grip. “The Tritons region.”
“What’s the Tritons region?” Maverick voiced the question before Sawyer could.
Sawyer moved to the doorway beside Wil, concerned at the fury and fear emanating from him. The pallor of Wil’s complexion grew more pronounced as he answered with a quiet, “plan B.”
“Plan B, there’s always a plan B,” Carl moved through the building with a brush and tray, scooping up the remnants of dirt they tracked in after their disagreement. He straightened up as if lecturing in a classroom. “The Tritons region: home to three hospitable worlds; Eos, Helios, and Selene. Settlements have proven prosperous and peaceful, despite their distance being twice that of Flamouria from Earth. With these reports, it can be concluded that the Tritons region is a more logical choice for future settlements.” His lecture concluded, Carl mumbled unintelligibly under his breath as he circled the room.
“What is that?” Sawyer kept his tone low as he motioned toward the paper crushed in Wil’s hand.
“It’s true,” Wil stated as he handed the paper to Sawyer for examination. “They’re pulling the TSS; sending it to the Tritons region.”
The paper backed up Wil’s statement; orders for senior personnel to be evacuated by several transports over the next several days. “I don’t understand how they can do this. There has to be some mistake.”
“My dad sent me a message yesterday, he pulled me from the squad. Mom and Marian were already taken to the TSS.”
“He pulled you? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was going to when you got home, but we got a little sidetracked.”
“This is a mistake. If we talk to Lieutenant Pierce, I’m sure there’s an explanation.” Sawyer ran through possible scenarios in his head, settling on expressing the most logical he could surmise; “Maybe it’s just temporary. They are sending a new station, or they are resupplying and returning.”
“Then why pull senior personnel?” Maverick’s brow raised in expectation of Sawyer’s excuse.
“Maybe, they are replacing them; most of the senior staff is overdue for reassignment. I hear the command heads complaining all the time.” Sawyer ignored Maverick’s shaking head as he finished his statement.
“So, they are just going to remove everyone before replacing them; and right before civil war is expected? Don’t be ignorant.” Maverick’s commented prevented Sawyer’s assumptions on his initial questions. The boy shook his head again, his eyes cold and distant as he spoke over his shoulder; “You can’t change the truth just because you don’t like it.”
Sawyer stared after his brother until he disappeared, his temper flaring irrationally toward the man who served as his brother’s mentor. “Why did you hack the satellite? Why did you let him see this?” Carl ignored his question, rushing his filled tray to the door and pushing through to dump the mess back into the night.
“Hey!” Sawyer followed, focusing for the darkness before looking to the man who preceded him outside. Carl crouched and stared down into the mud; his breath sharp and shoulders shaking – the tray discarded at his side – as his hands cupped something in the puddle at the base of the step. “What is it?”
“It’s back, you brought it back,” Carl glanced over his shoulder at Sawyer, his eyes filled with grateful reverence.
“Brought what back?” Carl twisted and pulled his hands out of the water, holding them out to reveal several small rocks. “Rocks?”
