As she stepped onto the bridge, Griel turned to her with a smile. “Welcome back! You look a little tired but otherwise good.”
“Yes, I’m fine.” Niva rolled her eyes. She turned her attention to Molush. “Did you really let him do all that foolishness? The hacking of the doors and everything?”
“I… I didn’t have a choice.” Molush belonged to the Vorka race, one of the few sentients that looked off from humanoid. His eyes dilated into thin slits or massive pupils when scared or in extreme darkness. He spoke in a deep baritone though often stammered when confronted. He might’ve been the tallest being on the ship, towering a foot over her. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Thanks.” Niva sat beside him. “Have you started looking through the data? What do we have?”
“This was a standard gather operation,” Molush said. “We were to gain access to the mission rosters for the Kahls over the next twelve cycles. You succeeded. Most of them are standard patrols. Attack patterns. Even some invasion plans. I’m forwarding those back to command to take appropriate action. However… one in particular…”
“Yes?” Niva prompted.
“It’s under their highest security clearance. Beyond top secret.”
Griel turned to them. “I hope that doesn’t mean you’re making an excuse as to why you can’t get into it.”
Molush sighed. “I do not make excuses, sir.”
“Just checking.” Griel went back to whatever he was doing.
“Ignore him,” Niva said. “What do we have to do to see it?”
“I’m decrypting it now, but it seems that General Renz has been given a top priority assignment. Something big.”
General Renz Divol, son of Lord Marshal Severan Divol. The Prytins considered him a priority target since the beginning of the conflict. He’d made a name for himself as a butcher… a serious murderer. Whenever he went out, he tended to bring about death and destruction, he invaded worlds, killed innocents.
What could he possibly want?
“Any idea what it is yet?” Niva asked.
“No. However, there is one thing.” Molush smiled, his slitted eyes looking sinister. “He has gone out on his own. Just the flagship. No fleet. No entourage. No guards. Just him.”
“That’s… got my attention,” Griel said. “I need to know exactly where he’s going ASAP. We take that bastard down, that’s a huge win for us. Kahl morale will take a massive hit and Severan can mourn his criminal offspring while we push the fight to them. I love this plan. Hurry it up, Molush.”
“Oh yes,” Molush sighed, “breaking into the highest level of security the Kahl have is something one can simply hurry. Thank you for that encouragement, sir. I appreciate it.”
“You know, everyone on this ship has taken quite the attitude lately.” Griel pointed at each of them, including the pilot Authen Dal Undel. He ignored the situation as the commander continued. “I’d like to point out that it’s probably inappropriate given that we’re technically… sort of… a military vessel.”
“Are you putting yourself in that group?” Niva asked. “If so, I might take this commentary with some level of seriousness.”
“Um… yes?” Griel shrugged. “Anyway, we’ll rendezvous with the Triton, catch up with them then get after Renz. I can’t wait to take a stab at him.”
“Yes, well… I have a concern.” Niva turned to Molush. “Why would they document this?”
“You’ve seen Kahl briefings,” Molush replied. “They are detailed. They have a slavish attention to administrative detail. Their coordination is why many of our cultures cannot mount a proper defense against their assaults. But there’s a weakness to that.” He gestured to the screen. “Of course, in this case, they probably thought the encryption would hold.”
“I still don’t like it,” Niva continued. “This feels like some kind of trap.”
“No way.” Griel waved his hand at her. “They couldn’t possibly know someone would steal it. They aren’t that clever.”
“They know we take data all the time,” Niva pressed. “They know it’s practically ritual. My point is that even if we discover a destination, we must be cautious. It may not be as simple as you imagine. Or even possible to take him down alone. You know, this might be an excellent opportunity to call for backup.”
“You know our mission.” Griel lost all levity. His expression hardened. “We’re out disrupting enemy activity. That’s what we’ve got going on. Maybe the humans can join us in our little hunt. They can make a major contribution to the war effort their first time out. There. We have support. Does that make you feel a little better?”
Niva didn’t know the history between the Lord Marshal’s son and Griel. Some of the others on the ship said they had some kind of personal conflict back in the earliest days of Prytin-Kahl interactions. She never had drawn the full story about it. He never seemed comfortable talking about it.
But it’s putting us at risk, Niva thought. He is right though. If Renz is on his own, we may never get this opportunity again. And what is our purpose if we’re not to take out the highest ranking enemy officers at every chance we get? This man would do the same to us, if not worse.
Intelligence frowned on missions taking a personal spin. Griel scoffed at their rules. Pretty much everything they did seemed personal to him. He was invested, heart and soul, into the cause. That made him both a valuable asset and a scary one in equal measures. He could easily get them into real trouble if he solely relied on emotions.
As well as Niva felt like she knew him, she barely understood how his mind worked. So often it seemed like he was flying by the seat of his pants only to turn out a stunning victory, the kind that must’ve been planned. No one could possibly be lucky so often. He may well have simply been as
