The Journey of Rick Heiden - Chapters 23 and 24
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This novel contains 50 CHAPTERS, and every post will have 2 chapters each.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
"As you counted Julien among your group, the police wish to speak with you," said the captain. "I'll have a crewman take you to the dock. Come to the main deck when you're ready."
When the captain had gone, David hugged me, no doubt prompted by my horrified expression.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"I can't believe it."
"Neither can I," said David. "Why would he go to the dock?"
I nodded. "At night."
We dressed in our regular clothing and hurried to the main deck at the aft of the ship. Since it happened on land, it didn't involve the captain, so he didn't accompany us, but he saw us off. Crewman Hanshiro would transport us to the dock.
"Who ferried Julien to shore last night?" David asked the captain.
"I did," said Hanshiro from the dinghy, "at 1:45 this morning. He asked me, so I told him I would do it."
David and I both gave him a look of astonishment.
"I know what you will say," said Hanshiro, "it sounded foolish to me too, but he was an Interpol officer; what could I do except take him?"
By the time we neared the dock, we had plenty of light, and from the water, we could see dozens of police officers. They searched the area for clues. When we arrived at the scene, we spoke to Inspector Renati of the Mumbai police. Julien's body lay a few feet behind him beneath a sheet.
I had only ever seen two dead bodies, my best friend who died many years ago --whose funeral I attended as my first and last, and the man from whom David protected me at the warehouse in London. I didn't care to see Julien's. I preferred to remember him as we knew him.
The inspector wore a tan uniform, stood about my height, with brown skin, brown eyes, and a mustache. He wrote on a notepad while asking us questions.
"I have spoken with the captain of the Torekka Maru, the ship listed on the security form filled out by the deceased yesterday in customs. It's my understanding that he was a member of your party aboard the ship. Could you tell me your names, please?"
"I'm David Klein, and this is Richard Klein." David handed to the inspector our new French passports.
For a moment, I had forgotten our new last names. The inspector accepted them, then asked an awkward question.
"How do you know the deceased?"
Surprisingly, David didn't have to lie; I would have gone into too much detail.
"He's a friend of ours we met in London."
"How long had you known him?"
"Not long, less than a month," I said.
The inspector pointed to me. "Can you tell me the deceased's name and his profession?"
"Detective Inspector Julien Le Gal of Interpol headquarters in Lyon, France," I said.
The inspector crinkled his forehead, scratched an eyebrow, and shook his head. "No, I'm sorry," he said, "we found those credentials in his pocket, and I have spoken with Interpol this morning. If his name was Julien Le Gal, Interpol denies that he worked for them. I thought perhaps the two of you knew more."
"That's the information he gave us," said David.
"So, he's not from Interpol?" I asked.
"It appears not," said the Inspector.
David and I looked at one another.
"How did he die?" asked David.
"It looks as though he died of a stab wound to the heart. In the absence of any family," said the inspector, "I will have to ask that one of you identify the body, insofar as he was one of your companions. The department will have to ascertain his real identity."
David positively identified the body. The inspector asked more questions, irrelevant to us but necessary to the investigation --namely our whereabouts that evening and whether anyone could vouch for us. He questioned Hanshiro, who ferried Julien to the dock and released us to return to the ship. We asked if this would hinder our journey to Japan, and he didn't see why it would since it took place on Indian soil, and the docks at night were unsafe. We told him we would have Julien's things sent over from the ship.
Hanshiro returned us to the Torekka Maru. I dreaded having to tell the others what we learned. For myself, I didn't take it well, so I knew the others wouldn't either. Back aboard, they had heard but had no details; I asked that they all join us in the meeting room in half an hour. Also, I invited the captain as I felt we should keep him informed. David and I retreated to our cabin to change into more comfortable clothing, and he hugged me as he does when he knows I'm upset.
"He's dead," I said, "and now we discover he lied to us. It's just too much, David."
"I agree."
"Has someone killed Julien because of us?" I asked. "Have we put people at risk?"
"I don't know," he said, "I wouldn't put it past our adversaries to try, but whether we press on, or allow them to scare us into returning to London, people remain at risk." He placed his hand against my cheek, and the warmth was inviting. He kissed me and brushed his face lightly against mine. "I love you. I will let nothing happen to you."
I put my hand atop his. "I don't worry about myself."
"I know," he said, "and that's the reason you need protection."
David held me for several minutes. We changed and met our group in the meeting room.
David and I wore the new clothing I purchased. His charcoal-colored shorts fit as I believed they would. They had no pockets, and I bought them in an unfashionably short style, but David didn't care. He wore them for me. I liked them, and he wanted to please me. I also bought him a royal blue version of the white linen shirt with the Mandarin collar that Rocke wanted for Cadmar.
Everyone had taken their usual seats, but the captain filled the one that marked Julien's absence.
"As you have heard by now, Julien has died," said David. "I have seen the body; they have not made a mistake. He requested that Hanshiro take him to the dock at a quarter `til two, where someone stabbed him to death. We have no clue why he wanted to go to shore at that hour, or who may have done it, but I think we can guess. Before I move on to other information you should know, does anyone have any thoughts they would like to share?"
Aiden placed Julien's mobile on the table. "With the captain's permission, I searched Julien's cabin. I found nothing of any evidentiary value there, except the information on his mobile, which he didn't take with him to shore. I've looked through it, and I noticed several interesting things. He disabled the auto-lock, so it didn't require the code to get into it. In the past, I've seen him unlock his mobile to use it. I believe he wanted us to have access to it should something happen to him. He received several calls and texts; most did not have a name associated with them; several of the calls came from Tokyo. Yesterday, he received a text message from an unknown number located in the United States, and that text reads, `We know you, your location, and who you work for. The dock 2:00 a.m. tomorrow night, or she dies.'"
"We suspect they refer to his wife," said Maggie.
"Ah...yes, about that," I said, then I looked at David.
"At this point, we should tell you what we've learned," said David.
"Brace yourselves," I said.
"The Mumbai police have given us information that tells us Julien Le Gal lied to us," said David. "His name may, or may not be Julien Le Gal, but he doesn't appear to work for Interpol. We don't know what other lies he may have told us."
At this, I heard gasps, a few insistences of a mistake, and general dismay, but the police had no reason to lie. We had not known Julien as we believed, and nothing would change that.
"Who were the Interpol officers at the dock in Venice?" asked Aiden.
"Perhaps none of the Interpol officers we saw were real," I said.
"Who has arranged this journey?" asked Rocke. "Who funded it?"
"How did you know Julien?" I asked him. "When did you meet him?"
"I met him two weeks before meeting all of you," said Rocke. "My boss, Monsieur Laurent from the company, introduced me to him."
"Company?" I asked. "I thought the French government had owned The Black Void."
Rocke shook his head. "Oh no, KGSC owns it."
"KGSC," said Captain Okamoto. "That's the parent company whose subsidiary owns this ship." He tapped his finger on the table.
"Oh, bloody hell, David," said Aiden, "how gullible are we?"
"Let me see Julien's mobile," said David. Aiden slid it to him across the table. "KGSC is a multinational corporation based in Tokyo, correct?"
"Yes, it is," said Rocke.
"What do you think?" I asked.
"I think I might make a call to Tokyo," he said, searching the mobile. "Hmm, only one number, and he made a call to it the Monday morning we left at 8:41 a.m. That's about the time Julien should have called his wife." David dialed the number and put the call on speakerphone.
A woman answered. "Hi, Julien."
"My name is David Levitt. Do you know me?"
She caught her breath. "Yes, I know you. Where's Julien?"
Despite her clean accent, her minor inflections told me she natively spoke Japanese, and her vowels told me an American taught her English.
"In the interest of openness and honesty," said David, "I must say that I have you on speakerphone. I sit in the meeting room aboard the Torekka Maru with my companions from Jiyu and the ship's captain. No one else can hear, is that acceptable?"
"Captain Okamoto, this is Yukiko Takeshita," she said. "You know me."
"Yes, Ms. Takeshita, I do."
"Please, excuse yourself," she said. "I wish to speak to them alone."
He quickly stood. "Please, excuse me," said the captain. He made a bow, and he left.
"He's gone," I said.
"Hello, Rick," she said. "Julien has told me so much about all of you. I feel like I know you. Since you are calling from his phone, I suppose he finally broke down and told you everything. That's so like him. Where is he?"
"I'm sorry, Ms. Takeshita," said David, "but I must inform you that someone killed Julien on the Mumbai docks sometime between the hours of two and four this morning local time."
That caused a long moment of silence, in which we could barely hear her reaction, but we sensed her distress. She stifled her tears so we could understand her. "Give me a few minutes; let me call you back."
I am acutely sensitive to the unmistakable sound of someone deeply in pain, and the instant I heard her, my eyes began welling up, and I had difficulty breathing. Her reaction moved us all. People from Jiyu often show great empathy. I sat there among my kind, feeling like I finally belonged.
"While we have time," said David, "does anyone have any thoughts?"
Cadmar asked, "If Julien called her when he said he called his wife, and not a woman in France as he implied, is he then married to this woman, or is he not married?"
"He may have called this woman," said Maggie, "but he could be divorced, separated, or still married to another woman. In France, it's common for a married man to take a mistress. She reacted as if she loved him. They had a relationship."
"Cadmar," I said, "I think you saw Ms. Takeshita with Julien at the hotel in Melun.
"You've jumped a bit in your reasoning, haven't you, Rick?" asked David.
"I know that a direct flight from Tokyo to Paris exists because I've taken it," I said, "and she had ample time to make that flight. Anyone who can order captain Okamoto about like that would have a prominent position in KGSC. Such positions have many privileges, so time away from work would not present a problem, and her reaction to Julien's death was genuine."
David nodded. "Okay, I accept that."
Aiden leaned forward onto the table. "So, Julien didn't liaison to Interpol, but rather to KGSC."
"Evidently," said David, "and I see this as a good thing."
"It's a corporation, David," said Cadmar. "Their motive is profit."
"Yes," said David, "but before this, Julien gave us the impression that we had a faceless, nameless mass of people from various countries all over the world as benefactors. Now, regardless of their motivation, we have direct access to this one corporation that has assisted us. I wish Julien hadn't died --because lies or no lies, I liked him-- but I think our chances of making it home just went up."
"You have found an interesting perspective," said Rocke.
"I guess now we can help them to help us," said Aiden. "When we didn't know the truth, they left us at a disadvantage."
"Good point," said Cadmar.
While we waited, we requested to eat breakfast in the meeting room, and they accommodated us. It took an hour before Ms. Takeshita called back, and we found her resolute and assertive.
"My apologies for having to call you back," she said. She made a considerable amount of noise on her end. It sounded like she was boxing.
"That's quite alright, we understand," I said.
"As you've probably guessed," she said, "I had a relationship with Julien. I should have helped you myself from the start, but Julien's gone now. So, I intend to give you the help you need."
"We appreciate that, ah...there's a lot of noise on your end," said David.
The noise stopped. "Sorry, that's just me; I'm packing. I also want to apologize for having lied to you. I promise I have a valid reason, and I think you will agree with me when I tell you. I haven't the time for that now, so it will have to wait. I checked the status of the typhoon that delayed you. They still classify it as category one, but it will hit Southern India soon. That will slow it down and break it up. Your journey can continue in a couple of days. In the meantime, I am packing and will join you aboard the Torekka Maru in the next twenty-four hours. I'll call you when I arrive. I ask that someone please inform Captain Okamoto of my arrival. He'll seem less than thrilled, but I'll make amends when I get there."
"Of course," said David. "Ms. Takeshita, we told the Mumbai police we would send Julien's things to them."
"That's fine," she said, "but whatever you do, do not give them his phone. It belongs to KGSC, and we'll probably need it. From what Julien told me, you're intelligent enough to know who killed him, but the Mumbai police will never figure it out. We can't tell them about the situation. If we did, they would insert themselves into it, compounding our difficulties. Julien would not want that."
"We have little doubt that someone killed Julien because of us," I said, "and for that, we are sorry."
"I appreciate that, but it's not your fault." She paused a moment. We could hear her take a deep breath. "Did you like Julien?"
"Yes," said David with everyone agreeing vocally. "I think we all enjoyed his company."
"I'm glad," she said. "I should go. I look forward to meeting you all. See you soon."
We said our goodbyes, and the call ended.
"Does anyone have anything to say about this development?" asked David.
"Do you still think our chances of going home have gone up?" asked Cadmar.
"Generally, yes," said David, "but my answer would depend on their reasons for keeping us in the dark."
Julien's mobile rang at about 5:00 a.m. the next morning. Our guest's plane had touched down at the Mumbai airport, and she would travel to the dock by limousine service. David and I sprang into action. The night before, the captain --who indeed expressed little enthusiasm about her arrival-- made a boat available. David and Cadmar carrying pistols, left with a crewman to retrieve her from the dock. Aiden held the drone case, and I had the only weapon left. We stood on deck, watching them motor off.
"You wanted to go with them, didn't you?" asked Aiden.
"Is it that obvious?" I asked. "I accept that Cadmar is the best choice."
Aiden put his arm around my shoulder in a sideways hug.
"So," I said, "how's the friendship with Cadmar coming along?"
"Cadmar is a remarkable man. I've enjoyed my time talking with him."
"He impressed me when I spoke with him," I said.
"You should hear some of his stories," said Aiden. "Cadmar has lived an amazing life, and if Jiyu can make that happen, that's the life I want for myself."
It took an hour, but they returned in safety. Cadmar helped Ms. Takeshita from the boat. She looked nothing like I had imagined. I expected a petite woman, pretty but not overly so, sporting a short, bob hairstyle with bangs, and conservative clothes. I couldn't have been more wrong, and I should have known better, Julien would never have found that appealing. She seemed tall for a Japanese woman about 5 feet 6, slender, and looked beautiful to me. She had her long, wavy, walnut brown hair pulled back into a ponytail. She wore suitable attire, a pair of well-fitting, olive-colored Capri cargo pants, a short-sleeve shirt in tan linen, and black canvas deck shoes. Cadmar tossed her bag, and she caught it with the agility of an athlete.
Captain Okamoto awaited their arrival on the bridge. He rushed onto the main deck a bit winded, followed by Maggie and Rocke. The captain gave her a bow with a "welcome aboard," but the traditional greetings didn't interest her. I could tell she wanted to get on with it. Before we left for the meeting room, the captain gave us great news.
"The weather service has downgraded the typhoon to a tropical storm when it hit land. They expect it to die out soon. We are preparing to leave, and we have permission to do so from the Mumbai police. By the time we get there, we will cross the Bay of Bengal with little difficulty."
In the meeting room, we sat in the seats to which we had grown accustomed. David took Julien's place and gave our newcomer the head of the table. Cadmar, as ever, held the case for the drone, and likewise, Aiden carried the bag with the pistols.
As I expected, she began as if she spoke at a business meeting. I observed her for any sign she was lying. However, I made an inadequate lie detector. People succeeded in lying to us far too often for me to believe otherwise.
"I want us to restart on better footing. You know that my name is Yukiko Takeshita, but you may call me Yukiko. I am the CEO of KGSC, and I bet I can guess your names. I know Captain Rocke Dupre. As the only woman, you are Maggie. You sit next to Maggie, so you must be Aiden. I met you on the boat, but those amazing eyes would have given you away, Cadmar. I know you are David; how could anyone miss those legs? And you, to my left, must be Rick. I want you to know that Julien spoke highly of all of you, and despite the unfortunate deceptions, he genuinely cared about you. He believed that not revealing everything to you would help you."
"I must warn you, Ms. Takeshita," said Cadmar, "we have grown weary of the lies. As a people unaccustomed to deceit, we have learned to not take your word for it this time. If your excuse lacks logic and reason, we will not believe you."
"I get that, and I completely understand," she said. "On the surface, it seems inexcusable. I would probably feel the same way. We lied to protect you and to publicly disengage KGSC from the help you've received. The peoples against us have enormous power. They hold influence and the monetary resources to do whatever they want. We would have given them an easy target if they knew KGSC provided your sole source of assistance. We believed you would have greater protection if we made them think that unknown powerful people from all over the world knew about you and were helping you. Julien no longer worked for Interpol, so if asked, they would deny any knowledge, but our opposition would expect that since they make easy denials too."
"But why not tell us the truth from the beginning?" asked Cadmar.
"At some point, Julien had planned to," she said, "but after he met you, he noticed what you had said to me about deceit. If pressed, he didn't know whether you could lie convincingly enough to make people believe the important lie we spread about."
"Pearce fed the American's information about us," I said. "Julien's lies did help protect us from that, but they appear to know now."
"Yes," she said, "I can't imagine how they found out. I guess we hadn't covered our tracks as well as we thought."
"So, do other countries know about us?" asked Aiden.
"How did we get our passports? Are they fake?" I asked.
"Yes, Aiden, they do know about you, and I'm sure many of them want to help --mostly help themselves anyway, but they don't see the bigger picture. Don't worry, Rick; your passports are quite real. KGSC has influence, especially in France."
"In KGSC's view," said David, "could you describe the bigger picture?"
"The picture comes in several pieces; some of them are terrifying," said Yukiko. "The enhancement will change the economic and social structures of our planet. We cannot doubt that. The medical industry has fully integrated into our society, and it represents many trillions of pounds or dollars per year worldwide. That industry will collapse, and the world's economies will go with it, and unlike the housing bubble, it will not bounce back.
"Piece two, this will put people out of work, affecting their families. Those two parts will take time, though, and the world's governments have time to embrace this change and supply relief if they can or will. Nothing will stop it from spreading, so they better think about doing something or riots will happen.
"I would like KGSC to help with the third piece. When people discover a cure exists for their ailments, they will want it. We have a lot of desperate people in the world who want to survive. We want to make sure every person who wants it, gets the enhancement as quickly as possible."
"What will KGSC get out of doing this?" asked Cadmar. "Will it take advantage of their desperation?"
"Unlike some of our biggest competitors, KGSC has no investments in the medical field at all. Therefore, we have nothing to lose. So, we will make it completely free," she said, "and I have managed to convince the board that KGSC will get brand loyalty and a financial blow to one of our major competitors in return. We have utilized a facility that could do the work, and we've had the equipment up and running for the last week. We have an exponential system in place that will allow us to produce enough enhancement for everyone. We have designed a machine that will not only do all the processing in a sterile environment but produce the result in a gelcap form; you would only need one dose. We've estimated that once we have enhanced seventy percent of the population, the rest will happen on its own."
"That's very clever," said David. "What will you do when the food supply runs short?"
She paused for a moment to think. "Julien said you all eat a lot. So, that's connected to the enhancement?"
"So, you don't know," said David with a gentle shake of his head. "Your bigger picture is incomplete. The pieces you described sound correct to me, but they are minor compared to the larger ongoing problem that this planet will face. Globally, you already cannot feed your expanding population, and many people get no food or subsist on scraps right now. We tend to eat consistently more, but when someone first gets the enhancement, they can expect to eat double and triple what they normally will for a few meals. As it stands, the body of people who subsist on little food is doing its best to maintain homeostasis; if it didn't, they would more rapidly die. Do you see where I'm going with this?"
"So, what will happen if someone gets the enhancement, and they don't get enough food to eat?" she asked.
"Well, that's the question," said David. "On Jiyu, we would never give the enhancement to someone we didn't intend to feed. I know the Foundational Enhancement's nanos persistently do what their program tells them, regardless of all other factors. The enhancement will probably utilize all the ingested nutrients to establish itself inside the body and make repairs, even if those repairs take longer than normal depending on food intake. However, I suspect you will discover a minimum threshold of daily nutrition that the body must receive before it survives nano integration; anything less would result in death."
She gasped. "I had no idea."
"And that's one more reason we didn't just hand it to you," said David. "Julien recorded a message from me. I must assume he wanted that for you. Aiden, does Julien's mobile still have that?"
"Yes," he replied.
"Maggie, Cadmar, and Rocke haven't heard that conversation. Would you play that, please?"
Aiden began the audio file: --------------------------------------- "At the moment, those countries need information. What did they give them, and what will it do? Might we expect to see unstoppable soldiers invading other countries?"
"They're giving them a Jiyuvian nano-based enhancement," David said. "We didn't intend it for people who live on Earth. The British and the Americans will like some of its effects, but if they want unstoppable soldiers, they will not achieve what they're seeking by it.
"I must warn you, though; they will destroy the economies of this world through a snowball effect. It will upend the social and political power structures that this world has relied upon, and chaos will reign. Unless --and I use this in a most literal and critical sense-- unless most of the people of this planet become someone they're not, they will doom this world as you know it. I wouldn't call that bad from my point of view, in a broader, long-term sense, it allows you to become better off in many ways. However, due to the nature of the people here, there will be those who die from this. We couldn't just hand it to you for that precise reason. Despite your nature, we care deeply about all of you. You're our family."
"How long could we be in chaos?" asked Le Gal.
"For as long as the people here create it," David said. "Let's go, chaps."
Le Gal yelled, "They won't change."
"I know," David yelled back, "they're not ready, but change is coming...Please, don't follow us." ----------------------------------------- The recording ended there.
Yukiko had tears in her eyes.
"Did you just not believe me?" David asked her. "I feel torn about whether I should encourage you to go ahead with your plan. On the one hand, it will stop from dying many people who don't have to, but on the other, it will kill the people who would otherwise have lived longer, even in poverty. Nothing will stop it either way, though. Eventually, everyone will have it, and to the survivors goes the planet. However, in intentionally offering them an easy means of obtaining it, you are taking on a responsibility to ensure that it doesn't kill them. People love to absolve themselves of responsibilities. They prefer to pass it onto the individual with rationalizations and fine print, even when the individual's circumstance has left them disempowered and hindered from having the tools to help themselves."
"What should we do?" she asked.
"That's up to you," said David. "I don't think there are any perfectly good outcomes." David looked at the rest of us. "Do any of you have an idea?"
We all shook our heads.
"The faster people get it, the less time it gives their government to supply relief on the food issue," said David, "providing they intend to bother at all. Since this world uses money, the more money someone has, the greater their chances of obtaining food to survive nano integration. So, if you only gave the enhancement to privileged people, you are punishing the underprivileged for being poor. Then, as the privileged people demand greater amounts of food, the greater number of poor people it will create from the price increases. I find that repugnant."
"As the medical industry collapses," said Aiden, "people will lose their jobs, and with no money, they will have even less access to food."
David looked at Yukiko. "If you intend to hurry that collapse along, I suggest you come up with a plan to make food more readily available. Otherwise, you're not doing them any favors."
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Yukiko never thought anyone could scupper her brilliant plan. She wrote KGSC's board members an email detailing the reason the endeavor must stop and sent it over the ship's satellite internet connection. It made her unhappy and embarrassed, but she knew that we did not make the facts. It would have shot the messenger to hold a grudge. Still, it took time for her to recover enough to carry on a conversation at mealtime.
The turbulent waters near Sri Lanka had most of us on seasick pills well before our arrival there. The captain made the exterior of the ship off-limits due to the possibility of falling overboard. We could see a great swirl of clouds hanging over India's landmass, some of the last remnants of the dying tropical storm.
Thanks to the pills, we could cope with the ship tossing us about, but eating while holding things down grew tiresome. Little of daily life aboard the ship seemed normal, and normality wouldn't return until we crossed the Bay of Bengal. When we reached the Andaman Sea, the water had calmed, and the chef reintroduced the soup portion of our meals. We had just begun our lobster bisque when Yukiko received an email, and the bridge gave our captain news.
"Marauders in the Malacca Strait have unsuccessfully attempted to board a cargo vessel," said Captain Okamoto.
"How will that affect us?" asked Cadmar.
"Any ships not wishing to expend extra time and fuel must travel through the Malacca Strait, passing Singapore," said the captain. "It's a bottleneck for shipping and the most dangerous area in the world from marauders."
"I thought East Africa had it the worst," I said.
"No," said Yukiko, "East Africa just gets more publicity."
"They could easily board this ship," said Rocke, "making it a more tempting target."
"Yes," said the captain, "and as a large yacht, marauders think it carries wealthy people."
"Does this ship have any defenses?" asked Rocke.
"Only the weapons we carry with us," Yukiko said.
"I think we can assist you with that," said David.
Yukiko began reading her smartphone. "I have a reply from the board on the distribution of the enhancement." --she had our full attention-- "It's not good."
"What did they say?" I asked.
"They said leaked information on the dark web indicates that the enhancement is capable of upgrades. If true, they said it would be of immense value to the company if we ensured everyone had the enhancement so we could sell upgrades when we can make them available."
"I read your letter to the board," said David. "You presented the problem in a clear, concise statement. Do they not care if people die?"
"Those people have no money," she said, "and therefore do not represent valuable customers."
"As the CEO," said Maggie, "can you do something?"
"They say if I attempt to stop them, they will vote me out and proceed with the plan anyway."
"Can they do that?" asked Maggie.
"Oh, yes," she replied.
"I told you, David," said Cadmar, shaking his head.
"I need time alone for a little while. Please, excuse me." Yukiko stood to leave.
"Yukiko," said David. "We're here for you if you need us."
She smiled a little. "Julien was right," she said, looking upon us. "You don't belong here, and I'm beginning to wonder if I do. Thank you, I'll be okay. I need time to think about what to do."
David invited our group to our cabin; none of the others had seen it. David asked Saburo, our cabin boy, to bring tea for six. We planned to sit and chat that evening in comfortable privacy. The next morning, we would enter the strait, and we needed plans to help protect the ship. We had only three pistols, but with a high enough vantage point, they could easily defend us due to their considerable range. Together, we decided that Cadmar and Rocke would sleep during the day while the three of us stood watch. With the ship's technology, Cadmar's night vision eyes, the night vision goggles Rocke brought from The Black Void, and our three pistols, it should prove more than enough to protect us after dark.
"David, something has concerned me," said Rocke. "When you spoke to Yukiko over the mobile several days ago, you said that you sat with everyone from Jiyu and Captain Okamoto. I'm not from Jiyu."
"My apologies, Rocke," said David. "I shouldn't have presumed."
"Would you like to come with us?" Cadmar asked him. "I would like you to. I could sponsor you, and you could stay with Tamika and me while you settle in."
"I would love to, but...to stay with you," said Rocke, clearly torn over the idea. He shook his head slightly, closed his eyes, and tried to swallow the spit in his rapidly drying mouth. "I'm not sure that's best."
"Do you trust me?" asked Cadmar.
"Oui," he whispered.
"Then trust me," said Cadmar. "We can talk about it later."
He considered it for a moment. "Very well, I accept."
When tea and the conversation ended, Cadmar and Rock decided to stay awake all night to sleep the next day. I alerted the chef of the circumstances. He assured me he would feed our defenders during the night. No one wanted us boarded by marauders, so we pulled together for a few days until we passed Singapore.
Later that evening, David and I had fucked for over an hour before he bred me the first time that night. At that point, he had me up against a wall.
"Do you like that?" he asked. "You like my cock inside you?"
"You know I do."
"Do I fill you as much as you'd like? I can make it more like Cadmar's. I've seen how you admired his cock at the pool. He does have a nice one. If it's like Magnar's, he gets huge when erect."
"You don't mind that I looked?"
"Why would I mind? I looked too. We both like cock, remember?" He thrust inside me a few times to remind me that he likes my ass more."
"You've seen Magnar with an erection?"
"When I moved out of my parent's I stayed with him while I looked for a home. He had fucked his girlfriend that night for quite a while, and he came into the kitchen when I was there getting a drink. He's huge. No wonder his girlfriend made such a racket. She always came back for more though, so she must have enjoyed his enormity. If you would like me bigger in any way, I'll do whatever will make you happy. Let me give you something to feel while you think about it."
He cock-walked me back to the bed, and he began fucking me again.
Afterward, breathing heavily, lying on our side with David's cock buried inside me, I asked him a question.
"If I said I wanted you bigger, would that make you feel bad?"
"No, we're merely searching a size that gives you optimal satisfaction. If you want me to be Cadmar's size, or even bigger, you let me know."
"Okay, I'll have to think about it. Speaking of Cadmar, what do you think of Rocke staying with Cadmar and Tamika?" I whispered.
"I don't have an opinion on the matter," he said, "but you do, what is it?"
"I'm not sure. Wouldn't that cause a problem with Cadmar and Tamika? Wouldn't Rocke torture himself, having Cadmar right there with his connection to him?"
"It depends on what Cadmar has in mind," said David, whispering to me.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, not every couple on Jiyu considers themselves monogamous, although many do. Some people feel they have enough love for more than one person, while others like to focus their love and attention on one individual. So that you know, I fit into the latter category."
I smiled. "I'm pleased to hear it. So, do you mean polygamy and polyandry?"
"More like polyamory," said David. "Cadmar and Tamika's relationship could work like that, or perhaps Cadmar wouldn't mind having an inamorato."
"An inamorato, you mean a male lover?" I asked.
"Sure, but then again, it could have nothing to do with any of that, and maybe Cadmar's just a nice guy. I don't feel it's my business."
"I've seen how Rocke looks at Cadmar sometimes. I don't think he would feel satisfied with the status of an inamorato. Besides, I thought Cadmar was straight."
"Something you probably should know about that, almost nobody on Jiyu uses those labels," said David. "I've used them with you in conversation because I know that you have a rather Earthbound understanding of sexuality. So, while people do have their sexual preferences on Jiyu, we try not to make them contingent. We love people, not someone's sex or gender."
I felt my forehead wrinkle, and I yawned. "So, when the person you find yourself in love with and their sex line up with your sexual preference, would you call that a lucky happenstance?" I could feel myself winding down.
David laughed. "When you put it that way... I don't explain this well. You should ask someone in that kind of relationship. I don't mind thinking of myself as gay, and I tend to want sex only after I love someone, but many people on Jiyu view love and sex as separate things. I know Magnar does. Cadmar and Tamika may; I don't know."
"Has Magnar ever had a mate?" I asked, feeling sleepy.
"I've never known him to," whispered David.
"Hmm...we probably should sleep. We have a long day of sentry duty tomorrow."
Cadmar and Rocke had taken positions on the topmost deck with the bridge. Above that deck, the ship's designers attached various navigational equipment, thermal imaging, some highly sophisticated radar, and night-vision technologies, which the bridge crew already used nightly.
Half the world's oil tankers passed through the narrow Malacca Strait. The ships also included cargo ships, container ships, and every other vessel traveling either direction between the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea. Ships require a more sizable buffer zone around them than one might realize, so it would understate the level of closeness to call what we saw merely 'crowded'. With that many ships, it amazed me we didn't witness a collision, especially in the narrowest stretch at only 1.7 miles across. Those hours through the strait proved the most tiring and nail-biting of our journey, but to our relief, they proved uneventful as it was for most ships. When we finally passed Singapore, we had reached the other side unimpeded.
The black and white striped lighthouse of Pedra Branca marked the point we left the waters of Singapore and entered the southern portion of the China Sea. Apart from the lighthouse and the communications tower there, it seemed little more than a collection of wave-worn boulders protruding from the water.
About half an hour after passing the lighthouse, a ship three-quarters our size had pulled alongside us about fifty yards off our starboard and struggled to keep our pace. I hadn't known much about military ships, so unless I saw one of the larger ones like a battleship or an aircraft carrier, I hadn't a clue. The captain told us the frigate came from the British Royal Navy. The two ships remained in parallel for over an hour. As David, Aiden, Maggie, Yukiko, and I watched the vessel from the main deck, Julien's smartphone rang; the call came through the ship's satellite internet connection. We went indoors so David could answer it on speaker.
"I will get Cadmar and Rocke," said Maggie. "I know they're sleeping, but it's almost time for them to get up anyway." She bolted from the room.
"Hello," said David.
"Hello, may I, please, speak to Mr. Levitt?" asked a posh British voice. "I am Captain Thurlow of the H.M.S. Bailiwick off your starboard. Can you hear me well?"
"You're speaking to Mr. Levitt, and yes, we can hear you. I have you on speaker, but please wait a moment."
A minute later, a still dressing Cadmar and Rocke ran into the room, a smiling Maggie followed behind.
"Okay, thank you for waiting," said David. "You might hear more than me commenting, so do try to keep up. What do you want?"
"I wish to speak with you in private, Mr. Levitt."
"I'm sure you do, captain," said David, "but we have no secrets between any of us. Talk or don't talk, that's up to you, but it remains on speaker. I suggest you take this opportunity."
We could hear a sigh on the other end. "Very well, I should tell you that I am recording this conversation."
"Good," said David, "I appreciate the accuracy it will provide."
"Firstly, we wish for you to know that the Americans secretly had Monsieur Le Gal killed, and that the British Government does not sanction such acts and that we are dealing with them harshly as a result."
Yukiko said nothing, but her eyes closed in anguish. Julien's death upset us all; they took one of our friends from us, and we didn't take too kindly to that.
"Okay," said David, "but Her Majesty, the Queen, could have informed us of that from the throne of her private lavatory in Buckingham Palace. Why are you off our starboard?
"I am here to tell you that we admit we have made mistakes. We had nine years of your loyal service, Mr. Levitt; then, we treated you and your people abominably by aligning ourselves with the Americans rather than taking the opportunity to cultivate an unprecedented relationship between ourselves and your people on Jiyu. Our actions have been ignorant, reactionary, and shortsighted; for that, we humbly apologize."
They made an admission with a second-hand apology. It would have looked better and held more weight if the Prime Minister had made the apology in public.
We appreciate your willingness to admit it," said Aiden. "And now, the reason for your presence."
"Yes," said Captain Thurlow, "I have read your file, Mr. Levitt. The Right Honourable Ms. Newton of the Home Office has written extensively of your actions within her project. Many of us know you by reputation, but few of us know just how much you've done for us. You repeatedly helped our government save billions of pounds and avoid many potentially embarrassing situations, and much more that I will not speak of here. I see now why they've said nothing of your eccentricities, or your propensity to insert yourself into things beyond your purview. When you arrive, whatever you set yourself to accomplish, it's always better on the other side. It's for that reason we need you, Mr. Levitt. What we have done will harm the United Kingdom and this world; we see that now."
"I appreciate the recognition, Captain Thurlow," said David. "I could do without the ego-stroking, though. So, you want me to clean up your mess for you, is that it?"
I stared into David's eyes, and he shook his head. He had no intention of going with them.
"It's difficult to admit," said the captain, "but we've never faced, shall we say, `alien' technology. It will require someone with expertise beyond our knowledge to help us get back on track, so yes. You would have an advisory position, of course. The problem is too big. You would need a great deal of help."
"Have the Americans tried to take control of the area around the portal yet?" asked Cadmar.
We could hear an agitated sigh on the other end. "Yes, that happened two days ago. It seems that the Americans we knew no longer exist. They appear disinterested in a partnership."
"They've changed rapidly after the end of the Cold War," I said.
"Yes," said Captain Thurlow.
"So, why keep cozy with them?" asked David.
"Better the devil you know than the one you don't," said the captain. "As it stands, Mr. Levitt, we don't want to go to war with the Americans, they outgun us, and my superiors tell me they keep bringing in soldiers, all of whom they have enhanced."
"Why can't you make them leave?" I asked.
"We would have many reasons it's not that simple," said the captain, "but I'm sure top people are working on that now."
"Do you know what they are doing around the portal?" Cadmar asked.
"Not precisely, but I have heard they have a lot of equipment."
"You know they want to get to the portal," said David, "and once they do, they will invade Jiyu."
"Can they get to the portal?" asked the captain.
"I don't know," said David, "but if we want a time when your people have a relationship with our people worth cultivating, you must ensure they don't. That is why we must return to Jiyu as quickly as possible. We must warn our people, and all this difficulty both you and the Americans have caused us hasn't made that easy."
"How can we know if you will return?" asked the captain.
"Captain, I don't know what the file you've read says about me, but if it doesn't, it should tell you that I'm a man of my word. I will return. I cannot tell you when because much of that is up to you, and what happens on Jiyu. You must keep the portal near London clear. One thing, though, the United Kingdom needs to strengthen its ties with Japan. Go to the Japanese Embassy in London. Tell them what's happened and that David Levitt, the Ambassador from Jiyu, wishes to make the same arrangement with the people of Japan as he does those of Britain and that I will make a formal offer to them later. In the meantime, they can think about it. I want to press upon you how important this is to everyone, especially to those of us on Jiyu, yet I'm trusting you to do this, and I expect you to trust me. If you can do that, and demonstrate your desire for a good relationship, our worlds could go far."
"What's in it for your people?" asked the captain.
"The people of Jiyu only seek a greater connection to their larger family," said David. "We are all family."
"I don't understand," said Captain Thurlow. "Why would you seek to befriend us? We have endangered your world, your lives, threatened you, allied with the people responsible for having killed one of your companions, and you still want to befriend us. Why?"
"Because we forgive you. That's what family does," said David.
"That makes no sense to me."
"We anxiously await a time when it makes all the sense in the world to every one of you," said David. "When that happens is up to you."
"And if we never do?"
"If you haven't destroyed yourselves utterly," said Cadmar, "there's always the possibility of change."
"So, now, the question is," said David, "what will you do to help us, rather than hinder?"
"Unlike you, I am under a chain of command," said the captain. "They have not authorized me to take any actions either way."
"That's an excellent answer for a cog in a bureaucratic machine, but-" said David, "what will 'you' do as a human being?"
We heard only silence for at least a minute.
"I will have to get back to you," said Captain Thurlow, and the call abruptly ended.
"That was interesting," I said.
"What do you think he might do?" asked Rocke.
"Maybe nothing," said Cadmar.
"Perhaps," said David, "or it might be something. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt."
As the two ships continued to travel in parallel, the day went on as per usual with exercise, sun, meals, and conversation. Maggie told me something I would usually find interesting, but the news fell flat. I was beginning to see why David felt such things were none of his business. Not long ago, the gossip of Cadmar having slept in Rocke's room would have interested me, but I knew these people. I had too much love and respect for them to feel anything over it. As David would say, it had absolutely nothing to do with me. I appreciated that Maggie told me, if for no other reason than for me to learn that David was right. Maggie and I had a lengthy discussion about it. The conclusion resulted in registering the fact and moving on. We had, as usual, many more important things happening.
At every meal, Yukiko had sat next to a different member of our group, attempting to find where she would fit. That evening at dinner, she sat next to me. I had noticed she took to doing that the previous few meals. She asked me what Jiyu was like, and I told her the same as I did Maggie. I asked her what it felt like to be a CEO.
"It's like, I know I would find it rewarding if I could do my job without a group of men scrutinizing every decision I make because I'm a woman."
"You mean the board members," I said. "Isn't that their job?"
"Not to the degree the board has taken it with me. If I were a man, they would treat me differently."
"Would all the women in leadership positions have that problem?"
"I don't know. In a study, the sample size would be too small. Males dominate the culture of Japan, and the traditional roles of men and women remain in the minds of the citizenry. So, that fact alone tells me how far women still must go before men treat us as equals. When someone treats me poorly, it brings out my bad side. I know that doesn't help, but it often gets results. I don't like having to do that, though."
"What made Captain Okamoto not too thrilled with your visit when you arrived? He seems okay now."
"Oh that," she said. "He is my uncle. When last I saw him, we hadn't parted on good terms. I apologized to him and brought him a bottle of fifty-year-old, single malt Japanese whisky."
"Ah, he must like his whisky then," I said.
"Oh, he likes whisky okay," she said, "but he likes that I paid the equivalent of hundred and fifty thousand dollars for it."
"That's ridiculously expensive. Did the money you spend on it impress him enough to forgive you?"
"He's not interested in the money," she said. "He likes to keep the good stuff in his office to impress guests. I gave him the ability to do that, so he forgave me." She smiled.
It made me laugh. "It's funny the things that motivate people," I said, and I stared at her for a moment. "Why is it important that you help us? It's not just KGSC, is it?"
She smiled a little but looked down at her plate. "Julien told me you were perceptive. I haven't said anything because how we got here sounds highly improbable. Early on, KGSC solely had driven our involvement with you, and I admit that. However, I heard the surveillance, and a few coincidences resonated with me. Then, after Julien met you, whenever he contacted me with more information, more coincidences were added to the list. But when Julien told me that you believed you would find a portal in Japan, I felt like the pieces of my existence had fallen into place, and I made it my purpose to help you as best I could."
"That's quite a thing to say."
"Yes, I know," she said, "I find the significance of our interwoven circumstances a little intimidating."
"What makes you feel that way?"
"I grew up hearing a story that my family has repeated for ages. Someone may have embellished it at some point, but here it is. It's about two brothers. One, Yamato, a protector, lived in freedom. The other, Kosuke, a liberator, remained a slave to the emperor. The brother who lived in freedom protected many people, but he could only have done so because the other brother sacrificed himself by his enslavement. By living as a slave, he found people who longed for freedom and sent them to live with his protector brother. The emperor somehow discovered he was liberating people, and he caught the brother helping one of the emperor's daughters when he began forcing her to marry a man she despised. They sentenced him to death, but with the help of his son, he escaped. During their pursuit, they hid in a forest hoping to meet Yamato, his protector brother, but Kosuke couldn't find him. Before the Emperor's soldiers could capture him, he killed himself to preserve his honor, but before doing so, his son told him that he would ensure the family would never forget his sacrifice. My parents told me that our family descends from those people. For many years, I thought it nothing more than a family story, but when Julien told me of the possibility of a portal in Japan, all doubt had gone. I don't know if life destined me to help you, or if we live in a far smaller world than we think."
As I sat in awe of her story, I hadn't realized that all conversation at the table had ceased. Everyone listened, and no one said a word.
"Julien did all this for you, didn't he?" I asked.
She nodded and suddenly began to cry.
The image of a continuum of events had come into focus, leaving me speechless. I hugged Yukiko, and we stood next to the table like that for several minutes. It seemed that the entirety of the universe had come into alignment, and everything, at least for that moment of realization, was right with the world.
We drew near the Spratly Archipelago the next morning when Julien's mobile rang. While we had all assembled in the lounge --except Cadmar and Rocke, a call came from Captain Thurlow with an abrupt message.
"I have no time for debate or discussion," said the captain, "I'm trusting you; now you must trust me. After calling in a few favors, I have a helicopter en route to your ship; it could land at any moment. It will take you to Manila, where a jet awaits you, no questions asked. The Japanese will direct it to Toyama airport, where a government official will wait to help you bypass security. The Japanese government knows about you and is looking forward to your proposal upon your return. Good luck to you all."
With that, the call ended, our nautical companion veered to the right and headed back toward Singapore.
"This is sudden," said Maggie.
"Will you go?" asked Yukiko.
"Do you think we should?" David asked.
"Yes," she said. "I want you to make it home, and so would Julien."
"We're down two votes, but all in favor of bypassing this opportunity, say 'aye'," David said. No one said a word.
Just before we scrambled to our cabins, I asked Yukiko, "Will you come with us?"
"I cannot," she said, "after Julien's death, I could use a few days alone before I go back to helming KGSC."
I nodded. "Thank you for everything you and Julien have done for us. It cost you dearly; I'm so sorry about that." I hugged her.
"If you return with David, I might see you again," she said. "I would like that."
I honestly didn't want to return to Earth, but I knew I would have to come back one day. At the least, David's absence would prove too agonizing. "We're a team, David and I," I said, glancing at David. "Where he goes, I go. If circumstances permit, we will meet again."
"Good," she said, "I'll inform Captain Okamoto of the change in plan and stop the ship."
As we raced to our cabins, I went to Rocke's room to get him and Cadmar; they jumped at the chance to go home sooner. When I left them to get ready, I suddenly felt the ship's engines disengage, and the vessel slowed. I found David packing our things and had sent Saburo to collect our laundry from below deck. We met him on the way out. David unceremoniously stuffed our bags with the clothing Saburo had neatly folded with an apology and gave him our thanks. He wished us good fortune.
We all stood on the deck, looking at the bow section with the helipad. A few minutes later, Yukiko joined us, and we hugged her goodbye.
"I couldn't imagine what might have happened to us if we could never have left England, so thank you," said Cadmar, holding tightly to the drone case. "I will remember you."
"I know you will."
"Without your part in my receiving the enhancement," said Rocke, "I would be dead. I don't have enhanced memory, but your brief presence in my life has been a gift that I will treasure." He kissed her hand, and she hugged him.
"Julien appreciated your leadership skills," she said. "If Jiyu has ships, they would do well to have you captain one. Good luck to you."
We didn't know what language our pilot would speak. I dreaded the notion of struggling to communicate with them. When the helicopter arrived fifteen minutes later, it pleased us to see how much room we had; it easily held six passengers. I sat in the co-pilot seat in the case of a language barrier. I did not need to worry; she came from Australia. We closed the side door and made lift-off.
The ship receded from my view as we flew northeast toward Manila. It had all happened so suddenly, and it frightened me a bit. I didn't know if we jumped headlong into a trap or not. It gave us no time to consider anything or weigh our options. We could have made a grave mistake, and if we had, we could not turn back.