Dark Benediction

“Yes, sir. They tried to break away by driving to a higher C-level. Our warp was already at six-thousand C’s. The mass-components of our star cluster at that level were just a collapsing gas cloud. Of course, with our automatic trackers, they just dragged us with them, stalled, and plunged the other way. They pulled us down to the quarter-C level; most of the galaxy was at the red-dwarf stage. I suppose they realized then that they couldn’t get away from us like that. They came back to a sensible warp and continued on their previous course.”

“And you did what?”

“We warned them by every means of communication at our disposal, read them the standard warning.”

“They acknowledge?”

“Once, sir. They came back to say: This is an emergency shipment. We have orders not to stop. We are continuing on course, and will report you to authority upon arrival.” Roki paused, eyeing the colonel doubtfully. “May I make a personal observation, sir?”

Beth nodded tolerantly. “Go ahead.”

“They wasted more time dodging about in the C’th component than they would have lost if they had allowed us to board them. I regarded this behavior as highly suspicious.”

“Did it occur to you that it might be due to some peculiarity in Sol III’s culture? Some stubbornness, or resentment of authority?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you ask opinions of your crew?”

A slight frown creased Roki’s high forehead. “No, sir.”

“Why not?”

“Regulation does not require it, sir. My personal reason—the cultural peculiarities of my planet.”

The barb struck home. Colonel Beth knew the military culture of Roki’s world—Coph IV. Military rank was inherited. On his own planet, Roki was a nobleman and an officer of the war-college. He had been taught to rely upon his own decisions and to expect crisp, quick obedience. The colonel frowned at his desk.

“Let’s put it this way: Did you know the opinions of the crew?”

“Yes, sir. They thought that we should abandon the pursuit and allow the freighter to continue. I was forced to confine two of them to the brig for insubordination and attempted mutiny.” He stopped and glanced at one of the majors. “All due apologies to you, sir.”

The major flushed. He ranked Roki, but he had been with the patrol as an observer, and despite his higher rank, he was subject to the ship commander’s authority while in space. He had also been tossed in the brig. Now he glared at the Cophian space commander without speaking.

“All right, commander, when they refused to halt, what did you do?”

“I withdrew to a safe range and fired a warning charge ahead of them. It exploded in full view of their scopes, dead ahead. They ignored the warning and tried to flee again.”

“Go on.”

Roki’s shoulders lifted in the suggestion of a shrug. “In accordance with Article Thirty of the Code; I shot them out of space.”

The girl made a choking sound. “And over ten thousand people died on Jod VI because you—”

“That will do, Dalai” snapped Colonel Beth.

There was a long silence. Roki waited calmly for further questioning. He seemed unaware of the girl’s outburst. The colonel’s voice came again with a forced softness.

“You examined the debris of the destroyed vessel?”

“Yes, sir.”

“What did you find?”

“Fragments of quick-frozen bone, blood plasma, various bodily organs and tissues in cultured or frozen form, prepared for surgical use in transplanting operations; in other words, a complete stock of surgibank supplies, as was anticipated. We gathered up samples, but we had no facilities for preserving what was left.”

The colonel drummed his fingers. “You said ‘anticipated.’ Then you knew full well the nature of the cargo, and you did not suspect contraband material of any kind?”

Roki paused. “I suspected contraband, colonel,” he said quietly.

Beth lifted his eyebrows in surprise. “You didn’t say that before.”

“I was never asked.”

“Why didn’t you say it anyway?”

“I had no proof.”

“Ah, yes,” murmured the colonel. “The culture of Coph IV again. Very well, but in examining the debris, you found no evidence of contraband?” The colonel’s distasteful expression told the room that he knew the answer, but only wanted it on the record.

But Roki paused a long time. Finally, he said, “No evidence, sir.”

“Why do you hesitate?”

“Because I still suspect an illegality—without proof, I’m afraid.”

This time, the colonel’s personal feelings betrayed him in a snort of disgust. He shuffled his papers for a long time, then looked at the major who had accompanied the patrol. “Will you confirm Roki’s testimony, major? Is it essentially truthful, as far as you know?”

The embarrassed officer glared at Roki in undisguised hatred. “For the record, sir—I think the commander behaved disgracefully and insensibly. The results of the stoppage of vitally needed supplies prove—”

“I didn’t ask for a moral judgment!” Beth snapped. “I asked you to confirm what he has said here. Were the incidents as he described them?”

The major swallowed hard. “Yes, sir.”