Steph Bennion - Hollow Moon

Hanuman’s story was a familiar tale. The Que Qiao Corporation had long grown beyond the point where its president and board of governors could claim to have full control. Yuanshi was a long way from the corporation’s headquarters in Shanghai and shareholders on Earth did not want to hear about a war on some far-flung moon. Governor Jaggarneth in Ayodhya had been left to manage the situation, on the understanding no questions would be asked as long as profits continued to roll. Yuanshi was otherwise of great interest to the corporation, for Hanuman and Ganesa had learned that the moon was home to a valuable resource used in the commercial manufacture of AI units.

Jaggarneth long ago decided to use the civil war as an excuse to run Yuanshi as a police state under a corporate version of martial law. The self-proclaimed freedom fighters of Lanka were badly organised, ill-equipped and had not had a strong leader since the death of Surya’s father years before. When the priest Taranis reappeared on the scene and the plot to restore a Maharaja to the throne of Yuanshi was discovered, Jaggarneth set his agents to work to ensure that whatever happened, the war would continue.

“What about the peace conference?” asked Ravana. “Is that all just for show?”

Ganesa shook her head. “The conference is Governor Atman’s idea,” she said. “He’s really sweet and genuinely wants to bring peace to Yuanshi. He doesn’t understand that it’s only Jaggarneth’s meddling that is keeping the war going in the first place.”

Zotz looked confused. “I don’t understand.”

“Commander Kartikeya and his royalists are a useless bunch of misfits who are more likely to injure themselves than anyone else,” Hanuman said flatly, making Ganesa smile. “Namtar and Inari, who carried out the kidnapping of the Raja, were secretly helped by Jaggarneth every step of the way. Que Qiao agents found a suitable ship and delivered it to where it could be conveniently stolen, while Fenris provided plans to the Dandridge Cole and arranged it so one of the airlocks could be opened from outside.”

“Fenris is a Que Qiao agent?” asked Ostara. “Isn’t he working for Taranis?”

“This is where it gets confusing,” admitted Ganesa. “As far as Kartikeya is aware, Fenris is a double agent whose true loyalty lies with the royalists. I’m not so sure.”

“What about you?” asked Zotz. “You said you’ve met the Raja and you seem to know all about the kidnapping. Are you double agents as well?”

Ganesa looked at Hanuman, then shrugged. “We’re free agents,” she replied. “Mercenaries. We work for anyone as long as the price is right.”

“Who are you working for at the moment?” Ravana asked, eyeing Hanuman carefully. She had yet to make up her mind about whether to trust him and Ganesa.

Hanuman smiled. “Right now we have an empty cargo bay and are open to offers!”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“The farm supplies we brought here were a Que Qiao consignment,” he told her. “Before that, we were in Hemakuta delivering equipment for Kartikeya. And in case you hadn’t guessed, it was our ship that collected Namtar, Inari and the Raja from Ascension and took them to Lanka. I suppose we have a preference for working for Kartikeya and his rebels; the pay’s good and the kitchens at Kubera serve only the best the system has to offer!”

“What was the equipment you took to Hemakuta?” asked Zotz.

“No idea!” said Hanuman. “The crate was sealed and I didn’t ask questions.”

“You really are a class act,” murmured Ostara. “No morals at all.”

“That’s not fair!” protested Hanuman. “Que Qiao frequently threatens to impound the Sun Wukong and throw us in Feng Du unless we agree to play by their rules now and again,” he said. They had all heard of Feng Du, an infamous penal colony on Taotie.

“If you’re in his good books, Hanuman is as loyal as they come,” added Ganesa.

“That’s right!” said Hanuman. “I’ve never let you down, have I?”

Ganesa hesitated. “Well…”

“We’re getting off the point,” Ostara hastily interrupted. “Governor Jaggarneth and Que Qiao helped the rebels kidnap the Raja? Why would they do that?”

“Jaggarneth wants the peace conference to end in chaos,” Hanuman explained. “Partly to enflame the civil war, but also to discredit Atman. Jaggarneth hopes to persuade his superiors that he, not Atman, should be governor of Daode. It’s a more prestigious job.”

“Politics is mind-boggling,” said Ostara and sighed. It was getting too much for Ravana and Zotz, who although interested were tired and on the verge of falling asleep at the table. “One thing you never explained. Why is Yuanshi so important to Que Qiao?”

Hanuman smiled. “You’ve already seen it for yourself,” he replied. “The top secret plantation you somehow managed to enter is in the middle of nowhere for a very good reason. Inside is something very precious indeed.”

Ostara stared at him. “The eggs?”

Hanuman smiled. “And much, much more.”

A short while later they found themselves once again at the entrance to the covered plantation. Ostara ventured that they had forgotten to retrieve Zotz’s flying lantern, which if discovered could get Hanuman and Ganesa into a lot of trouble. Hanuman appeared to have other concerns and alongside his plasma pistol now also carried a holovid camera. He had been most tactful when asking Ravana whether she could open the gate again.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked her. They had already found that the gate and electronic defences had automatically locked and reset in their absence.

Ravana nodded. The picture of the red square and jagged symbol had come back into her head when she stepped up to the gate and it was a simple matter to manipulate the mental image exactly as she had done before. A loud clunk drifted across the night as the two halves of the gate unlocked and began to roll open.

“That’s amazing,” murmured Ganesa. She had already confessed to be more curious than anyone to see what lay inside. “I also have an implant,” she confided to Ravana. “But I’ve never detected any remote circuits in this area. How did you do that?”

Ravana shrugged. “I just prodded the picture in my head.”

“You have an implant?” Zotz asked Ganesa.

“It doesn’t seem to have the same capabilities as Ravana’s, but yes,” she replied. “I was born in Ayodhya the year Que Qiao started the implant programme.”

“When was that? Forty, fifty years ago?” joked Hanuman.

Ganesa gave him a playful punch. “Don’t be horrible! I’m thirty-two.”

Hanuman grinned. Ahead, the gate rattled to a halt. Holding his lamp high, he stepped into the jungle beyond. Close behind were Ravana and Zotz, with Ostara and Ganesa bringing up the rear with the aid of a second lantern. Ravana and Zotz had jumped at the chance of another adventure in the plantation. Ostara, after mumbling something about her comfy Pampa Palace hotel room and her foolishness in not taking a relaxing bath when she had the chance, needed a little more convincing. Ravana once again carried her cat, which still acted most strangely and tried to scrabble up her leg whenever she put it down.

They retraced their earlier steps in no time and arrived back at the edge of the circular pit. Ganesa was fascinated by the grey spheres; although well-versed in the native flora and fauna of Yuanshi, she too had not seen anything like them before. A faint heat rose from the pit and Ravana was convinced the eggs trembled slightly. Zotz had found his fallen lamp, its rotors now dented, but continued to peer into the surrounding jungle as if expecting to see something else. Hanuman took out his holovid camera and spent a few moments recording the scene, slowly panning from left to right as he did so.