Sergei Lukyanenko - The Genome

“So it is a truth drug after all, and not just a hallucinogen?” countered Janet.

Strange as it seemed, her argument worked. Sey-Zo, now stone-faced, backed off.

Alex mentally applauded.

“Shall we continue?” Holmes put away his weapon. “While on my way to the ship, I became convinced that the situation was much worse than I had supposed originally. Everyone had reasons to kill the Zzygou. In order of seniority, let me start with the captain.”

“As far as I remember, my only fault was that I didn’t have any reasons to kill the Zzygou,” Alex smirked.

“No, Captain. You did have reasons. And you very well know it.”

“So you did find out, eh?” asked Alex dryly, lifting his eyes.

“Of course. Victor Romanov. Captain of the corvette Rapier . Holder of the Endless Valor Star and three classes of the Orders of Human Glory. Your elder brother, with whom you had a deep emotional bond. He perished in a battle with a Zzygou military ship twenty-three years ago. The widely known incident in the Tokyo-2 system… it was a sad moment, but one that finally settled the two great races’ differences.”

Now all eyes were on Alex.

“It would be stupid to take revenge on every individual of an alien race,” said Alex. “Do you really suppose that, for almost a quarter of a century, I have been looking for a chance to kill any and every Zzygou?”

“Are you telling me you haven’t read the report of Rapier ’s demise?” queried Holmes with a crooked grin.

“I haven’t read it.”

Holmes stopped short. He looked at Alex in surprise.

“But why not, Captain? It would be a natural reaction.”

“I knew I was going to work in space. Have encounters with the Zzygou. I didn’t want to know the details. I didn’t want to make my whole life a vendetta.”

“That is hardly the reaction one would expect from a youth fresh out of metamorphosis.”

“Perhaps. But I haven’t looked at that report. Mr. Holmes… the phrase ‘deep emotional bond’ is a lie. My elder brother was a government child, who had been sent away to be raised at a pilot school from his early infancy. We met, yes… he would visit his parents occasionally, like any good government child. I liked to tell others that my brother was a military pilot. That I wanted to become like him. But emotional connection… forgive me, Mr. Holmes, there just wasn’t any. Ever.”

No one said anything. Only the Zzygou, her eyes fixed on Alex, was whispering something inaudibly.

“The incident in the Tokyo-2 system was connected with the fact that the Zzygou military ship had the Crown Princess Zey-So aboard,” said Holmes, no longer sure of himself. “It was she, as the highest-ranking person, who made the decision to disobey the patrol ship… to instigate the battle.”

Alex was silent.

“You didn’t know about this?” asked Holmes.

“No. I didn’t.” Alex shook his head, looking at Sey-Zo. Had she also been there, on that Zzygou ship? Most probably she had. She and Zey-So were inseparable. But even if he had known all that… he wouldn’t have killed the princess.

“I’m ready to believe you,” said Holmes. “And… I’m inclined to believe that you haven’t read the report of that old conflict. And that your relationship with your brother was not so deep that you would seek to avenge him. But someone wasn’t aware of that.”

“Who?” asked Alex.

“How did you get to Quicksilver Pit?” answered Holmes with a question.

“You know how. There was an accident on my ship. I was torn in half. Literally. They had to generate half my body anew…”

“It’s a believable version,” Holmes nodded. “Except that the experts have conducted another check of your body’s remains. It had been cremated, of course, but a few samples did remain in the hospital funds.”

Alex started. The very thought that some part of him was now lying somewhere under the lens of a microscope made him feel sort of numb. Although not so much as one might expect.

“You had been cut in half by a laser beam, Alex. But, someone seems to have paralyzed you first, made you lose consciousness.”

“What for?”

“For a single purpose. To make you stay on Quicksilver Pit. To have you come out of the hospital at the moment the Sky Company would need a captain for the new ship. To make you the captain… so you would see among your passengers the Zzygou Swarm’s Princess, Lady Zey-So.”

“Someone thought I would kill her?”

Holmes pondered for a moment.

“More likely—someone hoped you would, while creating the stalemate situation we have now. Where everyone’s a suspect.”

“But I hired the crew by myself!”

“Yes. But whom did you hire? Xang Morrison,” Holmes nodded at the co-pilot, “who was turned down by other ships under all sorts of phony pretenses. Xang Morrison, the former extremist… You hired Janet Ruello from Eben, who had a similar problem finding work. Then you took Kim O’Hara into your crew, a girl who hadn’t undergone the psychological training required for a fighter-spesh. You took aboard Puck Generalov, who hates clones. You took Paul Lourier, who had been fired upon arriving on Quicksilver Pit, back into the crew again. And after that, the company sends the honorable Zzygou and the esteemed C-the-Third onto your ship!”

“But who could have foreseen all this?” Alex shook his head. “I’m afraid I must still remain on the list of suspects. It would be much more realistic to suspect me than to suppose that it’s all the work of some secret organization, powerful enough for such intrigues. To have interfered with all the spaceport services on Quicksilver Pit… surely not, Mr. Holmes!”

“Yes, you remain on the list.” Holmes nodded. “Along with everyone else. I have to admit that the unknown enemy has been deliberately setting up a situation which interferes with the investigation… at least for a short period of time. Someone has been hungry for war between the Empire and the Swarm.”

“Who?” Alex repeated.

“You’re an interesting person, Alex. You’re a pilot, but you are trying to play detective.” Holmes smiled. “Tell me your version.”

Alex heaved a deep sigh.

“The military, that’s my first thought. An alien race… not us, not the Zzygou… Maybe Cepheideans or Bronins…”

“Remarkable,” Holmes said encouragingly. “Anyone else?”

Alex glanced at Janet. Looked away.

“Say it, Captain!”

“Former citizens of the planet Eben. Those who stayed beyond the bounds of the isolation field, who have acquired citizenship… but never lost hope of saving their world.”

“Remarkable, Captain. Now let’s think about this situation. Lady Sey-Zo, what other races might be interested in a conflict between the Zzygou and the Humans?”

The alien thought for a moment. Then grudgingly admitted:

“Practi-cally any race. A local conflict between us will weakening the Empire and the Swarm. It would benefiting everyone… excepting us.”

“In case of war, humanity would be forced to take the quarantine off Eben,” said Holmes. “Do you understand that? What is your prediction?”

“You won’t dare do it!” cried Sey-Zo.

“There is a ninety-nine percent probability that we would. It’s a bad bet, but better than the certainty of mutual extermination.”

“Then no one is interested. Nowhere except…”—the Zzygou shifted her gaze onto Janet once again—“except for the inhabitants of Eben.”

“Janet Ruello?” Holmes asked. Alex tensed. But the detective did not say the formulaic phrase to charge her with the crime. He was obviously waiting for the ship doctor’s words.

“What do you want from me?” answered Janet calmly. “Do I mourn the death of the Zzygou? No, of course not…” She suddenly stopped. Shook her head. “Not at all!”