Chapter 9
A couple of hours after they had started out, Luc and Kristin came across a small home nestled within the shelter of a grove of trees on the mountainside. Not wanting to draw attention to themselves, they were about to bypass the dwelling when they heard a frightened cry.
"No, please! Stop!"
Kristin froze. Luc stood next to her, his eyes hardening with suspicion.
"In God's name, someone help us! Please!"
The plaintive cry carried on the wind, and was followed by the sounds of harsh laughter, and one equally harsh voice.
"There is no one here to help you!"
"Want to bet?" Luc muttered grimly, looking at Kristin. She nodded, and they both took off down the hillside, racing toward the sound of the cries.
As they approached the home, they saw the owners of the harsh voices. Four Snakeheads were standing in a circle, surrounding two women. Luc and Kristin did not stop, but continued to run at full speed toward the scene.
Even as they reached the group, Luc jumped into the air, thrusting out his leg and coming down for a landing on top of the closest Snakehead's back, forcing him to the ground. Kristin pulled out her yo-yo, grabbing the two ends in each of her hands and crossing her arms, throwing a loop of wire over another soldier's throat and garroting him where he stood. She lifted her leg, drop kicking the next Snakehead as Luc struck the last one in the jaw with his fist. Less than ten seconds after they had arrived on the scene, Luc and Kristin stood with four dead Snakeheads at their feet.
"God has answered my prayer!" sobbed one of the women. She appeared to be in her sixth decade, while the other woman actually turned out to be a young girl, perhaps about thirteen years of age.
"Thank you!" the older woman said, clutching the girl to her. "You don't know what they were going to do to my Clara…"
"I think I do." Kristin said softly. "I have been in the same situation."
"I see…" the woman replied understandingly. "Then you have my thanks all the more."
"I'm just glad we were here to help." Luc said. "You're pretty isolated out here."
"That's why Clara is here." explained the older woman. "Her family sent her to me, hoping she would be safe. The Snakeheads have taken to hanging around the schools, and they have no moral problems with harassing the young female students."
"I'm not surprised." Luc growled. "They have no sense of decency, and no value for human life. They do not belong here."
"I can see that you are no friends of the Snakeheads," the woman said, "and that makes you welcome here. I am Ruth, and this is my granddaughter Clara."
"I am Kristin, and this is Luc. We are glad to meet you, Ruth, and Clara." Kristin held her hand out to each of the women, and Luc did the same.
"Grandmere!" hissed Clara, grabbing Ruth's arm and looking wide-eyed at Luc and Kristin. "Do you think they're the ones…?" Ruth nodded gently, patting the girl's hand.
"Yes, likely so." she agreed, then turned to Luc and Kristin to explain.
"Those Snakeheads were here because they were searching for two escaped prisoners: a man and a woman. They said that these two people were Terran Rebels, and were responsible for many terrible crimes against the Spectran Empire."
"Of course, we told them that we hadn't seen anyone!" Clara added quickly.
"But that didn't stop them from wanting to 'question' my granddaughter more thoroughly." Ruth added disgustedly. "I am very grateful for your timely intervention."
"Are you two really Terran Rebels?" Clara asked in awe. "What did you do to make them so mad?"
"If you're asking, 'Do we fight against the Snakeheads?', then the answer is 'yes'." Luc laughed.
"We like to make things 'more difficult' for them." Kristin grinned at the young girl, who smiled back shyly at her.
"Can I get you anything to eat?" Ruth asked. "It's the least I can do, after the way you helped us. And if you truly are on the run from the Snakeheads, food and shelter must be scarce."
"We have somewhere to get to…" Luc began to speak, but stopped when Kristin placed a soft hand on his arm. She could see that it was important to the woman to return their assistance in some small way.
"We appreciate your hospitality, Ruth." she said politely.
The older woman beamed, running inside the home.
"What should we do with them?" Clara asked hesitantly, looking down at the dead soldiers. The girl was clearly still afraid of these Snakeheads.
"How did they get here?" Luc asked. "Since you're so far from the main road, I'm assuming they had a vehicle?"
"Yes," Clara nodded, "over here." The girl walked to the corner of the house and pointed toward the side opposite to the direction from which Luc and Kristin had come.
They went around the corner, only to see a small Spectran transport vehicle parked there. Luc approached the truck, but as he did, the control panel came to life, a disembodied voice speaking in the Spectran language rising from it.
"Squad Number 46952, report! You are late checking in! Have you found any sign of the Prisoners?"
Luc quickly moved inside the vehicle, speaking in flawless Spectran as he answered the transmission.
"Sorry." he responded in a smug tone. "We got 'distracted' and forgot to check in."
"There's a time for that kind of thing, but not now!" the voice lectured him. "Lord Zoltar wants those two found! He'll have our hides if we can't locate them!"
"There's no sign of them here." Luc 'reported'. "We're going to head toward Chamonix, and keep up the search."
"Just keep looking!" the voice ordered him in a frustrated tone, and the communication ended abruptly.
"What did he say?" Clara asked Kristin. The girl was clearly impressed by Luc's ability to speak Spectran. Kristin briefly related the conversation for her.
"Hopefully, they won't send any more men this way." Luc told her. "But all the same, you and your grandmother may have to deal with the possibility that they might do so."
"Are you actually going to Chamonix?" Clara asked.
"No." Kristin shook her head. "That was to throw them off the track. We're going to Saint Gervais-Les-Bains."
"That's where my family is." Clara revealed. "I miss my mother and father, but they're right. I'm safer here. At least… I was, until today."
"There you all are!" exclaimed Ruth, coming around the corner. "I was wondering where you had gotten to."
"Grandmere, you'll never guess what they did!" Clara chattered excitedly, relaying the events of the past few minutes.
"I see." Ruth nodded. "I hadn't thought about it, but we do need to get rid of these men, and their transport, in case other Snakeheads come looking for them."
"I think we can help with that." Luc offered.
88888
About an hour later, Luc and Kristin were dressed in two of the dead Snakeheads' uniforms, Kristin's jacket worn underneath hers to help disguise her feminine shape. They had helped Ruth and Clara drop the bodies of the soldiers over a cliff and into a nearby gorge, where Ruth had assured them that the wolves and mountain lions would feed on them. The other two uniforms had been burned.
"Thank you for lunch, Ruth." Kristin said graciously. "It was delicious."
"It was the best meal I've had since Kristin made me blueberry muffins for breakfast, back in Calvi." Luc grinned.
"You are from Corsica?" Ruth asked.
"We were there for awhile." Luc told her. "There are no Snakeheads on Corsica. If you and Clara want to get away from here, make your way to Marseilles or Nice and ask for Andre, the boat Captain. He will take you to Calvi and introduce you to Mattieu Canton, the Mayor there. Tell them that Luc and Kristin sent you."
"We may just do that." Ruth sighed, a troubled expression on her face. "You are right, Luc. Now that they know that we are here…" she sighed again turning to face Kristin.
"May I request one last favor of you?" Ruth asked.
"If we can help you, we will." Kristin answered.
"I do not trust the communications lines, as the Snakeheads monitor them frequently." Ruth said. "When you get to Saint Gervais-Les-Bains, would you deliver a letter to our family? I need to let them know that we are safe."
"We will." assured Kristin, taking the letter from the older woman's hands.
They said their goodbyes, and Ruth and Clara watched from the hillside as Luc and Kristin drove away in the Spectran transport. The young Rebels both hoped that the Snakehead vehicle and uniforms would be an effective disguise. Eventually, of course, the Snakeheads would realize that their squad had gone missing, but this subterfuge should at least get them to the train station.
The journey to Saint Gervais-Les–Bains proved uneventful, despite coming across a Snakehead checkpoint on the highway. Luc and Kristin were lazily waved through by the soldiers there, but as they slowed, they were surprised to see their likenesses being broadcast on the monitors at the checkpoint station. There was an image of Luc from the Spectran prison records they had viewed in the Penal Complex databanks, as well as a somewhat blurrier image of Kristin that had clearly been taken from security camera footage at the Mont Blanc Base the day before. Seeing herself displayed as a wanted criminal on the broadcast, Kristin was glad that she was wearing the Snakehead mask, and that no one could see her real face.
When they got to the outskirts of Saint Gervais-Les–Bains, Luc and Kristin got out of the transport vehicle, electing to continue wearing the Snakehead uniforms, seeing as the Spectran efforts toward their recapture had become much more intense than they had ever anticipated.
Luc used a trick Kristin had seen before: programming the transport vehicle to move quickly in a straight line, and then sending it down a flat country road, to hopefully end up far from their current position. Luc had sent the truck in a southerly direction, and they both hoped that by the time it was located, they would be long gone to Geneva.
Saint Gervais-Les–Bains wasn't a big town, and Luc and Kristin easily located the address Ruth had given them. They regretted the necessity of having to show up at the family's home in Snakehead uniforms, but they couldn't risk recapture.
It was late afternoon by the time they mounted the steps to Ruth's family's home. The dwelling was an apartment above a drug store, but fortunately the entrances to the living areas were in the back, and Luc and Kristin were able to enter the upper storey unnoticed. Kristin knocked politely at the apartment door, and after a few moments they were greeted by a frightened-looking woman.
"We're not Snakeheads." Kristin said immediately. Something in her tone, or perhaps her feminine voice, caused the woman's fear to ease, and they could see that her expression was somewhat less guarded.
"We have a message for you, from Ruth and Clara." Luc said quietly. "May we come in?"
The woman hesitated, then nodded, and Luc and Kristin stepped inside of the small, neat home. Luc bowed his head respectfully, and Kristin removed her mask, as a sign of good faith.
"You're…" the woman's face was no longer fearful, but she was clearly surprised. "You're one of the Rebels the Snakeheads are looking for… and he is the other?"
"Yes." Luc said, removing his own mask. "We hope you understand why we had to dress this way. We did not mean to alarm you. My name is Luc, and this is Kristin."
"Your images are all over the broadcasts." the woman told them. "Every Snakehead in the area is looking for you. And you just wandered into town, dressed in their uniforms!" She began to laugh.
"No wonder they want you so badly! It seems that the two of you are more clever and cunning than their entire army!"
"I don't know about that." Kristin grinned. "But I'm just glad we've escaped their notice so far."
"Your letter, Madame." Luc said gallantly, pulling the missive Ruth had given to him from their pack. "You are Jeanette, I presume?"
"Yes." she said. "You saw my mother? And my daughter? How are they?"
"You can see for yourself." Kristen replied, gesturing toward the letter. "They are well. They knew we were coming this way and wanted us to deliver a communication that would not be intercepted by the Snakeheads."
"I appreciate the service you have done." Jeanette nodded. "Would you care to rest for a moment? It must be hard work, dodging the Snakeheads wherever you go."
"It's certainly easier when they're not actively out looking for us." Luc admitted.
"You will need to get out of Saint Gervais-Les Bains." Jeanette told them. "They are looking for you here, although I gather that most of the search effort is concentrated in Chamonix."
"We're planning on taking a train tomorrow morning." Kristin told her. "Do you know what time they run?"
"I think the first train is at 6:30 am." Jeanette answered. "It goes to Geneva. The trains to Lyon do not begin until the afternoon. Those are large stations, unlike here, and you will be able to transfer to wherever else you need to go."
"Thank you." Luc replied, refraining from mentioning that Geneva was their final destination. The less this woman knew, the better. He didn't want to cause her any more trouble than they already had.
"Would you like something to eat?" she asked.
"Your mother asked us the same thing." Kristin smiled.
"She taught me the rules of hospitality." Jeanette smiled, getting up and moving into the next room. She returned with a plate of cookies, a pot of tea, and two cups, which she placed on a low table in front of them. Luc and Kristin thanked her graciously, then sat down.
While they ate, Jeanette read the letter they had delivered. When she had finished, her face was as white as the paper the missive had been written on.
"My daughter… they were going to hurt my daughter…" she whispered, clutching the paper to her chest.
"Clara is fine." Kristin reassured her. She glanced nervously at Luc. Neither of them had realized that Ruth would describe exactly how Luc and Kristin had crossed her path.
"You saved her…" Jeanette said, rubbing at her teary eyes. "Those Snakeheads… my mother is right. God sent you their way, this morning."
"We just helped someone in trouble." Luc protested. "And we were glad to do so. We have been helping people in need for quite some time, now."
"That's why the Snakeheads are after you." Jeanette smiled. "You've been helping humans by hurting the Spectrans. You truly are Terran Rebels."
"Some people like to think so." Kristin grinned.
"I want you both to stay here, tonight." Jeanette said suddenly. "You can't catch a train until tomorrow morning, and it's better for you if you are off the streets."
"We can't do that!" Kristin protested. "The Snakeheads are after us! If they find us here, you could be hurt, and that's the last thing we would want."
"The Snakeheads are not likely to come here tonight, seeing as they haven't followed you here already." Jeanette said logically. "And this is the least I can do for the people who saved my daughter, and then risked their own safety to bring me a letter from my mother."
"Are you certain, Jeanette?" Luc asked intently. "Despite what you think, you have no obligation to us."
"You must stay." she insisted. "I owe you that much."
There was a noise behind them, and everyone turned to see a man walking through the door.
"This is my husband, Paul." Jeanette introduced him. "Paul, these two people are Luc and Kristin."
"I know who they are." Paul said accusingly. "Their images have been all over the broadcasts today. How could you bring them here, Jeanette? Do you understand what kind of danger that puts us in?"
"That is what I was just saying." Luc commented. "Jeanette, I think we should go."
"No…" Jeanette protested. "Paul, you must read this!" She thrust Ruth's letter into her husband's hands. Paul reluctantly took the paper and skimmed it, his eyes widening with each word he read.
"You…. Clara…" he looked up at Luc and Kristin apologetically. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound ungrateful, or inhospitable. But you know what these Snakeheads are like…"
"We understand perfectly." Kristin nodded. "And that is why it is time for us to go."
"Paul, they just need to stay one night. They will be leaving at dawn for the train station." Jeanette explained.
"As you say, it's not long." Kristin said. "We will be fine." She was uncomfortable coming between the couple, and it had not been their intention to make trouble for Ruth's family.
"My wife is right." Paul sighed. "You helped our daughter, and it is only right that we do this for you."
"Are you certain?" Luc asked.
"Yes." Paul nodded, more confidently.
"Then... thank you." Luc replied graciously.
Jeanette excused herself to prepare dinner, and when Kristin offered to help she eagerly accepted. Jeanette's kitchen was warm and homey, and Kristin enjoyed the time they spent there cooking the simple meal.
When they returned to the living room, Luc and Paul were fully engaged in a conversation about various aircraft, and it was clear that the two had hit it off. Kristin smiled, enjoying Luc's pleasure in the conversation.
"Men!" Jeanette rolled her eyes. "Paul has always loved airplanes, and he flew the UN forces when he was much younger. Of course, we don't talk about that much anymore, what with the Snakeheads taking away anyone associated with the military or the Federation. All we are now is a middle-aged couple running a drug store."
"You own the shop downstairs?" Kristin asked curiously.
"Yes." Jeanette confirmed.
"I don't suppose I could buy a few things from you?" Kristin asked. "We had to leave our things behind in Chamonix."
"Certainly!" Jeanette replied. "After dinner, I will take you downstairs myself."
The meal was a pleasant one, and except for the green Snakehead uniforms Luc and Kristin wore, it was almost as if they were having a social dinner with old friends. Paul and Jeanette asked about the Terran Rebels, while Luc and Kristin explained about the loose network of people working to help humans who had been hurt by the Snakeheads, as well as the alliance of Mediterranean Islands where the alien soldiers had yet to take hold.
"But none of these things are permanent solutions." Luc pointed out. "Our goal is to help the Federation retake control of this planet."
"That would indeed be wonderful." Jeanette remarked, while Paul hung his head.
"I am ashamed." he admitted. "Here you are both risking your lives to help people like us, and I was too frightened to offer you a place to spend a single night."
"You were afraid." Luc said. "That is how the Snakeheads operate. If they can make others fear them, then resistance to their presence is lessened or eliminated. We have to show the citizens of the Earth… the citizens of the Federation… that the Snakeheads are weak, and unintelligent. That they can be defeated."
"I believe you, Luc." Paul replied.
There was a thoughtful silence around the table for a moment before Luc spoke again.
"Then tell others." Luc urged Paul. "Let everyone know that these aliens are not infallible. They have weaknesses, and we will do our best to exploit them."
"I will." Paul promised, while Jeanette nodded emphatically.
After dinner, Luc and Paul continued to speak, while Jeanette took Kristin down to the shop. Despite Jeanette's protests, Kristin insisted on paying for the few items she took, but afterward Jeanette pressed a new watch on her wrist, to replace the one that had broken underneath Mont Blanc.
"Take this, please." she said. "And when you look at it, remember Clara, and remember us."
"I will." Kristin replied, touched. "Thank you."
The watch was waterproof, and designed for mountain skiers. It was exactly the kind of timepiece that Kristin needed.
After Kristin and Jeanette had returned upstairs, Paul led his two visitors to a small guest room and bade them goodnight. Luc and Kristin began removing their Snakehead clothing, and Kristin took off her jacket. She had left purchases in her pockets and Luc poked through them, curious as to what she had acquired.
"Thanks for the razor." he grinned. "And a toothbrush too! How did you know?"
"I get to kiss you, remember?" She laughed as Luc grabbed her, placing his mouth on hers. They spent a long moment just enjoying the feel of being in each other's arms.
"I think I recall that, yes." he joked breathlessly as they pulled apart. Then his eyes lit upon another item that had fallen out of Kristin's jacket.
"What's this?" he asked, holding it up.
"Oh, that's a calibration device." Kristin replied off-handedly. "Marie asked me to pick it up at the Laboratory Complex. She…" Kristin's voice drifted off as she recalled exactly why Professor Tremblay had wanted the device.
"She said that she could use it to confirm your identity." she whispered, as the realization struck. "Luc…"
"Do you know how to use it?" he asked intently.
"No… but I could probably figure it out." she replied, immediately sitting down to examine the apparatus. She placed the chip into her computer pad, then attempted to interface with it, ignoring her state of undress in her eagerness to get the calibration device to work.
But after a few minutes, it became clear that this wasn't going to happen immediately.
"Why don't you take your shower?" she asked Luc. "I'll work on it while you do."
"I was hoping that you would come in with me," Luc grinned suggestively, "but I guess I can give way to the better cause."
"Do you want to know who you are, or not?" Kristin laughed.
"Not if I have to give up my time with you." he growled teasingly, kissing her neck and making her giggle. She shooed him away playfully, laughing as he exhibited mock disappointment.
"Give her a computer to play with, and she forgets all about me!" he sighed dramatically, before wandering into the attached bathroom and leaving her alone. After a moment, Kristin heard the water begin to run. The sound was soothing, and without Luc peering over her shoulder every second, she found herself relaxing. Before long, she had managed to activate the chip. She picked up the scanning nodule and turned it on.
What now?
The nodule was a scanning device, and Professor Tremblay had wanted to use it on Luc. So clearly the Professor had intended to scan Luc's body. Kristin decided to try it on herself first, to ensure that it worked, before using it on Luc and raising his hopes unnecessarily. Carefully, she moved the nodule over her body, then glanced at the resulting readout on her computer pad. What she saw caused the device to fall from her fingers and onto the floor.
"No…" she whispered, picking up the scanner again with shaking hands. "That can't be right…"
She performed the scan again, yet the results were the same. She carefully read the data displayed on her computer pad.
Scan initiating…
Galaxy Security Implant detected
Identifying Officer G-3
Cerebonics operating within normal parameters
Execution of Command Code 3210 in progress
Comprehension flooded through her brain as Kristin correctly interpreted the readout from the calibration device.
She had been identified as Officer G-3…
There were five G Numbers that Kristin was aware of: one for each member of the G-Force Team.
And she was reading as G-3: the Swan.
Everything she had learned about herself over the last thirty-six hours came rushing back to her. It all made sense… driving the motorcycle… knowing emergency first aid… fighting the Snakeheads…
The yo-yo weapon.
How could she not have realized this? It was so obvious, so self-evident! Her mind must have been blocking out her other memories. But why?
Another realization hit her. Luc was her Commander. That meant…
Luc was the G-Force Commander! He was G-1: the Eagle.
No wonder Professor Tremblay hadn't wanted Luc to know about this until she had been certain of his identity! Any normal man might easily be frightened at the thought of being such a high priority target for the Snakeheads.
The Snakeheads knew who Luc was!
Zoltar had called Luc 'Commander'. Luc had been a Snakehead prisoner with a rank of five stars…
Kristin was certain that she was right. Everything fit.
Slowly, she stood up, dropping the calibration device onto the bed and moving into the bathroom. She walked to the shower, pulling back the curtain to see Luc standing there under the warm rain.
"So you've come to join me!" he grinned, pulling her inside, despite the fact that she was still dressed in her underwear and bra. He kissed her, running his hands over her body, and Kristin lost herself in the embrace of her lover: the G-Force Commander.
The most powerful fighter in the Federation.
