Epilogue
Needs of the Few
He paid off the security guard at the door and stepped into the office of Minister Anto Rabisi. The surprise on the dignified Kinfea's face lasted less then a microt before dissolving into a mask of self-important indignation.
"Who are you? How dare you enter my chambers without a formal summons."
John tossed a small bag of shiny gray cloth onto Rabisi's desk. "Here's my invitation," he said. He leaned against the door, watching as Anto released the strings that held the bag closed. Dark fingers withdrew the crystal from inside and held it up to the light.
"Do not waste my time with nonsense." Anto's voice was stern. "I am very busy."
"Yeah, busy man. Know what you've been busy doing too." John pushed away from the door and sat unbidden in a chair before Anto's desk. He crossed his ankle over his opposite knee and laced his fingers on his stomach. "I know all about the plan to take Gital Deep away from the Council. How you ordered Dartoi to make it look like House Daul had betrayed House Mudest. And I know those Crystals are worthless."
Rabisi's expression did not change, a consummate politician. "You know nothing."
John smiled, leaning forward in his chair to rest his elbows on his knees. "You wish." He reached out toward a molten lump of metal decorating a corner of Rabisi's desk. John juggled it back and forth between his hands. "There is one thing I don't know, however. Why? Is it money, power, chicks? Were all the people killed on Gital Deep worth it?"
"Criminals."
"People," John spat. "Families. Children."
The Minister sat silently, gazing across his desk. John could not help but feel as if he was being sized up, evaluated. If Rabisi expected him to back down under the weight of his stare, he was going to be disappointed. The only thing that really scared John was Scorpius. Rabisi didn't stand a chance and he knew it.
"You are wrong, of course," Rabisi said finally.
He could not stop the smirk from turning up the corner of his mouth. "About what?"
"The crystals. They do have a purpose." Rabisi rose from his chair and circled his desk. "They are a catalyst."
"For?"
"Change. The Houses of Gital Deep have been allowed to flourish for cycles. Unchecked and unhindered. Thieves, smugglers, and murderers permitted to conduct whatever business they wish only a few short arns from here." Rabisi shook his head ruefully. "And we have been powerless to stop it. Our law cannot touch them, yet their very existence permeates our own society. Once the Charter is broken, we can eradicate the criminal element from the industrial moon."
"You've done all this," John said slowly. "In the name of justice?"
"I am a servant of the public. My only interest has been for the greater good. The methods may seem malignant, but they are necessary. And you can have faith the Houses of Gital Deep are responsible for greater atrocities."
John replaced the metal knick-knack on Rabisi's desk as he stood. "I don't think either one of you are less guilty then the other. You just have the law on your side." He turned away and moved toward the door. His friends were waiting anxiously outside the Ministry Building. Everyone wanted off this planet as quickly as possible.
"The law is always right."
He paused with his hand on the door latch and looked back over his shoulder toward the Minister. "They know, Rabisi. The Council. They know you are behind it. They have Dartoi and he's singing like a bird." His voice dipped an octave, surprising him with how level and controlled it was. "If I were you, I'd hide."
John left for the outside corridor quickly, unable to watch the expression of growing horror on Rabisi's face. It mirrored too closely the dread spreading through him. He had succeeded in stopping the Houses from fighting each other. But by turning Dartoi over to the Council, he had given them all the reason they could want to seek retribution against the Ministry. They had ended one war just to start another.
"Not my problem," John said to himself. He had done what he came here for. Regardless who he thought was right or wrong, who was innocent or guilty, John could not stand by. Warning Rabisi the Council would come for him was the very least he could do.
John could learn to shoot first.
Living to question it later was the hard part.
The End
Needs of the Few
He paid off the security guard at the door and stepped into the office of Minister Anto Rabisi. The surprise on the dignified Kinfea's face lasted less then a microt before dissolving into a mask of self-important indignation.
"Who are you? How dare you enter my chambers without a formal summons."
John tossed a small bag of shiny gray cloth onto Rabisi's desk. "Here's my invitation," he said. He leaned against the door, watching as Anto released the strings that held the bag closed. Dark fingers withdrew the crystal from inside and held it up to the light.
"Do not waste my time with nonsense." Anto's voice was stern. "I am very busy."
"Yeah, busy man. Know what you've been busy doing too." John pushed away from the door and sat unbidden in a chair before Anto's desk. He crossed his ankle over his opposite knee and laced his fingers on his stomach. "I know all about the plan to take Gital Deep away from the Council. How you ordered Dartoi to make it look like House Daul had betrayed House Mudest. And I know those Crystals are worthless."
Rabisi's expression did not change, a consummate politician. "You know nothing."
John smiled, leaning forward in his chair to rest his elbows on his knees. "You wish." He reached out toward a molten lump of metal decorating a corner of Rabisi's desk. John juggled it back and forth between his hands. "There is one thing I don't know, however. Why? Is it money, power, chicks? Were all the people killed on Gital Deep worth it?"
"Criminals."
"People," John spat. "Families. Children."
The Minister sat silently, gazing across his desk. John could not help but feel as if he was being sized up, evaluated. If Rabisi expected him to back down under the weight of his stare, he was going to be disappointed. The only thing that really scared John was Scorpius. Rabisi didn't stand a chance and he knew it.
"You are wrong, of course," Rabisi said finally.
He could not stop the smirk from turning up the corner of his mouth. "About what?"
"The crystals. They do have a purpose." Rabisi rose from his chair and circled his desk. "They are a catalyst."
"For?"
"Change. The Houses of Gital Deep have been allowed to flourish for cycles. Unchecked and unhindered. Thieves, smugglers, and murderers permitted to conduct whatever business they wish only a few short arns from here." Rabisi shook his head ruefully. "And we have been powerless to stop it. Our law cannot touch them, yet their very existence permeates our own society. Once the Charter is broken, we can eradicate the criminal element from the industrial moon."
"You've done all this," John said slowly. "In the name of justice?"
"I am a servant of the public. My only interest has been for the greater good. The methods may seem malignant, but they are necessary. And you can have faith the Houses of Gital Deep are responsible for greater atrocities."
John replaced the metal knick-knack on Rabisi's desk as he stood. "I don't think either one of you are less guilty then the other. You just have the law on your side." He turned away and moved toward the door. His friends were waiting anxiously outside the Ministry Building. Everyone wanted off this planet as quickly as possible.
"The law is always right."
He paused with his hand on the door latch and looked back over his shoulder toward the Minister. "They know, Rabisi. The Council. They know you are behind it. They have Dartoi and he's singing like a bird." His voice dipped an octave, surprising him with how level and controlled it was. "If I were you, I'd hide."
John left for the outside corridor quickly, unable to watch the expression of growing horror on Rabisi's face. It mirrored too closely the dread spreading through him. He had succeeded in stopping the Houses from fighting each other. But by turning Dartoi over to the Council, he had given them all the reason they could want to seek retribution against the Ministry. They had ended one war just to start another.
"Not my problem," John said to himself. He had done what he came here for. Regardless who he thought was right or wrong, who was innocent or guilty, John could not stand by. Warning Rabisi the Council would come for him was the very least he could do.
John could learn to shoot first.
Living to question it later was the hard part.
The End