Read Plague Wars 06: Comes the Destroyer for Free Online

hers, seeming to ignore her imperious demeanor. She thought he looked tired, his grey hawk eyes sunken a bit.
    Reaching out smoothly, she accessed biosensors in her skin that confirmed the taste of his DNA. Not that she expected anything different, but it was as much a habit as glancing at a face would be for a normal human. “What was the meaning of the body scan room?”
    “It’s a precaution our counterintelligence has put in place, and the rules are ‘no exceptions,’ but when I approved the order I didn’t mean it to apply to you.”
    “But why is it there at all?” she asked.
    “There is a growing anti-Blend movement on Earth. Conspiracy theorists and unfortunate minorities of the general populace are convinced there are secret agents of the Meme among us – Blends that are very hard to detect.”
    “There almost certainly are,” Rae responded, and she could see the surprise on Absen’s face, mirrored on the visages of his steward and the two functionaries. “What does it matter?”
    “Perhaps we should continue this conversation elsewhere?” Absen gestured back toward the corridor.
    “Before or after the scan?” She couldn’t resist the little jab.
    “No scan needed, although I would appreciate you submitting to it afterward. The security people really want to baseline their machine against your known Blend body.”
    “I’ll think about it.”
    “Come on. The meeting’s not for a couple of hours. I wanted to talk to you first.” Without waiting, he turned on his heel and walked away.
    Rae sent updated instructions to her shuttle and followed. When the two civilian escorts made to come along, the Admiral waved them off. Chief Steward Tobias reinforced his boss’ instructions with a stern look, and then brought up the rear. Soon the craggy admiral and the tall Blend matched stride down the corridor together. This time they bypassed the scan and entered a well-appointed conference room with an unfamiliar logo on its wall opposite the main display screen.
    “Something new?” Rae asked as she reached for a pot of coffee on a tray to pour herself a cup. The smell tantalized her; it never came out quite right aboard a Meme ship.
    “What do you think? It’s not official. Call it a tryout. A rough draft.”
    Upon the traditional shape of a knight’s shield was painted a stylized blue-green Earth, the Moon with a symbolic orbit ring, and a spaceship resembling Orion lifting off in heroic scale. Deep navy blue formed the background, with a sprinkling of stars.
    “Hm. Needs work, but I’m not the best judge of art. What’s it for?”
    “A new organization. Something to bring the world together. A true multinational force in space. It has the Free Communities Council’s blessing.”
    “What about greater China and the Neutral States?” Rae sipped her coffee with evident satisfaction.
    Absen poured one of his own. “Right now the FC owns almost every fusion engine on the planet. The Neutral States and China are being hopelessly left behind in space. They’ll have to join, just so they have a seat at the table. But it doesn’t matter. If I can pull this off, no one will own us. We’ll be a separate entity, at least in theory.”
    Rae nodded. “And you think you can slowly make that fiction into fact.”
    “Yes.”
    “The non-FC nations won’t be happy. It still looks like an FC power grab.”
    Absen nodded. “I’m well aware of that. I also know they won’t have much choice. Faced by the option of leaving the FC with all the goodies or being part of the process, I believe they will want their people in place to remain in place. The key is guaranteeing that we are not just an extension of the FC, or of anyone at all.”
    “Pretty ambitious. What are you calling this new organization?” She chuckled. “Star Fleet?”
    Absen’s smile turned wry. “That one’s taken. But close.” He took a deep breath. “I’m calling it EarthFleet. To remind people of why it’s there. Not to