12. Flight
Sunday, 01 Mar 2572
The flight started out as interesting, if uneventful. Cortin exchanged courtesies with the Royal couple, then joined her team, taking a window seat. It was her first flight—well, she thought, the first one she'd been awake for, anyway—and she wanted to see everything she could. She'd had a passing interest in archaeology once, so she was aware of pre-war population statistics, and knew the unnaturally straight lines of vegetation in the areas they flew over marked roads or buildings that no longer existed. For the first time, the two came together and became real for her. There had been so many of them! Dear God, it must have been unbearable, especially in the cities, crowded so closely together! But it was fascinating, seeing what they'd left … and they'd been thriving, not declining … She forced that thought aside, not for the first time. It was for Kings and Popes to concern themselves with the fact that humanity in the Systems was dying out, not for Enforcement officers.
As the plane droned westward, though, she discovered she couldn't dismiss it any longer. Whatever she'd experienced during her drugged recovery wouldn't let her. Like it or not, if she believed the vision or hallucination or whatever—and it didn't seem to be leaving her much choice in the matter—she'd been saddled with responsibility for reversing the decline.
It wasn't fair, she protested to herself. She was an Enforcement officer, not a secular or Church noble; she didn't have the kind of power or backing it would take to make the tremendous changes she'd been shown were necessary. Though, she admitted grudgingly, she'd also been promised help getting the power and people she'd need to do the job—and a Strike Team Leader/Inquisitor just promoted to High King's Inquisitor wasn't exactly powerless. Not popular, which she'd have to be to gain widespread support for the changes she'd be trying to make, but certainly not powerless.
Odeon's voice broke into her thoughts. "You look disturbed, Colonel. Is it anything we can help with?"
Cortin wanted to say no, but nodded instead. She couldn't accomplish either of her objectives alone, and who better for her closest helpers than the team she and Mike had hand-picked? "I'm afraid so. See if we can use the conference cabin, please, so I can brief all of you at once."
"Right away." Odeon stood, then hesitated. "What about Colonel Bradford and Major Illyanov?"
"Fine. And civilian input wouldn't hurt, either, so see if Their Highnesses would care to join us."