Wolf Legion by William S. Frisbee Jr

Author:William S. Frisbee Jr. [Frisbee, William S. Jr.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Theogony Books
Published: 2024-01-30T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty-One: Torag Guests

Sergeant Aod McCarthy, ODT

McCarthy liked that Navinad invited him to the interrogation. It was a courtesy, and the strange officer couldn’t honestly expect an ODT sergeant to be useful in interrogating prisoners. However, it let McCarthy get involved in things, watch the New Masadans, and learn from them.

“I can do most of the talking,” Navinad said. “Though if you have questions please don’t hesitate.”

“Thank you, sir,” McCarthy said, meaning it. Navinad could have made him watch in one of the observation rooms. Did Navinad want him to help beat up the prisoners, perhaps? McCarthy had never really been into beating people, though some ODTs liked it.

When they entered the room, both prisoners were sitting in chairs, their heads turned toward the two humans. Seeing them without armor made McCarthy’s skin crawl, maybe because in armor he could imagine they had eyes. Without armor, they were more alien, harder to read, or maybe he was just distracted. If they were to be beaten, it would have made sense to chain them to the chairs or cuff them.

It was human nature to look into someone’s eyes when talking to them, or at least gauge where the person’s eyes were looking and where their attention was focused.

McCarthy could only look at their heads, and that was an unpleasant experience. The Torag were creepy because they had no eyes, so McCarthy didn’t know where they were looking or who they were looking at. Eyes were also very expressive and could indicate fear, excitement, and so much more.

These aliens had none of those tells. There was no way to gauge what they were thinking. They couldn’t be much of a threat because both he and Navinad were in their battledress, which amplified their strength. He knew the Torag weren’t much stronger than humans. A proper SOG interrogation would have the prisoners meet them one on one so any inconsistencies in their stories could be identified and investigated to reveal the lies. Interrogating them together made this more of a discussion.

They remained seated, so Navinad sat facing the Torag. McCarthy took his cue and sat as well.

“Thank you for seeing us,” Navinad said, as if they had a choice.

They both tilted their heads. Acknowledgment?

“We are going to a system your people call Bashaka-ta,” Navinad said. “Do you know of it?”

“Yes,” said the one named Shikata. Kakatet remained silent. The translation came through his cybernetics, and it was disconcerting to hear the Torag speak and a second later have their words echo in his ears. An echo that didn’t quite match the source.

“Is there anything you can tell us about it?” Navinad asked.

“Legends only,” Shikata said. “It was said to be the home of the Lost Empire. Where the last battles were fought before they ascended.”

“Ascended?” Navinad asked.

“The ancient foe did not destroy the Lost Empire,” Shikata said. “Though some may insist it was.”

“Can you tell us more?”

“There are many who believe we are descendants of that lost empire, but many dispute this. The Lost Empire spanned thirty-six systems in the Tiapolo star cluster.

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