Chapter 18 : The Triple-S

The next day was misty and humid, as the summer got into its stride. The seasons were long here, for the Greenshoot year was long by the measure of Earth. There was time for the shallow seas to reach the temperature of a comfortable bath, and the evaporation built into dense low clouds that soaked and obscured everything.

Jack had been called over by the SSS for a meeting. Their HQ was on the other side of the river, by the Starbase, and Jack took a 10-minute ride there on a regular shuttle. It crossed the trestle bridge which spanned the estuary, and stopped outside a neat one-story building with glass walls. ‘Social Stability Service’ was etched discretely into every pane. It seemed odd that such a secretive organization would operate in a glass-bowl. But once inside it became clear that this was just an elegantly decorated foyer, and that the offices were all below ground, where no-one would be looking in.

The Social Stability Service of the United Nations had been created to address the single greatest challenge facing the new world order – the scourge of separatism. Its ultimate goal was to prevent another war. The UN faced no external threat, having assimilated the entire population of Earth and most of the scattered colonies, but the enemy within was feared and loathed, just as the old enemies had been. So the SSS had a wide remit, to combat any threat that emerged and to use any method to achieve its goals; it operated outside the laws that governed the rest of society. The goal of peace had overriding importance, because the last war had brought humanity to the point of utter ruin and nearly to extinction. Another war could not simply not be contemplated.

Jack had no argument with the Triple-S. In fact, he had been on the payroll a few times himself, in a part-time capacity as influencer and informer. He was known formally as a Registered Information Provider. This was how the SSS operated, with a wide net. So he was relaxed when they called him in. He was met by agent Tom Axelrod, a good-looking man, a few years younger than Jack, with a big easy smile. People like Tom were the face of the Triple-S. They needed people like him, amiable and convincing, at that end of the organization. Cyrus Colon, the station commander on Greenshoot, put in a brief appearance. A bald man with a mustache, he was in middle-age but still fit and hard-looking. He carried with him an air of menace. Jack thought he had run into Cyrus before. Perhaps he used to be a pit boss at one of the mining companies.

Things got underway in Tom’s comfortable office.

“I’ll get straight to the point Jack. I have an intercept, of a message from Hugo Metz to Monty Griffin. Both are known to you, aren’t they ?”

“Sure”, Jack replied.

“It was sent yesterday via the subspace link to Earth. It was encrypted, but we have ways … anyway it was about the Gremec virus. A sensitive subject, you agree ?

“Sure”, Jack replied.

“Hugo puts forward a theory ...”

Tom seemed to be double-checking something on his device.

“… that Gremec is man-made.”

Tom looked up from the device, frowning quizzically.

“Well”, Jack said, “I don’t know much about viruses.”

“What we know is that some ideas are being passed around within the Fleet, that could be used by subversive organizations to discredit the Government. The question of the origin of Gremec is really beside the point. If the rumour that Gremec is man-made comes from the Fleet, then it will carry a lot of weight. People have been speculating since the 21st century about the origin of viruses … but Hugo Metz is a government scientist, for fuck’s sake.”

Jack stroked the stubble on his chin, a gesture that came automatically to him just before he got really worried.

Tom continued, easing off a bit.

“We trust you Jack … but you’re close to these people. Look, there is a way out of this. I am gong to make you an offer.”

Tom paused and looked straight at Jack for a moment.

“You will replace Monty Griffin as head of recruitment at Eisenhower Fleet Headquarters when you return to Earth.”

“OK ...”

“And you will make sure that discipline is restored. Zero-tolerance of this sort of crap. And in return, you’ll get your old house back. The one that you lived in with Truce before the divorce.”

Jack was a bit unnerved that Tom seemed to know everything about him, as if his marriage and home life had been public knowledge. But then, he had worked for the Triple-S, it was all in their files; they knew how to push his buttons. That had been the best time of his life, in the house in the green belt, with its garden and its pool, just after he married Truce. They lost the house in the divorce and ended up with two shitty apartments. Now he was being allocated the house just for himself, a high privilege. Tom was making a serious proposal here.

“But I need to be clear … about what is the Government position, and what is the scientific fact, and what is the gap that has to be plugged.”

“Get your people to tow the Government line”, Tom insisted.

“I agree that the question of origin of the virus is academic.”

“Yes, of course it is”, Tom said.

“But there are wider issues. We have examined the VIBE serum in the Beluga’s lab and found it’s not an antiviral, it’s a therapeutic. It doesn’t stop people being infected or passing the virus on, it just moderates the symptoms. That isn’t purely academic. And then there is the issue of mind-penetration.”

Tom looked alarmed. “What have you heard about that ?”, he asked.

“I’ve heard that our cargo contained equipment that scans the thoughts of people infected with Gremec.”

Tom drew a deep breath, and let out a long sigh of exasperation.

“Let me try to explain … I’m not going to lie to you here … “

The door opened unexpectedly and Cyrus Colon entered the room. He had be eavesdropping, and joined the conversation as if he had been there from the start. Cyrus smiled rarely, but he smiled at Jack, and showed a neat set of pure white teeth, rare in someone of his age, and a sign of good living.

“I’m impressed, Jack, that you have this information and have kept quiet about it. Most folks, they would be running around the newsrooms, being the center of attention for a while, but you’re handling it carefully, discretely. You’re not a whistle-blower.”

“I suppose I’m not”, Jack replied.

“But I really need you at this point, to see the big picture. However the virus got here, whatever its purpose might have been, that fact is that we can use it to enable a mind probe. Hell, it’s better than torturing people for information.”

Cyrus looked like someone who might have had experience in that field.

“So are you going to deliberately infect people ?”, Jack asked. “Or infect an entire population, in order that you can use the mind probe ... knowing the side effects and the mortality rate.”

“Personally I would not do that”, Cyrus replied. “The virus is endemic to Greenshoot and variants have been detected on Earth. It’s a disease, but in a way the virus is also a resource for us … some good can some of it.”

Jack knew better than to challenge these people.

“You’ve got a deal”, he said.