The Icarus operative - 10. Ten

Eden, one of the two inhabited moons

of Planet Halan II in the Rivulak System

Covenant Year 329

TWENTY SEVEN DAYS BEFORE THE ARREST

Dekker in his undercover persona, David Marshall, was caught up with work in the office where he was now working for Lord Ebenweiss. The previous Administrator had left the place a mess, but Dekker could not blame him; truth was he was there only because he’d been assigned by Mother Shadow a little over a month ago. While Marshall had been working on organizing the accounting books for Lord Ebenweiss, Dekker had been really busy researching K’eon and his family. So far he’d learnt the kid had lost his father some years before to a mistreated lung disease. He’d also learnt the kid had a mother and two younger brothers who lived in the barracks among many other Rivulans who were used as a labor force and who lived under the most inhuman of conditions.

For some time he’d known the Covenant was rotting, but he had never seen it so clearly as in Eden; to him, the obvious conditions in which these people lived was a very clear example of how Covenant Rule did not extend its arm everywhere, of how the Covenant was oblivious to the people´s suffering.

Mother shadow had said that Halan II was just one of the many systems voicing their disagreement with The Covenant. If it was this bad in other places, Dekker had no doubt the whole Covenant would drown itself in a civil war which was most likely to be won by the planets rebelling. In his forty something years of life, he’d never seen people living in worse conditions than most animals, as he’d seen in Eden.

He’d seen reports coming from Genesis too, and those from Harjan, the Capital City of Halan II, and what he saw was basically the same: people rioting in every single city within the Rivulan system. Mother Shadow had not been exaggerating when she’d said other systems would follow Halan II’s example into rebellion if things kept escalating.

He also knew a group of rebellious leaders had gone away several years earlier, on a mission which would ensure Eden’s emancipation from its current ruler. K’eon’s father had helped Ebenweiss appease most of the adults in Eden, being a much loved leader, and that was the reason why most slaves hated him. As of date, nobody knew what had become of the men who’d gone away on their quest to emancipate Eden.

What little digging he’d done on K’eon had let him know he was a very well connected kid among his people, and Dekker planned on using that to his advantage in finding the Icarus operative he had to find. He couldn’t fool himself, all this Icarus business really caused him conflict and made him think back once and again. He knew, as a shadow operative, he was working for the greater good, but he could not help being compassionate.

From all the people he’d been partnered with along his career as a shadow operative, the one whom with he’d empathized the most had been Mankur, the other shadow operative involved in the Icarus incident. He had been the closest thing to a friend Dekker had ever had. Unfortunately, Mankur had never been heard of after the event. Disturbing rumors said he’d been executed after having been found guilty of helping Icarus while Dekker was in Shadow custody to be blankslated.

Nobody in the agency ever spoke of Mankur, and Dekker eventually got tired of following leads that might shed some light on whatever had happened to him. Like Icarus, Mankur was now a ghost from his past, one that would probably haunt him til the end of his life.

The insufferable heat made him remember the suffocating circumstances surrounding his undercover persona. He looked around and remembered how much he hated the office he’d been assigned. It was nothing if not excessive, the walls covered in wood from ceiling to floor, the floor decorated with a red wine carpet, and all the pieces of furniture in a XVI century decadent earth style which made him feel automatic revulsion. But, if he were truthful to himself, what he hated most was the weather, hot and humid, because it made his clothes stick to his body with perspiration. He’d already had three glasses of iced tea, but felt as thirsty as when he’d had the first one. And it was barely noon.

Regarding the Icarus Operative, his next move would have to be finding the best way to have K’eon help him arrange a visit to the barracks. That would be the best way to take a good look at the servants and see if he was able to locate the operative. The Icarus mark would most likely help him recognize the boy.

Yes, the barracks were the right place to start and arranging a visit shouldn’t be hard, him being the administrator and all. After all, would it be strange for an administrator to want to see how the people they had employed lived and worked?

Placing his documents aside with the intention of taking a break, he rang the little bell that lay on the left side of his desk, and almost immediately K’eon appeared by the door.

“Master David?” he asked, “Did cha need me, sir?”

Marshall smiled a bit and gestured the servant to close the door and come closer, which he did almost as instantly as he’d been asked to.

“Please, K’eon,” Marshall said with a smile still on his lips, “Sit down for a little while.”

“No, Master David,” said the servant with a look of horror on his face, “Ah cannot, master, share yer chairs. If Lord Ebenweiss were to know ….”

“He won’t know. I just want to have a talk with you. Please, be seated, I insist.”

K’eon thought about it for an instant and then, not really sure of what to make of all this, sat down in the chair across from Marshall. He looked at the kid, who still seemed horrified at the transgression. He went over it in his mind, but he couldn’t really imagine what this young man must have gone through to feel so terrified in a master’s presence.

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about,” he said, looking the boy in the eye.

“Yes, master,” K’eon said.

He looked at the boy and then cleared his throat before speaking. “How old are you, K’eon?”

“I’m not sure, mahlord,” he started, always looking at the floor, “Mah ma says Ah’m sixteen, but Ah’m not really sho.”

Marshall sipped from his iced tea and looked at the young man again. This kid could’ve well been the Icarus he was looking for, if not for the fact he did not have the half-moon-like mark behind his neck. Still, he was the perfect person to introduce him to the people in the barracks.

“I’d like to arrange a visit to the barracks, K’eon,” he said calmly, “and I thought you might give me the tour and introduce me to the people there.”

The boy’s eyes became bigger and the color drained from his face. “Mahlord?”

Marshall smiled and spoke to the servant in as smooth a tone as he could manage: “Is there a problem with my request, K’eon?”

“Master, mahlord,” the kid said, “Masters ain’t well received in the barracks. Ahm afraid cha’ll be in danger, master, if cha do so.”

“No, K’eon. I just want to get to know the people who work for us ….”

“If cha had an escort, mahlord,” K’eon said, “it will be safer for cha, master.”

“No, no escorts, K’eon. I want people to see me as their equal, not as a patrón.”

The boy seemed horrified, thinking his master was walking into a very likely death.

“Master, Ah ….”

“Is there a leader among your people?”

“Some elderlies, mahlord.”

“Fine. Talk to them and tell them I’ll be joining them in the barracks today, after the day’s labor.”

“Mahlord.”

“Thank you, K’eon. You are dismissed now.”

And having said so, Marshall went back to his accounting books as the servant left the room. Once he was alone, he left the books aside and thought of K’eon. If he was as connected as he thought, finding the operative would be much easier than he had anticipated.

***************

All men, women and children who were the labor force in Ebentown had been gathered in the main barracks before the second shift began. They all listened incredulously as K’eon told them about David Marshall. It was virtually impossible, some said, that someone working for the patrón would be genuinely interested in how the workers might live. K’eon had explained to all of them he thought Marshall was a different kind of man, but they found it hard to believe.

“What’cha sayin’ is nonsense!” Ja’rok said obviously upset, “there ain’t no man interested in how we live. Ah say that’s a trick from the patrón!”

“No, it ain’t!” K’eon said, “the Master Marshall will be coming to the barracks ‘coz he wanna talk to all of us and wanna see how we live and what we do!”

“Well, he ain’t welcome here!” Ja’rok said, and a lot of the others cheered at his remark.

“Mah son,” Me’era spoke directing her message to all of them and not only her son, “you ain’t right measuring all people with the same stick. We dunno this Marshall man, and we dunno what he wanna say to us.”

At that, Ja’rok had nothing to say.

K’eon looked at all his fellow workers and spoke again. “He ain’t gonna bring no escort, he say no escort he need ‘coz there’s nothing he need to be protected from.”

The room became silent as all of the Ebentownians looked at each other in disbelief.

“Then he’s a fool!” Ja’rok shouted and new cheerings from the crowd were heard.

“Enough!” An older man named Ja’mahl shouted and everyone became silent.

Ja’mahl was one of the few old men among the bunch, and a much respected one. If the labor force had a leader, everyone in the barracks would have agreed it was Ja’mahl.

“K’eon,” he said approaching the boy and placing himself at an angle where everyone might listen if he had something to say, “Tell us more about this new master.”

“Ah’m tellin’ cha,” K’eon continued, “Master Marshall ain’t like the others. Ah think he wanna see and help us for real. Ah say we give him a chance.”

“What makes cha think so?” the old man asked.

“He treat me with respect. He doesn’t hit me if Ah make a mistake. He tells me to sit on his chairs when he wanna talk about somethin’… he ain’t like the other masters ….”

Ja’mahl nodded and kept silent for some time. Everybody around looked at both the old man and the young K’eon in expectation.

“We’ve been praying for a very long time for a change to come,” Ja’mahl spoke, “and this man might just be what we’ve been expecting to happen for some time.”

Some of them nodded. Ja’rok looked at the old man and then at K’eon. Some years before his father had gone away promising a revolution and promising the emancipation of Eden. And so far nothing of the sort had happened.

“Well, Ah don’t believe it!” He said.

“Well, Ah do!” the old man said, his thunderous voice a roar in the barracks, “Ah say we meet the man and talk to him. We all must agree to respect him and not do anything stupid.”

“Ah won’t promise nothing!” Ja’rok said.

“Ja’rok, mah friend,” K’eon said, “You might be damning us all. Let’s receive Master Marshall and then we talk.”

“Hear, Keon, mah son,” Me’ra said, “He might be right.”

Ja’rok said nothing. He looked at both his mother and K’eon and walked away, followed by several others who walked out following him. Me’era looked at K’eon as if she wanted to apologize for her son, but K’eon knew she wasn’t responsible for whatever it was her son felt.

***************

David Marshall arrived in the main barracks of the Ebenweiss’ land accompanied only by K’eon as dusk approached. They got off the roader and started walking through the land. K’eon pointed specific parts of the place as he conducted Marshall to the main barracks.

Marshall felt the hostility of the few workers that were around after the day’s labor had finished. The way they looked at him, all the eyes all over him made him uneasy, but he wouldn’t have expected it to be any other way, he knew how these people felt at being exploited and abused by the ruler of the land.

When they arrived in the barracks the faces of the ones who were there turned to look at Marshall. He took off his hat and bowed.

“Good evening,” he said.

There was no reply, but he could feel all eyes fixated on him. Ja’mahl was the first one to move from the rocking chair where he’d been sitting and came close to the administrator. He bowed and then spoke gently.

“Welcome, mahlord,” he said, “I’m Ja’mahl.”

“Nice to make your acquaintance, Ja’mahl,” said Marshall extending his hand.

Several whispers sounded inside the barracks as he did so. Ja’mahl read the good intentions in Marshall’s gesture and took the administrator’s hand in his, shaking it. There were new whispers around, faces of utter expectation at what Marshall would do next. Then there were faces of surprise as he smiled at Ja’mahl.

“I was very insistent on coming and meeting you all,” Marshall said, “K’eon here insisted I should’ve brought an escort, but that would’ve been counterproductive. I really came here in good faith.”

“So says K’eon,” responded Ja’mahl.

“Ah don’t believe cha!” said Ja’rok coming from among the people, “Yer likes have nothin’ to do among us! Cha ain’t welcome here!”

David Marshall turned around and looked at the young dark skinned man who had just spoken. He had an air of defiance which he hadn’t seen very often.

“I understand your mistrust,” he said approaching the young man, “I just hope you’ll give me the chance to prove myself to you.”

And having said so, he extended his hand for Ja’rok to shake it. Ja’rok hesitated for a little while looking at Marshall with all the hatred he was capable of. He spat at Marshall’s feet and then turned around and started walking out of the barrack.

There was a tense silence, as if all of them expected Marshall to order a punishment. But he didn’t. Ja’mahl, pale at what just happened, approached Marshall.

“Mah lord,” he said, “I must apologize for young ….”

“It’s not necessary, really,” Marshall said looking at the old man, “this brave young man has all the right to voice his disbelief.”

He turned around and looked at every single man, woman and child in the place.

“Hear me all! I know you’ve lived under bad conditions for a very long time. I know you don’t trust your rulers and thus you have all the right not to trust me either. But things are going to change, I promise you that!”

And having said so, he turned back to Ja’mahl and asked him to show him around. He wanted to see their living places and see how he could help improve their conditions.

Ja’mahl took him around to first see the sleeping area. It was three buildings in total, each of them rectangular in shape. It extended for probably two hundred meters and there were rows of bunkbeds on each side.

“Master,” Ja’mahl said, “Ah really am ashamed at what happened with Ja’rok, mahlord.”

“You don’t have to be, Ja’mahl, and I mean it. I understand. Believe me when I tell you I do.”

“Master,” the man said as they walked, “Our young men are tired of the labor and defiant with our authorities … for some time now. Ah’m old and worried what will become of them.”

“Ja’mahl,” Marshall said smiling, “I wanna change things for you, for your people. But defiance and violence is not the way. If we work together, we can accomplish so much more.”

“Ah think likewise, mahlord. But them ….”

They made a stop at a very small cabin. The place was the communal showers and Ja’mahl explained thus.

“Ja’mahl,” Marshall said, “We need to work together for the wellbeing of your people. Ja’rok … he’s a natural leader, isn’t he?”

“He is, mahlord.”

“If I win him over, the others will listen, right?”

“Ah think they will mahlord. Many respect him a lot. Cha see, when his father left, among many others, he stepped up and took over his family. He was only twelve then. It earned him the respect of all our community.”

“He seems like a tough young man. I wanna talk to him, Ja’mahl.”

The old man sighed as he looked down. He then looked up and tried a smile.

“You can trust me, Ja’mahl,” Marshall said.

“Ah can feel it, mahlord.” Was all he said.

“I won’t keep you anymore, Ja’mahl. . I’ll go around and look for K’eon.”

Ja’mahl nodded and saw the new administrator walk away. He didn’t say a thing, but a couple of tears ran down his cheeks as he smiled.