"I will let you go, but you mustn't struggle. I can put these right back on you and leave you to the mercy of these looting animals."

He gasped in surprise, but whether it was because he didn't believe her wasn't obvious. He did his best to remain still as the blade moved closer to his body.

"What? Looters on the ship, this ship?" he said incredulously.

With a single accurate slash, she removed the plastic bindings from his hands and freed him. For the briefest of moments he contemplated reaching out, but he well remembered their fight in the corridor with this woman. At least he liked to think of it as a fight; the only part he could remember was that she was fast at both moving and striking. He decided to hear her out. She leaned forward and slashed the binding on his feet, now freeing him completely.

"I had to take precautions. There is a sickness on this ship. Some kind of mutiny is undergoing, and I think I know who is behind it."

Xenophon was surprised at the news, but of more immediate concern to him were the whereabouts of Glaucon, Tamara and Roxana. They were a tight group, and if anything had happened while he had been away, he wanted to know.

"What about my friends?" he asked, dreading the answer.

"Friends, I know nothing of them. Just that a man called Komes Andronicus, at least that is what he is being called, has taken over the ship and that we are no longer moving to join the Legion."

Xenophon looked at her, almost admiring her strong athletic figure and form. She was no simple crewman on the ship. Based on the way she held her poise, she was definitely Special Forces or an Imperial agent, perhaps both. He almost didn't notice her explanation, and it took several seconds before the magnitude of what she had said struck him.

"Mutiny? Why should I trust you? A masked agent for the Empire would never work on behalf of the Legion or those on this ship. Why should I listen to a word you say?"

She looked at him, but said nothing, just stared at Xenophon as if trying to size him up. Her eyes gave nothing away whereas Xenophon tried, but failed, to mask his eagerness to understand. The two looked for what seemed like an eternity before speaking.

"Come with me, and I will show you," she said in her quiet, almost singing tone of voice.

He stood to follow and almost crashed back down due to the cramp in his muscles. As he wavered, she grabbed him, and her balance and strength surprised him once more. They moved out of their hiding place and into a dirty shaft packed with thick cabling. At the end of the tunnel were flickering lights and the sounds of people talking, perhaps even shouting. The woman moved ahead and indicated with her hands for him to follow a short distance behind. As they walked one step at a time, he strained his hearing to work out what the people were saying. At first it sounded like an argument, but once they were just ten metres from the end of the shaft, she stopped and waited. He did the same, and with effort could make out some of the words.

"Take two squads and check the engine rooms. You stay here," said an unseen man.

They were interrupted by shouting and then two gun shots. The sound made Xenophon stumble, and he crashed to the wall. He was falling, but the mysterious woman pulled him to the shadows and out of sight. A face peered inside the shaft and waved a torch, checking for signs of movement.

"What was it?" asked a man.

Two more shots rang out, and the entire group rushed away, but whether it was towards or away from the gunfire wasn't certain. Xenophon reached out to the woman and spoke as quietly as he could.

"Who are you and what's going on?"

"I will explain later, but for now we need to help turn this around before the mutineers get us near Tissaphernes."

She started to move, but he reached out and stopped her.

"What do you know about Tissaphernes?"

"All you need you know is he is no friend of Lord Cyrus and has been bribing your people. Some of the commanders in the Legion have been paid off, even some of your politicians. Do you think the trouble on Laconia that forced them to leave your world was a mere coincidence? Most of the Thirty Tyrants were in his pay."

"What? My father was one of the Thirty!" he snapped, almost shouting.

She pulled him back to the darkness and placed her hand over his mouth.

"Your father was Gryllus, was he not?" she asked, almost reverently.

Xenophon nodded, saying nothing.

"Yes, we knew of him. He was a proponent of the plan of Cyrus for peace between Terrans and Medians. There was to be an agreement announced in the Assembly before the uprising brought him down."

"He wasn't brought down. He was murdered by one of the Thirty," he replied angrily.

"Interesting, I did not know that. Anyway, all you need to know is that I am on the side of the Legion. Cyrus is my master, and it is my job to ensure the tendrils of Tissaphernes do not delve any further into this force."

Xenophon stood upright and looked at her carefully.

"Why bother with this contingent? We have already split from the Legion."

"True," she replied, nodding gently. "Cyrus has an agent on each Titan to ensure none are used against him. There was always the possibility that they might turn against his own forces at the critical time. Don't forget, his money runs throughout this expedition. You think the Cilician Gates were a coincidence? Tissaphernes wants nothing less than the destruction of the Legion and the humiliation of Lord Cyrus."

Xenophon wasn't sure he believed any of this, especially about her knowledge of Tissaphernes or his agents. The Medes were well known to be the greatest tricksters in the known galaxy. If a deal or deceit was to be conducted, and a Medes was present, the deal would frequently be invalidated, such was the reputation of the Medes for subversion.

"Assuming you are right, we need to help stop this mutiny. Where are the crew? The ones we can trust I mean."

"I will take you to the last place I saw them. Most of the commanders have been taken to temporary prisons near the command deck. I did see a group heading to port armoury, probably to arm themselves for the fight."

"Good, take me."

They started to move from their hiding place when Xenophon tapped her gently on the shoulder.

"Your name?" he asked.

She glanced at him and looked back to the sound of the battle. She spoke quietly, almost too quietly for him to hear.

"My name is Artemas of Caria, now follow me!"

She moved out into the open and directly to the body of a woman on the ground. The body was that of a junior crew member, evident by the uniform and regulation sidearm holster. Artemas looked up to Xenophon.

"You see, she is one of the crew and has been butchered by Andronicus' men. We have to stop this before we lose what is left of this force."

Xenophon nodded in agreement but stayed a safe distance behind her. He had little experience of the Medes. Most of what he knew was negative, and he didn't want to test his experience in such a dangerous situation. Artemas moved forward after checking the body and away from the sound of the shouting to the left. Xenophon felt unarmed and helpless, especially when being led by an unknown and armed Medes agent. They moved from their position and out into one of the parallel service corridors. These were more frequently travelled but had the benefit of being the quickest way to move through the ship. Every twenty metres, a thick section of metal jutted out to mark the frame of the emergency seals. It was critical that this part of the ship could be sealed from major breaches, depressurisation and from boarding actions. What caught the attention of Xenophon was that all the doors were open, bar one. This single airlock seal was heavily burned with scorch marks and dents. A body lay nearby, along with several empty weapons.

"I don't understand. Who exactly would side with a turncoat like Andronicus?" he asked, more to himself than to his Medes friend.

"He is a Komes, so I assume that means he has his own retinue of warriors. It is convenient that of the survivors of Olympia, the bulk of the warriors were from his unit."

She moved a little further and stopped to look up at a circular seal above them. It was hexagonal in shape, and a series of metal bars stuck out to form handles. As she looked at the seal, Xenophon pulled one of the empty carbines from a dead crewman. He checked the magazine and sighed, like the others it was empty. Even so, he slung it around his body. It lacked ammunition, but there was a chance he might find some. If not, then he might be able to trick somebody, or possibly hit them over the head.

"What now?" he asked.

"We go up and reconnoitre the command deck. I have these to leave behind when we get there."

She held out four small metal spheres. Each had small bumps and ridges on their surfaces. At her touch, tiny mono-filament spines appeared to unfurl almost transparent wings.

"Bugs," she said with a bemused smile.

Xenophon hadn't seen this particular type before, but it had much in common with some of the new developments back home. They were semi-autonomous and could travel short distances before hiding away in the shadows. The wings were an interesting idea, but how effective they would be was of much interest to him.

"Audio only?" he asked.

"Of course not, it's a full spectrum audio-visual system with a range of fifty metres. All we need to do is get access to one of the main corridor that serves the command deck."

"Didn't you say they are keeping prisoners nearby?" he asked.

"Yes, that is right, but we need information before we can act."

She tensed herself and then ran to the wall, jumping at it. With great skill, she bumped off the wall and higher up to the ceiling to reach the grab handles. She hung like an acrobat with both of her hands wrapped around the metal. Just one tug and the short extending ladder dropped down a metre so that he could reach it. Artemas launched herself up the ladder and deactivated the seal, forcing it open with a hiss. She was already through before Xenophon even had his hands on the rungs.

"Well, you coming?" she asked coyly.

She moved up into the blackness of the hatch, giving Xenophon a fleeting glimpse of her legs as she wriggled her way inside. He couldn't deny she was one of the most unusual and agile people he had ever met. He glanced around to check they were not being followed and pulled himself up after the strange Median woman.

CHAPTER SIX.

Laconian Titan *Valediction', Aronton Sector.

Clearchus, Lord Cyrus and a dozen senior officers stood on the command deck, each watching the final destruction of the small mechanised defenders. The Virtual Observation System (VOB) gave them all the sensation they were floating, almost like demi-gods, above the destruction of the ships. Terran heavy cruisers had surrounded the last two ships and were quickly cutting them apart with their powerful beam weapons. Clearchus looked to the assembled group and grinned, his entire body shaking with enjoyment.

"This, gentlemen, is how we Terrans deal with robotic defence systems."

Lord Cyrus looked uncomfortable at the enjoyment the humans seemed to be taking at the expense of the defence systems. It wasn't that he had feelings one way or another, but it was that he knew their pleasure derived from knowing they had bested Median technology and by extension, himself.

"Perhaps you might be able to achieve the same level of success against an intelligent opponent rather than simple machines? You do realise these are mere guardians against pirates and raiders. They are not for fighting conventional military forces."

The Terrans continued to laugh and joke between themselves, and the destruction of the last two ships lasted just a few more seconds. With the final explosions, came the shutting down of their automated jammers.

"Strategos, we have a clear signal through to Ariaeus," said the Auletes.

Clearchus nodded in pleasure.

"Excellent, put him through on the main screen."

Lord Cyrus motioned towards the Laconian commander, but he either didn't see him, or chose to ignore him. The video feed from the station filled most of the main screen, and it gave an odd look to the deck, the screen to the centre and the VOB system all around them. Cyrus felt a little queasy at the visual and sensory overload he experienced. Ariaeus was already speaking before he was able to reassert himself. He stepped closer to the display and interrupted the violent discussion between him and Clearchus.

"Ariaeus, I'm glad to see that you are well. What are you doing on the station and more importantly, where are your ships?"

"Lord Cyrus," he replied, bowing in an extravagant fashion, much to the amusement of the assembled Terrans. The Medes moved with the grace and elegance that every Laconian on the deck considered to be feminine.

"Upon my arrival, we conducted a series of scans to establish the viability of harvesting resources for the fleet. We were about to contact you when the sentry fleet and base turned on us. I lost three ships in the first minute and was about to withdraw when I picked up the signal."

His statement surprised everybody, including Clearchus. Lord Cyrus looked to the Laconian with a raised eyebrow and then looked back to Ariaeus.

"I see, go on."

Ariaeus signalled to somebody out of sight, and a few seconds later a Median nobleman appeared. Even the Terrans recognised the clothing and lavish decorations on the man that marked him out as nobility.

"Menon?" asked Cyrus in surprise.

The stranger bowed, though by no means as low and as over the top as the bow of Ariaeus. Clearchus racked his brain, trying as hard as he could to remember the lineage of Cyrus, but the name still made little difference to him. Cyrus continued speaking with him when Kybernetes Ditha Artell approached. He stood to the side of the Laconian leader and handed him a small electronic slate. Clearchus glanced down to see an image of the newcomer, along with critical information direction from the Laconian Intelligence Archive. The part that caught his attention was that the man was flagged as a rogue Satrap of one of the inner provinces. The last data said he had been operating a unit of Median corsairs out on the border. He looked to the conversation and listened carefully.

"My Lord, the Imperial Fleet has been sent away for manoeuvres. I don't know what is happening, but it appears they are massing for a major exercise."

Clearchus was already suspicious of Ariaeus, and this new character did nothing but heighten his doubts about everything the Medes said to him. He lifted his hand and jumped into the conversation.

"Menon, what about the defence of this area? Why is it so insignificant? Surely a resupply station this far inside the Maelstrom should expect a reasonable defensive force?"

Menon ignored him and looked to Cyrus. Clearchus fumed at the insult, but the Medes commander could see what was happening and instantly diffused the situation.

"Answer him," he snapped.

"My lord, this site is insignificant to the Empire. We have hundreds, no, thousands of similar sites all around the Empire. Nothing more than remote sentries and combat drones are needed for their defence."

Clearchus snorted in derision.

"Really? I suppose Ariaeus was unable to overcome them, though they put up little resistance to our forces. Even so, where is the rest of your fleet, Ariaeus?"

Ariaeus looked about suspiciously, and Clearchus instantly detected a plan, a double-cross of some kind. It wasn't just the look that he saw, it was the feeling of hidden contempt they showed, and not just for him but also Cyrus.

"Strategos Clearchus, most of my forces were busy in pursuit of the retreating forces. We were able to stop most getting away, so the rest are engaged with their last few cruisers two sectors away. That is when I received the signals from Menon who had managed to escape from capture on the station and was calling for assistance."

Clearchus looked to Cyrus, and although the Medes commander said nothing, he could tell that he also didn't believe a word Ariaeus was saying. He opened his mouth to continue pursuing this subject, but Menon interrupted him first.

"Yes, your fleet is impressive in size. Even so, the Imperial Fleet will dwarf yours, and your attack on this station will have alerted high command. It would be advantageous, in my opinion, to reinforce this area and ready your forces for a confrontation that is more favourable to your, ah...diminutive size. Or, it might be advisable for you to withdraw back to Terran territory."

He glanced briefly to Ariaeus who whispered something quietly before continuing his short speech with Cyrus.

"Whatever you are planning, the Emperor will now be fully aware that Ariaeus is in this sector and commanding a fleet. He knows that Ariaeus is a close ally of yours, and that makes him at the very least hostile to his policies, and perhaps even an enemy."

Clearchus burst into a rage at this suggestion. First the Medes insulted his forces, but then implied they would have to dig in or retreat.

"Are you telling me the station was not jammed during your little foray?"

Ariaeus didn't seem remotely bothered at the accusation, and his indifference simply enraged the Laconian commander even more. Ariaeus looked to Menon before answering his question.

"We were surprised, as I explained earlier. It wasn't until your forces arrived that a containment area was successfully completed. Perhaps if you had arrived when I requested, this would not have happened?"

Clearchus turned to Cyrus and pulled him back from the display.

"This is treason. Your man has wilfully notified the enemy of our operation through his actions and..." he walked closer to the screen to glare at the men, he then looked back to Cyrus, "...indifference to the chain of command!"