Bend Around the Wind by Scyllaya

Chapter 29: Flight of the Phoenix [1]

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Flight of the Phoenix Part I

Andromeda Galaxy

Bek System

Planet Yirb

Murrow was suspicious from the get go. He seemed too helpful in a way. He reminded Tony of unpleasant businessmen who kissed your ass when you were there and tried to undermine you the second you turned around. He was also a lot older than the rest of the Yirbeks they saw. Juyu was curt and confident in everything she said, which was a good enough act. She asked for the maps while being suitably vague and used a tone that made it clear that she was not to be argued with. Considering this was her first rodeo, she did very well. Then the old man gestured and asked to be followed so that the right maps were chosen, so this time only Tony followed. They did not go far, only to the next room.

'That is a very interesting armour you have there,' the man grunted once they were on their way.

'Indeed,' Tony replied.

'I can't decide whether you're a Skrull, or some strange little lapdog,' Murrow said next. Tony had quite a lot of things he could've answered to that, but he swallowed all down. Not the time to be bothered by some poking. So he just kept walking.

'There are not many warm-bloods in the Empire,' Murrow continued not acknowledging Tony's silence. 'Well, not anymore.' Murrow looked at him again to see if he got any reaction out of him. Tony realized the old man wanted to figure him out. 'Makes me wonder which kind you are out of the remaining few.'

'What happened to the "maybe I'm a Skrull" theory?' Tony asked.

'We just passed a gate that would have let me know if you were a shapeshifter,' the man answered. Tony bit back the curse that wanted to escape his mouth. This was not a problem. He had a few suitable explanations up his sleeve.

'Hm, clever,' he said instead.

'Technology from before the war,' Murrow continued when they finally reached a heavy door. Tony could've tried to see what the Yirbek entered to the panel on the side, but it would have been even more suspicious. 'I've fought in it, you see.'

'Which war?'

'The Skrull Invasion,' the man answered then stepped inside. Tony followed. He was not concerned, he had his suit on, the DNI was active, repulsors available.

The room inside was a bit bigger than the previous office. There were dozens of displays active in the air, most of them star maps, but some of them showed different parts of the aerodrome and the tower they were in right now. Tony also noticed that in the end of the room the displays were projected in a smaller form. When he looked more closely he realized that there were small almost translucent little discs lined up one after another and every one of them had a different picture coming out of them. They had to be some sort of optical discs, only none of them was bigger than a dollar coin. They were probably not the same kind of technology as the discs on Earth.

'I still remember how the propaganda changed,' Murrow said again as he gazed at the displays. 'One day we were told to hold on, that we will stand victorious and that we shall not allow the oppressions. Next everything was about how the Empire has brought the golden age, how we have been lifted up to stand beside the greatest race of the universe.'

'Not that I don't appreciate the history lesson, but I also don't really care. Can we get back to what we came here for?' Tony asked. He did not like where the conversation was going. That kind of tone reminded him of bitter veterans, those who lost a limb, a friend or family, or their sanity in the war, and decided that Tony deserved a punch in the face or even better a bullet in his head for his contribution as weapon manufacturer. Oh how ignorant he was back then. He shrugged at the crazy PTSD soldier and smiled at the cameras while the police dealt with his attacker. He really hated to remember those times. He sort of wondered why there were only a handful of attempts like that, there should have been more probably.