Alien: Covenant - Origins - The Official Movie Prequel

XIII

Duncan Fields wasn’t present at the meeting of the Earthsavers Council. The Prophet disliked discussing the details of the organization’s more sordid activities. While he approved of the intended results, listening to some of their methods left him distressed.

It didn’t matter. He provided the impetus for what they discussed. His input wasn’t needed, nor would it have been valued for purposes of decision-making. The dreamer had no experience in such matters, and would only have slowed down the process. Fields was not a brilliant man, but he was smart enough to know it, and to keep out of the way of what had to be done.

There were six members on the council, one representing each of the inhabited continents. All of them could have been dropped at a sales conference and they would have blended in just fine with the other attendees. The ruthless and powerful shun publicity and do all they can to insure that their images and activities are kept out of the media. They are never the power behind the throne.

They are the power beside the throne.

All of the council members accepted that Duncan Fields’s visions, nightmares, or whatever they were reflected a galactic order that demanded homo sapiens to remain safely close to home, and not draw attention to itself by sending crewed vessels out among the stars. Recognizing that their opinion was unpopular, they sought ways—both overt and subtle—to educate the public.

As yet they had not succeeded.

The technology to send mankind into deep space was there. Given the damage to the terrestrial environment it had proved easy enough to find volunteers. And there were corporations who stood to make money. Against such a surge of interest and publicity it was difficult for the Earthsavers to make their warnings heard. Nevertheless, the council and the followers of Duncan Fields persisted.

Now a colony ship, the Covenant, was about to embark, traveling all the way to distant Origae-6. A great big flag shouting the presence of humanity and offering a trail back to the vulnerable homeworld. It had to be stopped, by whatever means. Otherwise—the council and the followers were convinced—Fields’s nightmares would manifest themselves in reality.

Brave Eric Sasaki, an Earthsaver volunteer for many years, had given his life in the effort. So had another member, in London, though his companion had thankfully managed to escape. Most recently, of the five members who had embarked on the effort to kidnap the daughter of Hideo Yutani, two had died.

The survivors had argued for making another attempt, were even eager to do so, but they had been turned down by the council. Security around Yutani himself, as well as the core Weyland-Yutani company complexes in Japan, Britain, and elsewhere throughout the world had been tightened to such a degree that it would have been impossible to compromise.

“We could begin sabotaging various offshoot Weyland-Yutani enterprises that are involved with the colonization mission,” one middle-aged woman ventured. “A few well-placed explosives might do the trick.” She looked as if she should have been guiding a pram down a suburban street, and not discussing covert terrorism.

Another woman, of Asian descent, seated across the room from her shook her head. “Not a good idea. Innocent people would die, and if word got out that Earthsavers was involved, they won’t stop until the movement is dead. Besides,” she added as she poured herself a cup of tea, “it’s not a solution. We could blow up half of Weyland-Yutani’s properties and the Covenant would still be able to depart on schedule.”

An elegantly dressed gentleman slouching on a couch nearby spoke while resting two fingers against the side of his head. “At this point, the only way that we stop the ship is to incapacitate it, or force those in charge to halt its departure.”

“There’s no way we can get to the Covenant itself.” The speaker was middle-aged, overweight, in need of a better haircut, and he regarded his colleagues out of small black eyes that were set too close to his small nose, and he wore pants and a shirt that fit too snugly. He worked for the research arm of a large Russian pharmaceutical company specializing in lotions and creams, and was absolutely ruthless. “They’re rechecking the security clearances of everyone on the ship.”

Another man seated nearby was slimmer and indifferently dressed. Selecting a biscuit from the tin in front of him, he gnawed on it nervously, like a squirrel constantly on the lookout for a prowling hawk.

“Impossible to get anyone new on board anyway now. Not given how they’re scanning everyone prior to boarding a shuttle.”

The youngest of the group sat up straighter. “Then we have to stop its departure from here.” He looked around at his colleagues. “What about trying for Jenny Yutani again, or another relative?”

The younger of the two women shrugged resignedly. “You might as well try to abduct a world leader. We might be able to snatch a cousin, or a distant nephew. Knowing Hideo Yutani’s reputation, he’d probably respond by telling us to do whatever we wanted to do, as he has plenty of other cousins and nephews.” She concluded with a curse that was shocking in its cultural currency and utterly at odds with her appearance.

“If only we could get to Yutani himself,” declared Pavel, the overweight councilor. “But that’s impossible.”

“Perhaps not, dearie.”

Everyone turned to the matronly woman who had proposed blowing up company buildings. Her younger colleague set aside her tea to offer dissent.

“Do you have an actual idea, or are you just being blindly optimistic? We’re all aware of the increased security around every important member of the Yutani family. They’re not going to exclude the old man himself.”

The other woman nodded. “It is true that there’s no possibility for our organization to reach him. That doesn’t rule out others who might.”

The casually attired young man let out a derisive snort. “What ‘others’?” Pierre snapped. “Who else could penetrate that ring of steel?”

She looked across at him. “The one outside entity with enough local knowledge, clout, and indifference to authority. I refer to the Neoyakuza.”

The younger woman eyed her senior counterpart questioningly. “Why would the Neoyakuza want to get involved?”

“For the same reason such groups always get involved.” Sipping her tea, the matron peered over the rim of her porcelain cup. “Money.”

“Do we possess the necessary funds?” Choma, the representative from Africa, chewed on his lower lip. “This isn’t like asking them to muscle a ramen shop.”

Everyone looked at the overweight man. He considered a moment, then pushed out his lower lip and nodded.

“It can be managed.”

“We are agreed, then?” the matron said. When no one voiced any further dissention, she turned to the woman across from her. “Yukiko?”

“I will initiate the necessary connections and handle the follow-up negotiations myself.” She hesitated. “Regardless of whatever amount we offer, it is entirely possible they will turn us down.” She eyed her colleagues. “We have in our favor the fact that we don’t want the old man killed. Only ‘vacationed’… and then persuaded.”

The only man who had not yet spoken raised his gaze from his glass, which was filled with an odd concoction no one else would approach, let alone consume. He downed half of it in one long swallow. The fat man flinched at the sight.

“There are ways the Covenant can be permanently disabled. Once that is done to our satisfaction, the old man can be released.”

“What’s to keep him and the company from repairing the ship,” the slim man said, “and sending it out later?”

The latest speaker turned to him. “As you know, the company I work for manufactures—among other products—a wide range of medical implants.” He did not smile. “A device can be modified so that a simple signal could cause it to release a lethal toxin. We wouldn’t need to inform the old man of the specifics. Only that if he fails to comply with our demands, we can kill him in an instant.”

“Excellent notion.” The matron might as easily have been chatting with the local greengrocer. “Then we’ll put it to a vote.” She gestured at the smaller woman seated. “Yukiko will commence negotiations with the Neoyakuza, and Pierre will see to it that a device is prepared that can be surgically inserted into Hideo Yutani’s body.” She offered a smile that was half maternal, half cobra. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I see this latest approach as very promising.

“Are we agreed?”

A show of hands was taken. The council voted unanimously. Then, with nothing else of note to discuss, they finished their tea.