by M D Cooper
Kristina drew a slow breath. “I don’t like the sound of this.”
“You already called for the support of your people to maintain your position,” Cyrus pointed out. “We only wish to build on that same message.”
She nodded. “But this sounds…extreme.”
“I know it’s unorthodox for leaders to suggest their people revolt, but with the right messaging, it will win the people’s trust and loyalty.”
“It’s far more powerful than fear, when people are taking action because they believe in the cause rather than because they think they will be punished if they don’t obey,” Terry jumped in. “I grew up working as a maintenance tech in the pits. I know how people think. They’re desperate for anyone to treat them like an actual person—I know I certainly was. Am.”
She shook her head, regaining focus. “Give them a voice and a path to a better future under a leader who will fight for their personal liberties, and it won’t take much to sway the populace. It’s the people at the bottom who keep society moving, so spurring them to action will force everyone above to follow.”
She hadn’t intended to say so much, but her passion for the mission at hand bubbled over as soon as she started. She’d chosen to fight for the cause because it would give her life meaning and direction. She’d spent decades feeling helpless, and now she had a chance to give a voice to those who’d been silenced and oppressed for millennia. Now, sitting in front of the system’s royalty, she could speak for everyone who hadn’t had a voice before.
Kristina took in her words silently, making no indication whether she bought the argument.
Next to Terry, Cyrus gave a nod of approval, but it was clear he was going to allow Kristina to express an opinion before he added anything more.
For over a minute, Kristina stared at Terry with her frustratingly neutral expression. Her gaze occasionally flitted to Cyrus, but Terry had seemingly captured her attention.
“Antaris was right about you,” she said at last. “Let’s discuss what you have in mind.”
* * * * *
Terry was uncharacteristically quiet when Cyrus returned with her to the Star Ember after meeting with Kristina. Though he’d only known her for a matter of weeks, her passion came through in all matters—and it didn’t take much to know when he’d done something to upset her. Given the content of the meeting, he knew exactly what it was.
“I don’t have any interest in marrying her,” he stated, deciding it was better to be blunt.
“You don’t want to, but you would if it came down to it?”
“This is a complicated situation.”
Terry crossed her arms. “I’m well aware.”
“I only went along with it for now because it kept her talking. I’m sure we can find another solution.”
“The entire concept of marrying for political alliances is so antiquated,” she grumbled.
Cyrus nodded. “I don’t disagree. And Kristina said herself that alliances are stronger when they are driven by bonds of trust rather than arrangements of convenience. Right now, I don’t trust her at all, and a signed marriage decree wouldn’t change that.”
“So why bother putting up the act?”
“Because it does matter to some people. It sends a message that we’re serious about our joint ventures.”
“I guess.” She didn’t seem convinced.
Cyrus took her hands. “I’m happy you’re here with me, and my feelings about you haven’t changed.”
That seemed to be enough for the present, since she relaxed. “I know it’s silly to get upset.”
“On the contrary, it’s nice to know that whatever this is between us means something to you.”
“Probably more than it should for something so new,” she admitted.
“Hey, that gives us something more to fight for. A Serenity where no one would question a house heir and a maintenance tech making a life together.”
She looked at him skeptically. “Pretty sure that makes people take notice no matter where you are.”
“Doesn’t mean we should aim for anything less.”
“Good point.” She swallowed. “Just… give me a heads up if this isn’t going to work out, okay?”
“You’ll do the same?”
She nodded.
I hope that day never comes. The thought surprised Cyrus, but it’s what was in his heart. He’d dated a lot of women over the years, and none challenged him in all of the right ways the way that Terry did. He’d be lucky to have her as a partner, even if it would take some time to convince her that she was his equal, regardless of their social standings at birth.
“Forget about Kristina’s proposal for now,” he said, hoping to shift the subject. “What’s important is that she’s willing to work with us.”
“Yes, there is that. Having the leader of a house on our side significantly strengthens our position.”
He smiled. “I like it when you talk about this being ‘our’ plan.”
She shrugged, holding back a smirk. “I mean, I am Dana’s designated emissary, after all. You’d be kinda lost without me.”
“You’ve had no difficulty rising to the occasion.”
“I hope you realize that you’ve unleashed a monster. I’m not going to give up until we’ve succeeded in this revolution.”
Cyrus nodded. “I’d have it no other way.”
STRATEGY
STELLAR DATE: 12.20.8938 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Laurentia Estate, Acadia, Serenity System
REGION: Orion Freedom Alliance, Perseus Arm
Kristina bobbed her foot as she waited for her advisor to speak. Sigmund was slowly shaking his head from side to side, and she wasn’t sure if it was from disapproval or because he was stunned.
“I would have thought you’d discuss a potential marriage with me before extending an offer,” Sigmund said eventually.
“We both know it’s never going to go through,” she said. “I just wanted to see if he was serious enough to consider it.”
“His reaction was difficult to read.”
“I think he and Terry are involved.”
Kristina tried to keep judgment out of her voice. The class divisions of romantic relationships were more defined than she’d like, but admitting so out loud wouldn’t help her present position.
“Ah, that would explain a lot.”
“I can see why he likes her. She’s quite competent, and she made some good points.”
Sigmund nodded. “I like their proposed approach of winning the people’s favor. I’m just not convinced it will be as easy as they made it sound.”
“Long games never are.”
“The reasoning is sound, though. Nebracken’s position has always been fueled by fear and might. To combat them, we need the opposite force.”
“But getting the workers to revolt? Will that really accomplish anything?”
The older man shrugged. “Far less critical labor forces have sparked change at other times in human history. They ultimately have great sway over the flow of supplies and troops. It’s actually a wonder they haven’t staged a protest of their own accord.”
“I suspect they have, at some point,” Kristina said. “If Mother was able to subdue a powerful AI, I can only imagine she also had the means to quell such a rebellion.”
“I suppose Laurentia’s history is not so different from Nebracken’s, in many ways.”
“It’s not, but we can be the ones to break the cycle.”
“This is the talk that worries me,” Sigmund stated. “To ‘break’ tradition is to admit that something was wrong.”
“Something is wrong, and the people we want on our side will be the first to admit it. Stars be damned what the other houses have to say!”
He kept his tone calm and level. “Those ‘other houses’ can undo us if we’re not careful.”
“There’s already blood in the water after what happened with Mother. We have a narrow window in which to take decisive action. On
ly one house has offered any degree of support, which means our people are now the ones in the best position to save us.”
“Turning to commoners for salvation…I never thought I’d see the day.”
“No longer referring to them as ‘commoners’ might be a good place for us to start this transformation.”
He chuckled. “Yes, I suppose that isn’t the most endearing.”
She caught his gaze. “Can I trust you to support this plan?”
“The one you discussed with Cyrus, or the one you intend to carry out?”
“Mine, of course. But both are reliant on winning the affections of the people. Our people. We shouldn’t talk about them any other way.”
He inclined his head. “Your plan, yes, I take no issue with that. You’ve grown into quite the strategist.”
“I don’t blame you for your skepticism about Cyrus and Terry’s so-called ‘plan’. Their enthusiasm is commendable, but the logistics are untenable. Poor Terry thinks she can walk into a room, and tell people to take action, and they will.”
“They certainly do not have Laurentia’s gift for getting results,” Sigmund agreed.
“It’s best we don’t explain to Antaris what we’re planning. I’m afraid he might not see things the way we do.”
“I’d never dream of bringing him into the fold without your express permission.”
“When it comes time to make our move, people will have no option other than to make a final choice between ideals and results. Serenity is never going to be a utopia. Human nature doesn’t allow it.”
“I think Antaris will see that, too, but best not to take chances. Once he has no other option, he’ll fall in line.”
“I’m counting on it.”
THE RIGHT WORDS
STELLAR DATE: 12.21.8938 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Celestiana, Serenity System
REGION: Orion Freedom Alliance, Perseus Arm
Terry stared at the notes she’d jotted down on a pad in the Celestiana’s galley, the place she’d found it most comfortable to work. She knew it would take more than an impassioned speech to convince her friends to mount a revolution, and she was still waiting for a spark of inspiration.
“What are you working on?” Mai asked as she entered. She headed straight for the chiller to grab a snack.
“Trying to decide how best to convince people we’re not out of our minds,” she replied, setting down the notepad.
“But you are.”
“And yet you came back after paying off Cam. Why?”
Mai let out an amused snort. “Because I’m crazy too.”
“There has to be more to it than that,” she pressed.
Mai took her snack and came to sit across the table from Terry. “You’re not going to like the truth.”
“Try me.”
“There’s opportunity in chaos. People still need goods transported and odd jobs performed, even when everything around them breaks down. And when things get bad, they’re willing to pay whatever it costs. We hang around, just outside the action, and we can swoop in to assist whenever someone with a sufficient bank account has a job suited to our specific skillset.”
Cold, but not surprising coming from her. Terry let out a long breath. “That is one way to look at the situation.”
“I told you that you wouldn’t like it, but it’s the hard truth of life. Plus, if some houses happen to encounter difficulties, there might be assets worth seizing. All around, it seems better to be nearby than not.”
Terry tried to see through the callous interpretation of her home’s conflict to the root of Mai’s motivations. “So you’re pretty much sticking around on the off-chance that you can elevate your own position.”
“Well, yeah. But it’s more than an off-chance when you have something of genuine value to offer.”
Terry mulled over the statement. “You know, I think that actually helps me.”
Mai raised an eyebrow. “Um, okay. Glad to help?”
Terry was certain she wasn’t. The entire conversation had been a thinly veiled insult to her aspirations, but that didn’t matter. Mai had given her an idea about how to get through to people.
She grabbed her notepad. “When will we reach Gallas?”
“Two hours.”
“All right, see you then.” She headed toward her cabin to finish working, now that she had a sense of direction. Further conversation would only interrupt her work.
Before she could duck into the corridor to her cabin, she bumped into Cyrus in the lounge area.
“Hey! How goes it?” he greeted.
“I think I have some good talking points, but I need to smooth it out.”
“What are you thinking?”
She didn’t want to discuss it before working out the details, but it was possible that articulating it might help her solidify the thoughts.
“Let’s sit,” she suggested, gesturing to the couches in the center of the rec area.
“So formal,” Cyrus jested as he took a seat.
“No, I just want to keep myself from awkwardly pacing while I think out loud.” Terry sat down in a chair across from him. “I think I know what we need to say, but I don’t know how to say it convincingly.”
“Go on.”
“Well, the most compelling reason for someone to go along with a plan is because of personal gain. Sure, people will say they are taking action for the ‘greater good’, but there’s always a personal component to it—whether it be for themselves directly or to benefit a loved one. There’s a personal story tied to every case of activism.”
“Sure, I’ll buy that,” he said.
“So, what we need to do is articulate in no uncertain terms what people will get from revolting against the Great House power structure that exists today. The concept of ‘freedom’ is too broad for people who’ve lived such regimented lives. We need to spell out what liberty would look like—how it would change their day-to-day life and increase their prospects for career advancement.”
“Except we can’t make any guarantees,” Cyrus pointed out.
“That’s the problem with this whole thing. Right now, all we can say is, ‘These people are holding you back, and without them, maybe things can be better.’ That doesn’t sell the vision.”
“You’d know better than I would what the pain points are among workers.”
Terry sighed. “And that’s where things get more complicated. People are so stuck in their routines that they don’t even realize they’re having a bad go of it.”
“But you’ve lived that life. You know what it’s like there versus on the outside.”
“In part, but I was in one division. I don’t know how universal that experience is.”
“Sounds like we need a satisfaction survey.”
Terry waved off the suggestion. “As handy as that would be, people wouldn’t be honest—or even if they thought they were being honest, they wouldn’t have sufficient perspective to propose solutions for what would actually improve their lives.”
“Okay…” Cyrus faded out. “So what do we do?”
“That’s what I’m trying to work out.” Terry stood up and began to pace, realizing that stifling the impulse was only making it more difficult to process her thoughts. “I think the key might be to communicate that the life someone is born into isn’t a hard and fast destiny for themselves and their descendants.”
“That does seem like a universal message.”
“But it is very against the cultural norm. Mechanics have mechanic children, and grandchildren, and so on.”
“I guess there is the issue that there are certain jobs people wouldn’t be jumping to take. As soon as you take out mandatory service, people will be vying for the same elite positions.”
“Which is likely why the practices were implemented in the first place.”
“I don’t have a solution for you.”
“Premium pay or benefits for filling the necessary but undesirable job functions?”
“Perhaps, but that’s far too detailed a part of governance and operations to make any promises now.”
Terry groaned. “I know, that’s what I keep running into. I want to give specifics, but I can’t without making empty promises.”
“Not empty, just…not yet solidified.”
“Hmm.”
Terry fell into silent thought while she continued pacing, and Cyrus didn’t interrupt her.
“Maybe that’s it,” she mused aloud. “We sell the vision about the kind of society we could have. Not that we will, but we point out the issues we’ve been able to get perspective on as outsiders. Plant the seeds for people to begin to recognize their own satisfaction.”
“You might be onto something with that.”
The pace of her steps increased as the idea continued to form. “Yes, we need to help give them the vocabulary to express the things that nag at the back of every worker’s mind. Like, when I went to visit my friends for that research trip, they were so excited about the improvements to the rec room. It was all cosmetic and barely a step up, but it was meaningful to them because it was new. They didn’t know that the average ship has something so much better. Anything that’s even remotely novel seems amazing. So if we unveil the standard of living for the houses, and what would be possible if that wealth was shared rather than hoarded, people may start to realize how much they’re missing.”
“There is great power in that. The people at the bottom are who keep operations flowing.”
“In more ways than one. We need to open their eyes.”
“What’s the best way to do that? Show pictures of the lifestyle, or speak to it?” Cyrus asked.
Terry shook her head. “I think neither. We don’t want them to get angry without having a direction, because we could get a mob on our hands, if history is any indication. I think the key is to sell the vision of what life could look like once the revolution is complete—create a shared vision, get their buy-in, and then work collaboratively on the tactics to turn that aspiration into reality.”
