Ep.#10 - Retaliation (The Frontiers Saga - Part 2: Rogue Castes)
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“Options?” the general asked somewhat curtly.
Lord Dusahn looked the general directly in the eyes. “A Dusahn soldier’s career can only end three ways. Death in battle, retirement, or execution. Feel free to choose, if you like.”
General Hesson drew in his breath slowly and evenly, suppressing the anger that threatened to boil over at any moment. He had spent decades enduring this man’s arrogance and incompetence, and now… “I will have the papers in your hand within the hour, my lord,” the general replied with a nod. The general took a step back, preparing to leave.
“Is there not something else?” Lord Dusahn said, his tone becoming less tolerant.
“Thank you, my lord,” General Hesson added, nodding yet again.
“You are dismissed, General,” Lord Dusahn commanded, turning his back to him again, returning to the window to gaze at the gardens he had inherited from the previous ruler of Takara.
General Hesson turned and headed for the door, his anger and contempt barely held in check.
* * *
“We have finished integrating the Sugali AI into all the ship’s systems,” Deliza reported to everyone gathered in the Aurora’s command briefing room. “However, she still has no access to the ship’s communications systems, as you requested, Captain.”
“Thank you,” Nathan replied. “Though I see you’re still referring to it by a gender.”
“It’s almost impossible not to,” Abby defended.
“Is there really any harm in referring to it as a ‘she’?” Jessica wondered.
“It may increase the danger of us developing personal attachments to it,” Cameron suggested.
“I don’t think that’s going to be a problem,” Abby argued. “She is very careful about that. The way she states her opinions, the way she converses, it’s all very businesslike and impersonal. She never addresses you by your first name. She never displays inappropriate emotion, she never argues with you, but rather she merely points out the flaws in your logic, allowing you to see that she is correct. These things may seem small but they, and others, make all the difference.”
“Are you sure it’s going to help with the installation of the ZPEDs?” Nathan asked Vladimir.
“She has already helped,” Vladimir insisted. “I was going to start with ripping out the main power trunks and upgrading them, and she suggested that we simply add multiple trunks and then rephase the loads at each draw point. I never would have thought of this myself.”
“And that will save time?” Cameron asked.
“A couple days, at least,” Vladimir assured her. “She truly is a godsend.”
Nathan sighed. “Then I guess we’ll keep Leta, for now, and see how it goes. But I still want a kill switch.”
“Of course,” Vladimir replied. “Uh…”
Nathan’s eyebrow went up. “There is something else?”
“Da. A small thing, really, but…”
“What is it?” Nathan wondered.
Vladimir looked at Abby, then at Deliza. “It was their idea,” he spurted.
“Coward,” Abby muttered.
“What was their idea?” Nathan asked, growing impatient.
“We don’t call her Leta,” Abby told him. “It was an accident, at first, and then it just seemed more natural to…”
“What seemed more natural?” Nathan interrupted.
Abby took a deep breath. “Well, we call her ‘Aurora’.”
Nathan looked to Cameron, who shrugged, then at Jessica, who appeared to be holding back her laughter. He looked back at Abby. “I see.” Nathan thought for a moment. “And I suppose she answers to it.”
“Of course,” Abby replied.
“She will answer to anything you like, Captain,” Deliza assured him.
“Aurora is fine,” Nathan replied, “for now.” He looked around the table. “Anything else?” When no one responded, he spoke again. “Then let’s get those ZPEDs installed.”
The attendees rose and headed for the exit, while Nathan remained seated. “Lieutenant Commander Nash,” he called, “a moment?”
Jessica returned to her seat, while the others departed. As soon as everyone was gone, she spoke. “If you’re going to chew my butt for disobeying your orders yesterday, you don’t have to. I know I was wrong, but surely you understand that I couldn’t leave you behind to die, not after all we’ve been through and all we mean to each other…”
Nathan raised his hand, cutting her off mid-sentence. “I wasn’t going to chew your butt,” Nathan said. “I was going to thank you.”
“You were?” Jessica asked, shocked.
“I was,” Nathan assured her. “I was also going to apologize.”
“You were.” After a moment, she added, “For what?”
“I was wrong the last time I chastised you. I don’t want officers who blindly follow orders. I want officers who think for themselves.”
“But…”
“I’m not saying that you were correct in running off to Casbon the way you did, because you weren’t. But there are times when you do need to ignore orders and do the right thing. I should know this better than anyone.”
“No argument there,” Jessica said half under her breath.
“On Rama you were correct. You read the situation, you identified the problem, and you formulated a solution that was better than the one I had given you. In that case, there was no time to consult with me and explain your alternate plan, and you knew it. So, you disobeyed my orders but only because you were certain that, had I known of your alternate plan, I would have approved of it. Am I right?”
“Oh, yes,” Jessica agreed without reservation.
“That’s what I thought,” Nathan added. “That is all.”
Jessica rose from her seat, fighting back a smile as she headed for the door. As she passed him, she stopped, bent over, kissed him on the side of the head, and then whispered in his ear, “You know you love me.”
Nathan looked up as she left, rolled his eyes, and shook his head.
* * *
Lord Mahtize entered the steam-filled room and made his way across to his favorite spot in the corner. As usual, the room had several men sitting about with towels around their waists and a cold beverage in a tumbler on the bench next to them. Such was how Lord Mahtize usually ended his workweek: a round of torra ball, a massage, and a long steam. It was one of the many pleasures afforded Takara’s upper class and, thankfully, one of the few that had not been taken away by the Dusahn.
Lord Mahtize leaned back, draping a towel over his face and closing his eyes for a few moments. It had been a tumultuous couple of weeks: the execution of so many nobles and the disbanding of their assets, the unexpected visit from the frighteningly confident Ghatazhak general, and, of course, the attack on Takara and the destruction of their only orbital spaceport…although he did stand to make a profit rebuilding it.
Lord Mahtize continued to lie back with his face covered, beads of sweat forming on his face and head, listening to the small talk of others in the room, as he usually did. He often gathered interesting and profitable tidbits of information this way.
Today, however, the conversations seemed less. In fact, after a while, they became non-existent. Eventually, Lord Mahtize removed the towel from his face and looked around. The steam room was empty.
For a moment, he became concerned. He could not remember the last time he had been in this room alone. He wondered if there might have been some emergency that caused the others to leave but then, he too would have been notified. Unless……
Lord Mahtize allowed his nervousness to take over. What if someone wanted him to be alone in this room? General Telles’s visit suddenly came to mind, and Lord Mahtize grabbed his towel and beverage tumbler to depart.
That’s when the door opened and an old man walked in. A very old man; older than Lord Mahtize could ever remember seeing on Takara. He, too, was wearing a towel around his waist. The old man was quite wrinkled but appeared to have
a sturdy, muscular frame underneath. In addition, there was a strength and confidence about the man…and a familiarity.
Again, Lord Mahtize gathered his towel and tumbler to leave.
“Please, stay,” the old man insisted. “It is you with whom I wish to speak.”
“To me?” Lord Mahtize wondered.
“Indeed.”
“Do you know who I am?”
“You are Alejandro Mahtize, Lord of House Mahtize, Chair of the Council of Nobles, father of three, husband of one, lover of at least three that I know of, and a spy for the Karuzari Alliance.”
“You know much of me,” Lord Mahtize replied, struggling to appear unaffected by the old man’s accusations. “However, I’m quite sure you are incorrect about the last two.”
“My information on you is correct, I assure you,” the old man replied confidently. “However, do not be concerned, I have no plans to turn you over to the Dusahn…assuming you provide me with that which I am about to ask.”
“I could have you arrested, old man,” Lord Mahtize stated indignantly. “I am a noble, remember.”
“Yes, you are,” the old man replied, unshaken by his threats. He leaned forward, looking Lord Mahtize in the eyes. “Do you know who I am?”
“You are a decrepit, old fart who has threatened the wrong noble,” Lord Mahtize replied, his tone taking on a hint of menace toward the old man.
The old man smiled, his eyes becoming steely. “I am General Aldemon Hesson of the Dusahn Empire…retired.” The old man leaned back again. “I suggest you parse your words quite carefully from this point forward, Alejandro.”
Lord Mahtize was silent for several moments. “What is it you wish of me?” he finally asked.
“I wish for you to deliver a message.”
Lord Mahtize again paused, afraid to ask the obvious question. “To whom?” he finally asked.
“To Captain Nathan Scott, leader of the Karuzari Alliance,” General Hesson replied. “Tell him, I wish to meet…in private.”
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Episode 11
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The Frontiers Saga:
Rogue Castes
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Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN