by T J Bryan
"Freydis, just a day or two. That's all I ask."
Freydis thought a moment. "Well I guess he is gone. Peters that is. Yes, I'll wait two days, no more. I'll run more tests that will buy some time. I'll say, if pressed, I was worried about false positives."
As Abel was about to leave Dr. Bjorn Haverson entered. He nodded at Abel and then spoke to Dr. Auber. "Well Fryedis you don't need to worry about reducing my hours here at the hospital. Somehow I have been disallowed from the upcoming election. So you gain all that time back Fryedis."
Abel stood, "Bjorn you were disallowed from the election rolls?"
"Yes, I don't know why, but I applied more on a lark than anything else. Actually it's kind of a relief."
"How did you find out? About the disqualification."
"It was on the mid-day news. A delayed broadcast at about 14:00 or so. Stephen Klein read the list on the air. Almost ninety folks have been disallowed. No reason given but I know most of those folks and it really doesn't make any sense. Some kind of bureaucratic mix up I think. Probably a day or two before it's cleared up." Bjorn paused a moment. "Abel I thought you were on the Guardians Committee? Can you explain this?"
"No, Bjorn. The Committee has adopted no such list. What the other members of the Guardians Committee are doing is not legal. There has been no committee decision on any list and if the committee moved to adopt a list I would veto such a list."
"Well, I've got the Moon Shift. Let me know what happens?" Bjorn asked as he left Freydis' office.
"Sounds bad Abel," Freydis said. "I heard from the orderly that the only people allowed in Piet's room was two of your crew and the Judicar and Dekker. I doubt your crew had anything to do with Peters' death, and that leaves only two others." Freydis looked grim.
"Your right Freydis. I now suspect the Judicar and Alos responsible for the murder in order to cover up their role in the coup. Given their personalities I suspect they are the ones behind all this madness."
Freydis thought a long moment, "Abel If I were you I go talk to Frankish Godfrid at the Collegium Law School. He is the dean now of the law school and I think a very good man. He was Judicar, what, eight on nine years ago. I know him to be honest and fair. He might be able to shed some light on what can be done. What must be done."
"Do you have his address?"
"At this time of night you will find him in the law library. There are a set of offices just to the left of the main entrance. Look for room 104, I think, or 105."
"Thanks Dr. Auber I'll do that right now."
The main library was only a one minute walk from the hospital. Moon time was setting in so Abel thought it must be about 18:30. So much had happened that he had lost all track of time. As he entered the main library he turned to look for the offices on the left. He noticed two men standing in the distance. One very short and the other tall. The tall one wore an unusual knee length dark brown coat. It was still warm outside and the coat made no sense. And as Abel looked toward them they turned away. After years of police work and learned paranoia Abel knew he was being followed.
After a few more steps he found room 104 and seated at a large table surrounded by old fashioned books he saw Frankish Godfrid. "Hello Professor Godfrid, do you have a moment?"
Godfrid looked up and smiled. "Oh yes Chief. It's been some time since I have seen you outside a courtroom. Of course, come in."
Abel entered and sat down. Godfrid had a narrow face, an extremely bushy moustache, and a shock of long white hair. The moustache was an oddity in the Habitat. His gaze was penetrating, but something about Godfrid said compassion and competence.
It took Abel half an hour to share his concerns about the coup and his suspicions of Arne Thorgaut and Alos Dekker. During his entire explanation of his worst fears Godfrid said not a word, but his eyes said everything Abel needed to know.
Godfrid leaned across the table toward Abel. "No Abel, you are not crazy. If what you have said this evening proves correct, and I have no doubt it is, then you have indeed discovered a cancer within our midst. I should not be surprised at Dekker. The man is a cipher always willing to join any cause that made him feel important. Now Arne, that's another matter. One of my smartest students years ago. Quick in analysis, quick in thought, and often too quick in action. Arne was consumed by ambition in his early years, but in the last 20 years he seemed to have mellowed. But there was always something amiss with Arne. There was some kind of ambition in him that just being a successful Judicar did not satisfy. However I am not really surprised by your accusation, or rather your presumption of his guilt. I am afraid to admit that given what you have said I share your concerns"
"What should I do Professor? This is not an attempted coup, but a coup in progress. We need to stop it, but I am uncertain of how to do that without further damaging of the Commonwealth."
"Abel you have two paths you may follow. First you may play the game by the rules they have set. This Guardian Council that they enticed you to join, the murders they committed to achieve power, their corruption of our political process; these are their tools and if you continue to play their game you will be either destroyed by them or corrupted.
"And the other path?"
"Abel. Your the Admiral of the OCN. You have a hundred crewmembers probably armed who will support you. Indeed I believe the vast majority of our citizens support you as well. Arne and Alos are hardly politically popular people, if they were then they would not need to resort to violence to get the power they crave. They would just use the electorate and seize power as elected officials."
Abel expressed his real worry. "I'm concerned about our democracy and the preservation of the Commonwealth Charter. If I move troops into the Habitat, am I not just replacing one coup with another? Would the result be any different?
Godfried laughed. "Of course it would be different. You are Abel Stoneman, and you are not Arne Thorgaut. That's a rather huge difference. However your concern is besides the point. At the outbreak of the riots Martial Law was declared and more importantly accepted by the citizens as the only way to restore peace and begin the hunt for the plotters. You are already empowered by law to save our Commonwealth. Now get up, walk out that door, and stop Arne."
As Abel descended the Collegium steps he looked for his tail, but they were nowhere to be seen. After years as a beat cop Abel was certain they were still there. Abel reached down to his belt where he kept the pistola given to him by Helen. He glanced quickly at the grips. The green tell-tale told him all he needed to know.
It was late and Abel was tired as he entered his small one room apartment not far from the ES station. He felt not only tired but 'dirty' after his meeting with the Guardian Council and decided that a hot shower before bed might help him sleep. Moments later he stepped into the shower, the hot water flowing about him and rising in an embracing steamy cloud. I'll sleep better tonight he thought, and in the morning I'll call Helen and organize our crew to set about correcting this madness. I'll start with assembling the crews on the dock at about 11:00, then dispatch them to the Habitat as I sit in on Stephen Klein broadcast to explain to the people what the OCN is doing to restore order and democracy.
Abel wrapped a towel around his waist and exited the shower. Before him stood the two men who had tailed him earlier. Both held plasma pistolas in their hands.
The short one spoke, "Abel Stoneman, You are under arrest on the order of the Judicar for high treason, the murder of Piet Peters, and inciting riot."
The taller man laughed. That was the last Abel remembered until he awoke in a jail cell.
Chapter Thirty Three
Jamon System - Judicar Holding Cell, Community Center - Year 3245. October 21 ET: 08:34
Abel awoke with a blinding headache. He reached to the back of his head, felt a bad bruise, and when pulling away his hand saw blood. He recognized the cell as the tiny one man holding cell just below the Judicar's chambers used to hold prisoners during trial recess. Unlike the Emergency Services Station lock
up, this cell lacked any amenities, assuming one called a toilet and a bunk amenities.
As Abel began to remember the night before, and the claims of his arrest, he began to wonder if Arne Thorgaut would actually put him on trial for treason, or if he would simply disappear. Perhaps shot in the back while trying to escape. Abel was certain the Judicar would avoid a trial. There would be too much public exposure and no matter how many accusations and false evidence was presented the majority of the population would refuse to believe it. No, the Judicar would kill him before he could argue his case.
Abel stood naked on the stone floor and reached for the cell door. It was open. Abel laughed but then his head hurt and he stopped. If they are going to shoot me he thought better in the cell than out in the Community Center where it will be obvious I was trying to 'escape.' Let them kill me in the cell and perhaps leave blood and gore for forensics to find. After all someone would have to clean up the mess in the cell, and Abel doubted the Judicar would stoop so low, and his thugs were probably not paid well enough to be effective cleaners. Abel laughed again while clenching his teeth. I'll just wait this out he resolved. Eventually they will get tired of waiting and then who knows?
The cell lacked windows and the hallway leading from the door took a dog leg to the left before reaching stairs that led to the court room above. Abel had no idea of time and without food, or light, or an occasional guard passing, he had no way of measuring the passage of time. Abel sat on the stone floor and began to meditate and control his breathing. Much as he would do in a vac suit with limited oxygen when trapped in a blow-out. Time passed, how much time he did not know, but it passed.
Someone tapped him on the shoulder, Abel was startled and looked up to see Farn Mayer standing above holding a plasma rifle. She smiled and then saluted as best she could while cradling the rifle in one arm. Abel, still sitting, returned the salute and then stood.
"Took a while to find you," she said. "The professor called us when you left the library. He thought Arne Thorgaut might do something like this. We have sixteen crew members surrounding the Community Center and I would like to get us someplace more secure."
Abel asked, "Where are Arne and Alos Dekker?"
"Dekker killed himself, or at least we think he did. Anyway he is dead. Found in his apartment with a pistola in his hand. His right hand. He was left handed."
Farn drew her breath, "As for Thorgaut, he seems to have disappeared. We caught one of his stooges and he has admitted that Thorgaut had about six still living accomplices. We have the names. No one you would know. Just angry out of work miners who believed the promises the Judicar made about making them safe, secure, and of course rich. Oh and I need to get you some shorts."
...
Jamon System - Year 3245. November 1 ET: 11:40
The election had been held and the ballots counted. OCN crews were retiring to their training facilities and leaving the Habitat to the reconstituted constabulary. As Abel read the results of the open election he laughed as he saw that Dr. Bjorn Haverson had been elected as the representative of the Medical Alliance. Dr. Freydis Auber had decided not to seek a second term on the Assembly. To Abel's amusement he noticed that Bjorn was also appointed to the Executive Committee. He wondered how Bjorn would like his time well spent on endless discussion of often trivial matters.
Emmitt had accepted the captaincy of R71 and had assembled a skeleton crew. They had renamed R71 the OCN Greenland. An appropriate name Abel thought. SAR 1044 could be recommissioned in January if a crew could be assembled. If recommissioned the OCN would need another SAR as training ship and there were plenty to choose from. The worrying factor was the availability of a Captain for SAR 1044. The new crews of the OCN were heavily inclined toward the young and inexperienced. The OCN crews were growing and now amounted to almost 200. Abel doubted they would ever need more than that, but the lack of a mature and experienced leaders was a very real problem. He thought they would just have to wait and see if anyone emerged to catch their attention.
The OCN Marine contingent had grown to twelve and Abel thought that was about the right number and would allow six marines on both Iceland and Greenland. Enough to ensure security, defend against boarders, and if necessary intimidate anyone who threatened the navy in system or out. All of the OCN Marines had previously had serious physical impairment, but now as OCN Marines those impairments seemed irrelevant. Abel had noticed that the Marines lived together on the Iceland and spent most of their days in their armour. Often drilling and practicing, but as often as not, just socializing with each other and hanging out. They were forming a very tight knit group and Abel well understood their reaction. They lived together in the Marine Barracks and shared everything. There was no 'compassion' from the able bodied, no sympathy for a disfigurement, no accommodation for a genetic defect needed between themselves. They were all equal both in their minds as well as in the minds of the entire crew. The Marines were now all able bodied and proud to be OCN Marines.
Abel had called a captain's meeting for 11:30 on the bridge of the OCN Greenland the latest addition to the navy. Abel had wanted both Helen and Sivli to understand the differences between the Iceland and the Greenland. Differences that even Abel did not fully understand. As the meeting began, Emmitt now captain of the Greenland, gave a summary of his ship's capacity.
"The Greenland, according to her ship builder's plate, is 47 years older that the Iceland, but as is with all Greayson ships she is built to the same basic standard. She is fully compatible with Greayson designs and fully interchangeable with regard to spares, maintenance procedures, and overall design. The Greenland does show evidence of battle damage although she seems to have been repaired. Her repairs are sound, but appear to have been hasty. Perhaps she was repaired in a yard with limited capability or perhaps by that repair ship we have seen in the zone."
Emmitt brought up a holo projection of the ship to illustrate his summary. "She does however have one major change to the Iceland, and this change appears to have been made well after she was commissioned. Three decks have been removed and the space enlarged to hold five SARs like Ragnarök. In addition fore and aft hatches were added to allow SAR's to both exit and enter the ship while in flight. We know she was capable of carrying SAR's because the berthing cradles were designed for SARs only. In addition she has crew quarters for seven SAR crews. Perhaps the crews used in rotation on flights or perhaps as replacement crews in the event of casualties. As we all know, we have no tactical descriptions of how these ships were used or why. We have an enormous amount of documentation of, for example, how to perform maintenance, or how to operate a pilot's station, but as to the actual fighting of this ship, or any Greayson ship for that matter we are in the dark.
Helen interrupted, "The Encyclopaedia Gallectica, while its' narrative is now 150 year out of date, provides some insight into the war strategy of both Unity and Greayson, but there is little tactical information. How they actually fought against one another, their plan of attack, their battle techniques, are all a mystery. Except of course from what we glean from the combat simulators and those clearly were intended for basic training."
Abel thought a moment, "But what about the weapons and defence stations. The POO's for those stations might give us a hint of how the weapons were used."
Helen responded, "Greaysons were very good at keeping secrets such as the GWP systems. I suspect that the absence of any hard copy, or for that matter command comp data, was intentional. They may have worried that if their tactical manuals fell into the hands of Unity they might loose their advantage. However we do have a solid understanding of their weapons and defence systems from the CTS, although there are still gaps," Helen paused a moment. "Gaping gaps in some cases as to what some of those weapons actually do. The same is true of the defence systems."
Abel asked, "Didn't our crews learn the approach to tactical procedures by flying the simulator in those training and practice runs?"
Emmitt responded, "Yes. Of cour
se they did. But the simulations, while difficult to master were primarily focused on independent command con station mastery. Not on how those stations must interact in combat."
Abel thought a moment. "Well at least I doubt we will see any real combat. Our edge of space has been quiet for the last 300 years or more. The one exception being the debris field at the Dello entrance portal. I think a basic understanding of each station is sufficient. I doubt there are any naval fleets or masses of ships out there since the descent of The Dark. We may encounter rogue ships or pirates, but I doubt we will see anything stronger. However it pays to be prepared."
"The EG is clear on one thing Abel," Helen said. "The major battles in the Great War were commerce raids and fights to control systems with multiple portals that could, if controlled, limit the passage, trade, and commerce of their enemy. There were some exceptions such as the final attack on the Greayson home world. But those seem to be few and the system attacks mentioned in the EG were primarily Unity attacks on the independent systems or those systems who tried to stay neutral, while Greayson seems never to have actually attacked a Unity home world. However some neutrals ran afoul of both sides. In the case of Unity, destroying an agricultural base had little value in comparison with destroying industrial and military capacity. Almost all Unity systems, with a few exceptions were simple but massive agricultural systems. The systems did support stations and yards of limited capacity, but their value was a social one in controlling the slave populations as well as in food production."
Abel stood and stretched. "Perhaps if commerce raiding was the primary strategic goal of the Greaysons, then it would make sense to provide escorts to their mercantile fleets. Perhaps that is why the Greenland carried SARs."
"It's possible," replied Emmitt, "But SAR's have no problem keeping up with a fleet. Why carry them if they can operate fully independently and without the need for a carrier?"
Abel looked to Silvi. "Abel, I once read in an old book about something called 'cabin fever'. Seems if you stay in a confined space for a long time you get anxious. Now our experience on Ragnarök is limited. Our longest training mission out to Giwiso and back several times to test the GWP lasted 18 days. We didn't experience 'cabin fever' but the entire crew including myself felt very good about shore leave when we returned."
