Kris Longknife Stalwart

by Mike Shepherd

  The screen went blank and Kris found herself staring at Jack. "Did what I think just happened actually happen?"

  Jack gave her an expressive shrug. With only one set of shoulders, he had to work hard at it to beat an Iteeche shrug. "May I suggest another call to Admiral Tong?"

  "Yes. Nelly, get me Admiral Tong and hold any calls from Sam until I finish with my admiral historian."

  "Will do Kris," Nelly said just as the requested admiral appeared on screen.

  "I take it that you heard that offer the same time I did," Kris said.

  "Actually, my Most Eminent Admiral, I was, how do you Humans put it, indisposed at the moment."

  "Can you look at it now?" Kris said, wondering if the look on the admiral's face was what an Iteeche looked like when embarrassed.

  She watched as the admiral viewed the offer on another screen. When it finished, the Iteeche ran the top finger of his upper right hand along the rim of his beak.

  "That is very interesting, My Most Eminent Admiral. Does he understand fully what you intended to offer him?"

  "It appears so," Kris admitted. "He repeated much of it back to me. I'll need to talk with him to make sure we see eye-to-eye with each other. I have one question for you."

  "Only one?" actually was accompanied by a bit of a raised eyebrow. Could the Iteeche be using more facial muscles now that they had Humans around who used theirs so extensively? Interesting.

  "Well, one to start with," Kris said. "About him wanting an admiral to function as whatever it is that we intend to leave behind to see that we get ships, supplies, and not a new rebellion. Why would he expressly ask for a Navy admiral?"

  "Am I correct in saying that what you want is an officer who would mainly involve himself with military matters? He would see that supplies are forwarded to the Combined Fleet and not the rebels. That any battlecruisers built are commissioned into your fleet and not the rebels and keep his nose out of running the system."

  Kris nodded.

  "I think he understands that as well," the Iteeche admiral said. "However, I don't think he's worrying about your needs. He's asking for an admiral because of his needs to keep their own programs progressing as they want them to."

  "And why I would need an admiral to do that?" Kris asked.

  "If you appoint any Clan Lord or lordling, they would inevitably turn matters in the direction that most favors their clan. It is inevitable. You heard from Sam. To him, the system is a treasure trove that his clan views as nothing more to plunder and despoil."

  "You must have listened in on our rather lengthy conversation," Kris said.

  "I had someone of my staff do the listening. He provided me with points that I suspect tell me all I needed to know."

  "If only your staff could have cut my own conversation with Sam so short."

  "Yes. No doubt. However, we Navy personnel, be we officers or sailors, have no clan. We have no hopes of advancement through clan honors. A junior son may be put over us as a fleet commander. If we win victories, he will bask in the glory and advance his standing in his clan. We, however, who serve below him will get only our Navy pay. Our advancement is based on merit. We don't always succeed, but we try to promote the best man to officer and CPO."

  "So Balan's Planetary Overlord is willing to have an admiral looking over his shoulder as Supreme Planetary Overseer," Kris said. "He expects that an admiral will concern himself with the war fighting ability of what they produce and will leave the running of the planet and its improvements to the civilians."

  "Yes, My Most Eminent Admiral, that is what he is expecting."

  "How often does this happen?"

  "That is hard to say. Usually, major clans are swapping planets around. Both the rebels and loyalists may come from the same clan, just different branches. However, here you have minor clans that want to get in on the fun and profit of running planets. Would they recognize the advantages of this prosperous planetary system continuing to develop itself and making itself wealthier and more productive? Would they instead want to bleed off resources and wealth to benefit their clan chiefs back on the Capital?"

  The Iteeche admiral ended his series of questions with a shrug involving all four arms.

  "Yeah. And here I thought that bringing in the minor clans was a fun thing to do," Kris muttered.

  "I have heard you Humans say, ‘no good deed goes unpunished.’ "

  Kris snorted. "You are learning too much about us," she said glowering, though her lips were too upturned to make it believable.

  "Well, the wind blows good to some and bad to others. There is often no way to know until you reach a safe port or crash upon the rocks."

  "And I seem to live in a very windy age," Kris said.

  "Yes, you do, My Most Eminent Admiral. Now, how may I serve you?"

  "Do you have an admiral that you would recommend for the job of Supreme Planetary Overseer?"

  "You like that title?"

  "When we Humans offer someone a big job with little benefits and no extra pay, we try to give it a big title."

  Admiral Tong made the strange, strangled sound that passed for an Iteeche laugh.

  "Sometimes you Humans seem almost Iteeche. So like us and so alien, all at the same time," he said as he gasping for breath after laughing. "Yes, I do have an admiral I can recommend to you. He was a good student of mine in the War Academy."

  Again, Admiral Tong fell into lecture mode. "He was also among those of us sent off to immolate ourselves in battles we could not win. Like myself, he chose survival over suicide by combat. He was one of the first to join Admiral Coth when he called that you were looking for good officers and didn't consider one defeat a permanent mark on a man's record. He is loyal to the Empire, the Navy, and you, likely in that order, or he may be like me and unable to tell the difference between the three. He is a good man to have at your back."

  "Could you please have him brought over to my flag so I can meet this man of such sterling repute?"

  "That I shall do. When?"

  "In two hours."

  "I keep forgetting how quickly you Humans move. Yes, he will be there. Now, before you go, there is one thing about this message that you may not have understood the full import of."

  "What is that?" Kris asked. A red light was flashing on the lower right-hand corner of her screen.

  "He has offered to surrender all forces in his system. You asked for the battlecruisers under construction. He has countered by offering you all the warships tied up to the piers in his system. He's asked for an admiral and offered a thousand battlecruisers in return."

  "I missed that. Are you sure?"

  "No," The admiral admitted. "However, the words appear to say that."

  "We'll have to approach Balan 4 carefully. If those battlecruisers don't get out of here, I'm afraid that I will need to look a gift horse in the mouth. I take it that the skippers on those ships would be just as loyal to me as the Army personnel."

  "Yes. If they swear allegiance, they are yours."

  "You've given me much to think over, Admiral. Now, I really must go, I have an annoying light flashing on my board. No doubt Sam wishes to bend my ear for an hour this time."

  "I will have Admiral Linn report to you in two hours. I must confess. I am glad that you are the politician and not I."

  "Admiral, I ran off and joined the Navy to avoid a life of politics. My father is an elected Planetary Overlord. Trust me, it is even worse when you must persuade more than half of a planet's population that they want you to be their Overlord."

  Now Kris got to see eyebrows come down over the admiral's two middle eyes, not much, but a bit more than a twitch. "Someday you must tell me of this horror story."

  "No doubt, if you sail with me long enough, you shall hear me drone on about it.”

  Kris was right, it was Sam waiting impatiently to bend her ear. And he did not want to stop just because he had said all there was to say. He refused to accept that the Planetary Overseer should be anyone but a
Clan Lord. It was amazing the vituperation the loyalist Clan lord suddenly had for the rebels.

  "They will stab you in the back. They will throw anyone you leave behind into irons and send them off to the rebel Clan Lords to be tortured and murdered. How can you trust those who have turned their coats once and now offer to turn them again?"

  "I assure you, Most Eminent Chooser, I will be leaving nearly half a million troops behind to back up this Supreme Planetary Overseer. We Humans are not babes in the woods where intrigue is concerned."

  "Yes, I don't doubt that you are. I just wonder if you are intriguing against me."

  "I assure you, you will have a planet soon enough."

  "Please be sure that you do. Remember, these Battleships of State are full to the brim with other Clan Lords who expect planets. You sailed with three sets of Lords eager to step in and rule three planets. There are many lordlings that are expecting fiefs to rule. They will not be happy if you do not capture three planets for us. We are Iteeche and we do know how to intrigue."

  "I don't doubt that you do, Sam. However, remember that I offered to capture only two, maybe three planets. Now, if the transfer of allegiances goes quickly and smoothly, I fully expect that we will have supplies and troops for three more planets. I do, however, require time to attend to the present situation in the Balan system."

  Despite Kris's suggestion that he let her tend to acquiring a system, he still kept her for an hour as he yammered on with his demands, and Kris did her best to sooth his injured ego and restore his dreams of vast riches for himself and those who would serve under him.

  When she accepted the ships from the minor clans, she had no idea just how petty the politicking was at that lower level in the Clans' pecking order.

  Finally, she was able to escape without gnawing her leg off.

  After a quick supper with Jack and Megan where they got stuck listening to her vent her frustration at wasting so much of her day being a politician, Kris checked the situation.

  Her Flag Bridge was getting feed from every sensor known to man. Everything was going smoothly. Indeed, beyond smooth. All one thousand of the battlecruisers tied up on the three Balan stations had gone cold steel. Their reactors were completely secured.

  That required another call to Admiral Tong.

  "Have you seen the report of the battlecruisers closing down their reactors?"

  "Yes. I think you now have proof that they have no intention of going anywhere."

  "Admiral, what does it take to start a ship from cold steel?"

  The Iteeche gave a quarter shrug. Only one shoulder went up. "Plasma must be brought from the station reactor to fire up one reactor. Then that ship fires up another and so it goes down the line of piers. It is a slow process and not one we like doing."

  The Iteeche admiral paused for a moment, apparently lost in recollection of how this process worked. "We have to use a flexible hose with the required superconducting magnets to keep the plasma from breaking loose and wreaking havoc on the station while it's being transferred from the station reactor to the nearest ship. It's a long, dangerous, and carefully done process. I don’t think they could fire up all three hundred or so ships at each space station in less than two days More likely three or four. It all depends on how many meters of hose they have on each station. Oh, and whether or not it needs refurbishing if it's gotten aged or hasn't been tested in fifty years or more."

  "Ugh," Kris said. "He's risking that potential problem."

  "That is a major message, my Most Eminent Admiral. It also answers one matter that was tickling my interest."

  "Oh?"

  "The battlecruisers are tied up one to a pier. That will allow us to dock one of our battlecruisers directly across from the ship with cold steel. That will take a lot less hosing and it will likely need less twisting and turning. Yes. Someone organized his ships so that he could make you this offer."

  Kris chuckled. "If I'm going to be played, I prefer that it be done this way. So, you think this Planetary Overlord was hoping I would spot what he was doing for the system and its infrastructure and make him the offer he's fishing for."

  "Pretty much."

  "Thanks, Admiral Tong. Now I must prepare to meet with your Admiral Linn."

  "I hope you like him. Most in the fleet do."

  "Not all?"

  "He lost a battle and ran," Admiral Tong said simply.

  "So, he has the approval of those who have fought a battle but not of those who are still virgins to this business, huh?"

  "Precisely."

  "It's been good talking with you. I'm looking forward to our next conversation."

  "No doubt."

  Kris broke the comm link and took the short stroll to her day cabin, just off the bridge. The fleet was still at Condition Baker, so Kris's quarters were a bit cramped, but she found it comfortable.

  She had only had time to check the fleet's status and that the situation on the planet ahead was stable before she heard a knock at her door.

  "Enter," she said.

  25

  Admiral of the 4th Order of Iron Linn was a tall, thin Iteeche who moved gracefully on his four legs while keeping his arms moving slowly at his side. His central eyes focused on Kris while the other two took in the room around her.

  Kris had the distinct feeling that Admiral Linn would be a tough opponent in a ground fight. With warriors like him, no wonder the Iteeche War had lasted so long.

  He presented himself before her desk and gave her a snappy Iteeche salute with both hands shading his two central eyes.

  Kris returned it. "Nelly, produce a stool for the admiral. Take a seat. Admiral Linn, you come with high praise."

  If the Iteeche was surprised to see a stool rising from the floor beside him, he didn't show it. He settled himself on it and answered. "I fear that my old teacher is under the misperception that I was a better student than I was. I got lucky on a few exercises and seem to have made a name for myself."

  Kris chuckled. "We had a great general named Napoleon. He said that he would rather have a general who was lucky than one who was good. I find that the harder I work, the luckier I get, don't you?"

  "I see that you have discovered the secret. A good swimmer makes sure ninety percent of the effort is below the water."

  "I think we're singing from the same page of the hymnal. Now, if we pile one more cliché atop this pyramid, it is going to bury us alive."

  The Iteeche admiral chortled and laughed. It was a small one, but a hairball nevertheless. "Admiral Tong told me that you had an impossible job to do and that all I'd get for it was a big title. He didn't tell me anything else. What do you have in mind for me?"

  So Kris quickly brought him up to date with the situation in the system they were invading. She let him know her desired outcome. "I need battlecruisers for the Emperor and naval stores and supplies for my ships. I do not want the planet's present management's initiatives at improvement and expanded infrastructure delayed at all."

  In conclusion, Kris said, "I know that there are bound to be conflicts between my goals for the Navy and my goals to improve this system. I don't doubt that some of the locals will see this as an opportunity to cut back on warship production and supplies to the Navy and the Army we leave behind here and jack up their local efforts. You'll need to be watchful for that."

  "No doubt. If I wasn't Navy, I might feel the same way. Do you have a report of what munitions and equipment have been provided over the last six months?"

  "No. However, as soon as I appoint you, I expect you will request and require that it be provided to you. I'll include it in the negotiations I expect to have. No doubt, we will have to reduce our verbal proposals into articles that you can use to hit someone over the head with. I doubt you could use them as a basis for legal action."

  "Yes. It is hard to find a court that has purview over matters such as these. I suspect that is what wars are for."

  "Sadly. I hope that the Empire can strengthen the rule of la
w so that more of these irritations can resolved short of war."

  "So, the stories about you are right. You are a bit of an optimist and a romantic."

  "Better to dream dreams of what can be than live with no vision for the future of your kids."

  "Again, your kids. A romantic idea."

  "Many of the officers and staff at Main Navy as well as the Imperial Guard now have better housing. They are living with companions and many of them are choosing to share their seed together and choose a child of their flesh," Kris pointed out.

  "Yes, I have heard of that. It's very interesting. A sailor on a battlecruiser is not likely to have a companion to share his quarters." The Admiral paused, then all four of his eyes grew wide. "You have your companion on this ship. Have you had your children here as well?"

  "Several times. They came out on this very ship with us when we came from Human space. I was prepared to fight the rebels with my children behind me when they jumped us."

  "Yes. I really like the tune they use for your song about that battle that wasn't. You can almost hear the pitter-patter of running rebel feet as they flee from your fleet of target drones."

  "Yes. We did pull a good one off there. What the Iteeche Navy is lacking is a feminine side. You have no women on the ships. We do. Occasionally, that means we have pregnant women and children on our ships. So far, it has not kept me from winning my battles."

  "No, it certainly has not.

  "Now," Kris asked. "What do you want for ground support? I'm willing to march off four hundred thousand troops and take on that many soldiers from Balan."

  "I talked with my friend, General Compeel. He is the one I would request to command my ground forces. He proposes that we mix one of your brigades with two Iteeche. That would leave most divisions with two local brigades, including one Human brigade. Same thing, one in three division HQ and support units, along with their artillery brigade, would swap with one in our Order of Battle Corps. Army staff will be split down the middle: local and us."