by Rachel Ford
“Telari wanted an investigation,” Brek pointed out.
Giya scoffed. “Telari made a big deal about wanting an investigation, you mean. He wanted people to think he wanted an investigation.”
“How does that look different than actually wanting an investigation?”
“The bottom line is, Telari knew. Telari probably orchestrated the whole damned thing. And he’s going to walk. Mira’s dead, and Telari’s going to be Supreme Leader.”
Chapter Fifty-Three
Ari watched Tig pat the final bits of earth into place around the katra tree. He rose, brushing away the dirt on his hands, and a priest tipped a bucket of water over the fresh earth. Before long, the soil turned to mud.
Another priest read from a book of prayers. “Let his memory be a blessing, a legacy to the generations that follow. Let us remember him, who has gone before, as we will be remembered by those who come after.
“Let his deeds live in our hearts, let his love for us linger long after his bones have turned to dust.
“The winters of his life have passed. Let him now enter the summer of eternity, borne to the halls of the gods on the well-wishes and love of those who knew him.
“Amen.”
Nees wrapped an arm around Tig, and he wrapped one around her. They repeated, “Amen.”
So did Captains Elgin and Mercer. Elgin was here to retrieve the prisoner, the Consortium mercenary. Mercer was here at Elgin’s request. She wasn’t sure about him, but she trusted Elgin. And if Elgin vouched for a man, well, she trusted him too.
She didn’t know why Mercer had wanted to come, but she sensed she’d find out soon enough. In the meantime, they were gathered to pay their final respects to Tal Imari.
She’d lost a lot of people over the course of her life, first in the service and then on Trapper’s. It never got easier, though. People said it did. But it didn’t. Especially when it was someone close to you.
It had been harder on Tig. Tal had rescued him from hell, and losing him brought it all back to the surface, raw and fresh. And losing Tal and seeing Tig hurt so much? Well, she could have murdered Gretchen Mira herself.
The service concluded, and the small crowd dispersed. The imperial captains walked with Nees and Tig toward their car. “Thank you for allowing us to attend, Governor,” Elgin said.
“Thank you for attending.”
“I’m very sorry for your loss.”
She nodded. “Thank you. So are we.”
They reached the vehicle, and Tig helped her inside. She was a little embarrassed, if the truth was known, to accept assistance. But climbing into a vehicle on her own, as far into the pregnancy as she was, was not to be taken for granted anymore. Then, he settled in beside her.
Mercer and Elgin followed, sitting across from the couple. For a space, they sat in silence as they headed back to the settlement. “Well, Drake, you might as well say it, whatever it is,” she said at length.
He smiled. “It’s that obvious that I’ve got something to say, eh?”
“You’re losing your edge, old friend. You used to be a lot harder to read.” She smiled too, but then her expression sobered. “But if you’re going to tell me I shouldn’t have released the garbonite-”
“No,” he interrupted. “No, Ari. I’m sorry for the empire. But you made the right call for Trapper’s.”
She scrutinized him for a moment. “Well, that’s not what I expected. Not from an imperial captain.”
He smiled again, but this time there was less mirth in the expression. “Perhaps not. But it’s the truth. I was surprised. I won’t lie. I wasn’t sure you’d ever do it. But you weren’t wrong.”
“That oil was a damned curse.” She shook her head. “But at least we’ve got justice, of some kind anyway. Mira’s dead.”
“A trial would have been better,” Tig said. “She took the coward’s way out.”
“In life and death,” Nees agreed.
Mercer and Elgin, though, said nothing. Instead, they exchanged glances.
She frowned. There was too much significance in those expressions to be ignored. “What? What aren’t you telling me, Elgin?”
“What I came here to tell you, Ari.”
“What we came here to tell you,” Mercer put in.
“What?”
“I don’t think Mira was the one behind the raid.”
Nees’ frown deepened. “What? But they’ve got her correspondence with the Consortium people. They’ve got her confession.”
“Yes. I don’t mean she’s innocent. But I don’t think she was working alone.”
“What are you saying, Elgin?’
“A week before the raid, Ari: we left Central, for the borders. But it wasn’t just us. All the starships in the sector were redeployed. All of them deployed out of range – out of sensor range.”
“They cleared a path,” Mercer put in, “straight to Trapper’s Colony. So that Consortium ship could get in, and not a damned soul would see them.”
Ari felt thunderstruck at the words. “What? Who? Parliament?”
Elgin shook his head. “Parliament signed off on border patrols. But the actual deployment orders came from Davis Telari’s office.”
“Telari?” Tig repeated. “You mean, the guy who is going to be Supreme Leader?”
“He’s the frontrunner,” Mercer nodded.
“For now,” Elgin added.
“My gods,” she breathed. “Then why would Mira say it was her?”
“She was one of Telari’s loyalists. I’m sure she was involved. She probably knew there was no escaping, once the investigation started.”
“So she saved Telari, by taking the blame on herself.”
Elgin nodded. “I think so. There’s no way this was a coincidence. I pulled the orders, Ari. It was careful, it was precise, it was thorough.”
“How do we prove it, Drake? How do we prove he was behind it?”
“I don’t think we can.”
“We looked,” Mercer added. “Believe me, Governor: we poured through everything we could get our hands on.”
“That son-of-a-bitch was careful. The only thing we’ve got is a set of coincidences. And that’s not proof of anything.”
“You’re saying he’s going to get away with it? Worse, end up Supreme Leader?”
“I think he’ll get away with it. I’m sorry, but I do. I don’t think we have a case.
“But I’m not ready to let him take Supreme Leader.” He shook his head. “Not after this. We can’t.”
“What’s your plan?”
“We’ve got a plan. It hinges on…well, part of it’s out of our hands. But you’ll find out, soon enough.”
“He can’t win. If he ends up Supreme Leader, who knows what he’ll do, Drake.”
“I know. Trust me, Ari. It’s a good plan. He won’t win. But I don’t want you involved. I want it to be as organic as possible.”
She nodded slowly. “Alright.”
“But I wanted you to know the truth. I thought you deserved nothing less.”
Nees considered this for a minute, and then nodded. “Thank you, Elgin. I appreciate that. I really do.”
He nodded slowly. “Of course. And…I’m sorry, Ari. About all of this. You were right, and I…I was wrong. This new empire, it’s not so different than the old one. Not yet, anyway.”
“It will be, though,” Mercer said.
“If our plan works, anyway.”
“It has to work,” she reminded him. “That murderous son-of-a-bitch can’t be allowed to run the empire.”
Elgin nodded. “It’ll work. And – if it doesn’t…well, we brought something for you.”
Mercer handed over a small data chip now. “It’s a copy of all the deployment schedules, Governor. With his signature.”
“It won’t prove anything. It won’t be enough to convict him. But it may be enough to throw the election. If our plan fails, we’ll release it. I hope we don’t have to. It’ll ruin the people’s faith in
their ability to govern, to pick leadership. But better that, than they elect Telari.”
“Then why give it to me?” Nees wondered.
“Just in case, Ari. In case something happens to us. I’m not saying it will. But Telari’s demonstrated he’s not above murder. If he gets wind that we’re on to him, and we end up stepping in front of a bus, or something like that…”
She nodded, understanding now. “Alright. I’ll release it, if that’s the case.”
“Good. Give us a chance to work our plan first.”
“I will.”
“But if something happens…well, you’ve got an insurance policy.”
Chapter Fifty-Four
Nik and Brek were mid-breakfast when a knock sounded at the door. “I’ll get it,” Brek said.
A minute later, he returned, with Captain Elgin in tow. “A visitor, Nik. For you.”
“Captain Elgin.” Nik was on her feet, extending a hand. “Please, come in. Would you like some breakfast?”
“No – thank you, but I already ate.”
“Oh. Umm, well, what can I do for you?”
“Can we talk?”
“Of course. We can go in the other room…” She gestured to the sitting room.
“No, please – eat your breakfasts. I can talk at a table as well as anywhere, Minister.”
She smiled. “A talent we share, then, Captain. Can I get you coffee, at least?”
“Well, I’ll never say no to that.”
She procured a mug, and then they took their seats. “What can we do for you, Captain?” Brek wondered.
“I’m a blunt man, Ministers, so I’ll cut right to the chase. Davis Telari: he’s going to win the election.”
“It looks that way,” Nik conceded.
“Well, that’s not acceptable.”
She blinked. “He’s not my first choice either, Captain. But I don’t see what we can do about it.”
He raised an eyebrow pointedly. “Don’t you, Minister?”
She couldn’t pretend not to know his meaning. She’d heard what he was about to say enough from Giya and her allies in parliament, hadn’t she? She sighed. “I’ve already said I’m not running. I’m sorry.”
He snorted, taking a long sip of his coffee. “Sorry doesn’t cut it, Miss Idan. I’m sorry. But you’re the only person I can think of who can stop him, and do a good job running this empire. And unless you can think of someone better suited, and get them to run, you have a duty to step up.”
“You could run, Captain,” Brek pointed out. “Nik might have started the revolution, but you won the war. That trumps anything Telari’s done.”
Nik smiled at his words and Elgin frowned. “I’d as soon swim with piranhas as parry with politicians. Present company excluded, of course.”
“Oh, of course,” she said, smiling a little more broadly into her coffee.
“But it’s not a matter of preference, Minister. I’m good at what I do. One of – though I say so myself – the best in the fleet. But I’m a damned novice when it comes to navigating the shark-infested waters you swim in. I tell it like it is, and expect people to do the same.” He shrugged. “But, they don’t. And it takes a certain skill set to distinguish when a politician is telling you a lie, and what kind of lie they’re telling. I don’t have it. But you do, Nikia. And you’ve got the popularity to win.”
She shook her head, a flicker of pain running through her. “Not anymore, Captain. Not after everything with Diven.”
“Oh bollocks. If you’ll excuse the expression.” Brek frowned, as if offended on her behalf, but he continued, “That hurt Telari more than it hurt you. It was political maneuvering, and everyone knows it.”
“Regardless,” she said, and her tone was firm, “I am not running.”
“Minister Idan has given you her answer, Captain,” Brek put in. “You’re welcome to stay for breakfast, but the topic is done.”
Elgin studied the other man for a long moment, then nodded. “Alright. But you should know one thing: Gretchen Mira didn’t orchestrate the attack on Trapper’s Colony. Davis Telari did. This new empire was supposed to be different. I remember you telling me that, Nikia. But if you’re comfortable with that kind of man running the empire, I guess I’ll leave it be.”
He stood now, pushing his chair in and fixing her with a hard gaze. “But I’m damned if I can tell the difference between Telari and Velk. Which makes me wonder, what in the hell did we spill all that blood for, if we’re no better than we started?”
“Velk was a tyrant,” Brek said.
“And Telari hasn’t even taken leadership, and he’s already ordering death squads.”
Nik swallowed, and her throat felt very dry. “What you’re saying, Captain…it’s just your suspicions. Do you have any evidence?”
He did, and Nik listened as he went over the ship deployments leading up to the attack on Trapper’s. She felt her heart sink as he described the orders, and the clear path they’d left straight to the planet. “It doesn’t prove he was working with Mira,” she said, and her voice sounded hollow even to her own ears.
She glanced at Brek, and he nodded his support. But his expression was grim, his cheeks were pale. Her heart sank a little more at that. She hoped he’d have seen something she was overlooking.
“It doesn’t prove it enough to put him behind bars,” Elgin conceded. “But you know what it means, Nikia.”
“I…I don’t know,” she prevaricated.
“Look me in the eye and say it. If you can do that, then I’ll go, Minister.” She didn’t meet his gaze, and he repeated, his tone soft, “You know what it means.”
“I…I can’t run,” she said at length.
“Why?”
“I’m done with politics. I want out, Captain.”
“The Empire needs you.”
“Can’t it find someone else? I’m done. I hate politics. I want to be free,” she protested. It was petulant. She knew that. But it was true. She wanted no part of it anymore. She’d done her bit. Now, she wanted to raise her daughter, and maybe have children with Brek someday too. She wanted to live in peace, and let others worry about the fate of the world.
“Nik’s been through hell,” Brek said. “The empire has taken enough from her.”
“Ministers,” he said, sorrow in his tone, “you’ve played this game long enough to know. The business of empire is eternal. The empire never stops taking. She always needs more. And the minute you walk away, the minute you let your guard down, is the minute someone like Telari steps up.
“The wolves are at the gate, Nikia. But the thing with wolves is, they don’t give up because they go hungry once. They don’t go home. They’re always at the gate. They’ll always be at the gate. And you damned well better be prepared to fight, because if you don’t…they’ll devour you.”
He pulled the seat back out, and sat so that their eyes were on the same level. “When you told me about your new empire, Nikia, I believed you. I lost men and women – good patriots –who will never have pleasant breakfasts like this one, or families to come home to. Kids – I lost so many kids, barely old enough to wear that uniform. I lost parents, whose kids will have nothing more than a flag and fading memories.”
His eyes were glistening now, and Nikia felt her own watering too. “The empire took everything from them. And I know you don’t want to face this anymore. I don’t blame you. But, Minister, if you don’t, who will?”
She felt Brek’s hand wrap around hers, and she turned questioning eyes to him. He smiled reassuringly. “Whatever you do, Nik, I’ll support you.”
She drew in a long breath, and bowed her head. “Alright, Elgin. I’ll run.”
Epilogue
Captain Drake Elgin sat alone in his darkened office, watching the broadcasts from Central. The final vote tallies had come in from the provinces, and the election results were finalized.
Now, Supreme Leader-elect Nikia Trigan was taking the stage to address her supporters. Her husband was
there at her side, the baby in his arms.
It was a good speech, full of the idealism that he remembered from the starry-eyed revolutionary he’d first talked to a lifetime ago. But there was a soberness, too, a kind of maturity to her words as she spoke of the challenges that lay ahead.
Elgin listened absently. He heard the crowd cheer. He heard her congratulate the new Parliament. He heard her reaffirm the government’s commitment to building a just and fair empire that respected the rights of all its citizens.
He saw her relieved expression, too, as she exited the dais, and the tender affection in the gazes she and Brek shared.
He watched a few of the MP’s victory speeches, and Telari’s concession.
Then, he switched off the broadcast and stood. He grimaced as his weight shifted onto his injured leg. The bones had healed, but it never felt quite right since, and sitting too long tended to leave it stiff and achy.
Giving it a moment to adjust, he headed for the door. Today, the empire had been saved. But he needed to hit the rack, because he had to be on the bridge at oh-six-hundred. There had been reports about pirates on the borders of the Wastes, and the Starchaser was deploying in the morning to investigate.
Because, the truth was, the business of empire was eternal. And if he wasn’t ready to face the wolves at the gate…well, who would be?
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About the Author
Rachel Ford is a software engineer by day, and a writer most of the rest of the time. She is a Trekkie, a video-gamer, and a dog parent, owned by a Great Pyrenees named Elim Garak and a mutt of many kinds named Fox (for the inspired reason that he looks like a fox).
