“I’ve actually thought of that while we were planning the infiltration of the Unity base,” Ron said. “My opinion is that a massed fleet could probably take us out, but if a planet’s fleet was on patrol, scattered around their system, yeah. And I agree. It is scary to realize that.”
While they took turns taking a sponge bath in the small lavatory, Lexi said, “Thanks for bringing me fresh clothes. I’ve been running around barefoot in my underwear since we got here. At least the climate is nice.”
“Hmm,” Ron said. “Maybe add comfortable space suits to your to-do list.”
“Not a bad idea. Not a priority though. I heard some good news yesterday. This planet has relatively active tectonic plates. They deal with waves more destructive than the one we caused every few years. We did very little damage to the place. We were far enough away from everybody and everything that the radiation we released into the atmosphere will dissipate harmlessly. They don’t know our splashdown wasn’t planned that way from the start. That’s probably just well.”
“What caused the problem, kiddo?”
“There was more hull-metal in that rock than we realized and it had more of an impact on the inverse-grav than I calculated. Two of the rear nodes caved under the strain, making it that much worse. I would like to say ‘All’s well that ends well’ but I don’t like making mistakes. Especially ones that can kill a planet.”
There was nothing Ron could say about that. Instead, he said, “You said we have a busy day ahead of us. What are we going to be doing?”
She laughed, her tone wry. “I’m going to pretend to be Ackalonian for the next few days. I proved to Orgiazz that I can sense when his people lie to me. I uncovered a traitor in his command structure yesterday afternoon. A cornered, angry Ostrieachian is a frightening person to have coming at you. He sprang at me over the conference table with a ferocious growl and his claws extended. These people are incredibly fast. I had to shoot him. I think that was the first time I fully realized that there have been lasting effects from using the hulk-med drugs. My reflexes never used to be that good.”
“Did he survive?”
“Unfortunately, no. It was a kill-shot. Would have been nice if we could have questioned him.” She shrugged. “Anyway, I’m doing interviews both of the people we rescued and Orgiazz’s military people. I hate it, but today we’re clamping their arms to the table before I start asking questions. We’re explaining why it’s necessary, but it’s still an unpleasant thing to do to them. I’m taking the twenty they want to be trained on the Raiders first. When I’m done with them, you and Danders get to start their actual training. We need to get these people up to speed on using the hardware quickly. I sent a message drone to Jis yesterday asking for sensitives to run the interviews for me as well as technicians to train the Ostrieachians on maintaining the ships. We just don’t have the time to do it all ourselves.”
“Makes sense. What do you have Geena doing?”
Lexi laughed. “Negotiating, what else?”
Chapter 29
One World Council
Six days after Urania plummeted into one of Ostrieachia’s oceans, political power was shifting, in some cases dramatically. Every planetary leader, whether political or military, understood that the new Accord-tech-or-better warships belonged to Aeolus Investigations. No matter how much each lusted to get control of them, they all were told, and pretty much believed, that if there was any trouble an Ackalonian battle fleet would stop by to deal with it. No one wanted that to happen.
Geena Samue drove the meetings with Kalia and Beva at her side. Beva was a middle-aged analyst. For the last eight years, she worked for Admiral Orgiazz and through him, for the One World Council. The three women sat in a small conference room with a large OWC banner behind them. Before sitting, Geena noted the banner was slightly crooked. She sent Kalia to find someone to fix it. She met with the leaders of all thirty-seven nations over the course of five days via the smart-glass panels lining the front of the room. By the time she was done, one war was settled leaving only thirty-six nations. She would have been amused by that if it didn’t disturb her as much as it did. These people were worse than children. The smart-glass panels certainly protected those on either side from enraged Ostrieachian’s leaping at them. Beva said it was the way most conferences were held and probably why.
While taking a break after her second session, Geena remarked, “Your people seem to be more impressed by threats than logic.”
Kalia shrugged her ears. “Isn’t everybody?”
Geena frowned back. “No. I don’t think your people, overall, are mature enough to be space-threading. We brought you equipment to defend yourselves. At this point, I don’t trust you to use it wisely. I want you both to understand that we are creating a massive power imbalance by putting the Unity warships under OWC command. However, the council isn’t a nation. Those craft will have to be manned by people from the nations we’ll be talking to over the next few days. Your OWC is going to have to be very mature about the decisions it makes about everything going forward.” She paused. “I suppose I’ll have to explain that to them, too. Or maybe I’ll just turn Lexi loose on them.” She sighed. “OK, enough lecturing. Brief me on this next group and let’s get back to it.”
Not being Ostrieachian gave Geena an advantage in the talks. Her not representing an Accord world also made them more comfortable working with her. She ruefully thought how much easier this would have been if she had the abilities of Lexi and Jis to sense emotions. Then she smiled, thinking that ability wouldn’t work anyway through the smart-glass communication walls. She noted no spirit of cooperation among the nations, at least not yet. Pragmatism was driving them. Yes, the shiny new toys were calling to them. Touching them without permission would get them burned. They understood. Not just burned. Vaporized.
Admiral Orgiazz was already one of the highest-ranking military officials on Ostrieachia. Lexi worked closely with him interviewing his staff. Many she passed on, some she suggested he remove from his command. He had a hard time believing what she was doing for him until he sat alone with her and she interviewed him. The woman caught every lie he told her, just as Ackalonians were reputed to be able to do. They both knew that when he spoke untruths. They both knew he was testing her ability. She found him to be a totally honorable man. Geena insisted before the council, during lease negotiations, that he be appointed to the command of Ostrieachia’s first Home Fleet.
In her spare time, Lexi cleansed Kalia’s staff in a similar manner. She got very little sleep during those six days. At her request, Admiral Orgiazz oversaw the dispatch of a second message drone to Ackalon and Plicora Jis Boc Seckan with a full report of what the team found on the Rathca base, what they did about it, and the current situation on Ostrieachia.
Aeolus owned the marvelous warships. They insisted. After a closed-door discussion with the council that included both Kalia and Orgiazz, only a few of the military and council members wanted to dispute their ownership. The threat of Ackalonian intervention, real or imagined, hanging over their heads left them more cooperative than might have otherwise been the case.
Lexi Stevens lead Aeolus. Once she delegated control of the warships over to Admiral Orgiazz, he felt as though he reported to her as well as to the Council. The Aeolus team decided to leave him in charge. The members of the One World Council, in general, were fine with that. They recognized they needed a strong military, led by an honorable commander to deal with the problems Rathca and the Unity presented. Some had been leaning in that direction already.
Lexi discussed her decision beforehand with her team. They all were comfortable that Orgiazz, with Y’Throthe’s assistance, could deal with getting the new ships operational. They all knew that until Lexi had more time or the requested Ackalonians arrived to take over the interviews, they would most likely be crewing the ships with some less than loyal people. Everyone who accepted a position on the warships was warned he or she would be jailed or shot if subsequentl
y discovered to be disloyal. It was the best they could do with the time and people they had.
***
In preparation for decommissioning existing ships and moving crews to the new ones, Ostrieachia grounded all of their starships, leaving only Urania remaining in orbit. She was cloaked, invisible to anyone looking. She was also tied into the web of spy satellites surrounding the planet. Within only a couple of hours, sitting at the navigation console, Ron said, “You called it, Mom. A fast courier, boasting Accord-level tech just launched from the surface. If it’s headed for anywhere in the Accord, they should fire the navigator.”
A moment later, Urania added, “It’s not just Accord tech, Ron. It’s an Accord design.”
From the communications panel, Lexi opened a connection to the surface, where Admiral Orgiazz had people waiting for her call. “Admiral, we just registered a fast courier launch. We’re sending the launch coordinates now.”
Orgiazz must have been manning his own communications panel, he got back to her so quickly. They assumed that it wouldn’t be long after the Ostrieachian ships were pulled out of near space before a courier would launch to report to the Unity military. The crash landing of the flight deck on the planet was known across the planet. Rather than try to cover it up, the word went out that the Unity military hardware came with it. Despite still being grounded, three of the ships at Orgiazz’s base kept weapons active in case anyone decided to launch a preemptive nuclear strike.
“Understood, Lexi. We’ll have a transport with Raider support in the air within ten minutes. Also, before you leave, you should know that the Council was up all night debating. It was rather contentious. I believe some blood was shed. An ear or two may even need to be reattached. Sometimes the combination of claws and a volatile personality doesn’t go so well together. They’ve decided to honor your suggestion. We will wait for an Ackalonian team to arrive before we do anything significant about Rathca. Your ability to sort those of our people suborned by Unity weighed heavily on that decision. I know I was impressed. Vice Admiral Y’Trothe is conducting crash courses on operating the hardware you’re leasing us. Between you and me, you’re not charging us anywhere near what it’s worth.”
Lexi laughed. “You know as well as I do that Ostrieachia can’t afford what those ships are worth. Besides, my team is too small to use them ourselves. In addition to requesting an interrogation team from Ackalon, I also asked Jis to send people to teach you how to build and repair the hardware. In a few years, your technology will be on par with the rest of the Accord. If you can keep your planet under control, you should be safe enough from the pirates for the time being.”
“We’re working on it, Lexi. We’re working on it. If things go as planned, we’ll have a Home Fleet owing alliance to no single nation. That should be useful for keeping the planet under control, as you say.” He laughed. “I suppose that means I can take over the planet, but I’m not interested. Good hunting. Orgiazz out.”
Ron nodded to Lexi, asking, “Ready?” She nodded back. “Urania,” he said, “let’s see if we can find where these guys call home.”
Chapter 30
Jis Comes Through
Nine battleships dropped unnoticed into n-space at the Ostrieachian system’s hyper-limit. Most Accord worlds placed remote sensor platforms in a bubble surrounding their planetary systems just inside the limit to forewarn them of incoming traffic. It was expensive building, deploying and occasionally maintaining the million-plus devices required for comprehensive coverage. The Ostrieachian system was naked—they just couldn’t afford it.
From her seat at the center of her flagship’s bridge, Admiral De Borkin asked, “Any sign of hostiles?”
Her tactical officer responded, “No, Admiral. No sign of anything. I don’t see a single ship anywhere. It looks like their helium-three extraction facility on the fifth planet is functional. Frankly, this doesn’t look like a system on a war-footing.”
“No, it doesn’t,” De Borkin agreed. “We didn’t really know what to expect. Captain, take the fleet in. Slowly. Maintain maximum spacing between our ships. Ping me if the situation changes. I’m taking a walk. Captain, walk with me please.”
As she approached the hatch, without looking back, she said, “Wipe the smirk off of your face, Tactical.” In most cases, it was somewhat insulting to refer to an officer by his or her station, rather than by name. This was one of those cases. Captain Ord Callan’s tactical officer shouldn’t have been smirking. OK, so she had spent a few nights with the captain she was now leaving the bridge with. She hadn’t dragged him off of the bridge to make-out.
She walked briskly to the mess, without speaking, where they both got hot tea and protein nuggets. Once they were seated, she said, “What do we have to look forward to, Lu?”
Captain Lu Ord Callan, in addition to being the Admiral’s current boyfriend, was a better than average precog. Because precognition could often be unreliable, the Ackalonian military tended to discount it under most circumstances. Henny De Borkin found it to be a useful tool when used appropriately.
Lu had to finish chewing his nugget and wash it down with a sip of tea before answering. “In simple terms, I feel good about the situation.” He knew the admiral expected a better answer than that. They were both on duty and this was more than just a chat between friends over snacks and tea. “There’s no danger here. At least at the moment. But the situation is confusing, tricky even, like navigating through an asteroid cloud. You’ll need to be careful, Hen.”
Henny smiled. “I’m always careful, Lu.”
He smiled back. “Ostrieachians have a reputation for being untrustworthy. I don’t feel that is going to be a concern this time.” He closed his eyes for a moment looking inward. “Admiral, nothing I believe I’m seeing makes sense. None of it. But I am sure there’s no danger to the fleet.”
“Good. Thank you. Let’s finish up and get back to the bridge. Lieutenant Po Simkin thinks we’re making out.”
“The Lieutenant is a good tactical officer,” Ord Callan said. “Otherwise, he’s an idiot. He knows or at least should know, we’re on duty.”
***
“Admiral, seven ships are peeking over the horizon,” Lieutenant Xim Po Simkin, after two shift changes, still on tactical, reported. “I identify the trailing five as Ostrieachian cruisers. The two in the lead match the specs we were given on the pirate Raider-class.”
Her fleet had been creeping up on Ostrieachia for the last twenty hours. De Borkin threw a concerned look at Ord Callan. No danger here? “Take the fleet to battle-stations, Captain. Get us there soonest.” Why isn’t anyone shooting anyone else? They’re just dodging around each other. “Weapons hot, but do not fire. We’re missing something here. Xim, any battle damage visible? Tasha, comm me in with the Ostrieachian ships.”
“Your comm is open, Admiral.”
“Attention, Ostrieachian ships. I’m Admiral De Borkin on board an Ackalonian battleship. Do you require assistance?”
It took nine minutes for her communication to reach the ships in orbit and a response to get back. “No, thank you, no assistance needed, Admiral. We’re practicing flying our new ships. I need to get you someone higher ranking to talk to. We weren’t expecting a battleship and not so soon. Oh, I’m Captain Rakin. Please stand by while I contact my superiors.”
De Borkin glanced at Ord Callan. “I owe you an apology, Lu. Stand down battle-stations. Put us in high orbit around that planet.”
“Not at all, Admiral. Precognition is unreliable,” Ord Callan said.
Lieutenant Po Simkin said, “I can’t find any damage on any of those ships, Admiral. I think they’re practicing flying, like the Captain said.”
They were almost in orbit before they received a transmission, both audio and image, from the planet. “I’m Admiral Orgiazz, although they’ve started calling me Fleet Admiral. You’re Admiral De Borkin?”
“That’s correct, Fleet Admiral.”
“I’m a little bit confused
. I hope you’ll bear with me. You see, we sent a message drone to Ackalon’s Plicora detailing the situation here and asking for the loan of a small number of personnel with specific skill sets. Our drone couldn’t have arrived more than a day or two ago at best. We weren‘t expecting a response for another seven or eight weeks.” He paused. “My sensors are picking up nine battleships in orbit. I’m going to go out on a limb and assume you’re not here to conquer us because I’ve been told by reliable sources that Ackalon is friendly toward us.”
De Borkin smiled at him. “Yes, Fleet Admiral, unbelievably friendly. You’re safe from us, but first things first. My instructions are to contact a woman named Lexi Stevens. Do you know of her?”
Still looking puzzled, Orgiazz shrugged his ears. “Know her? Yes, we know her. She’s one of those reliable sources I just mentioned. I’m sorry. She’s not available right now.”
Well, Lu said the situation was confusing. And tricky. “Why not? What have your people done with her?”
Orgiazz shook his head. “Done with her? We didn’t do anything with her. She’s off questing to determine the location of the pirate world.”
Aeolus Investigations Set 2: Too Cool To Lose: The Continuing Evolution of Lexi Stevens Page 16
