The Warlord

by CJ Williams

  The view expanded quickly until Luke was looking at the Haiyanas solar system. “What are those symbols?” he asked pointing to a numbered rectangle.

  “Those are Expeditionary Space Groups. Each ESG has one-hundred-fifty armed spacecraft. As you can see, we have twenty of them. A little over three thousand warships. Our biggest problem is training enough qualified personnel. Same problem we’ve always had.”

  Luke was impressed, but not surprised. His little sister was often one step ahead of everyone else. Thank heavens she had started building ships the second she arrived on Haiyanas.

  “Good job,” he said quietly.

  “Do you remember Katrina?” Carrie asked.

  “Of course. I left her as Governor on Suneuon.”

  “She sends a hundred Phantoms a week from her shipyards.”

  “So we’re not exactly helpless.”

  “Not by a long shot. Let’s talk to Grant.”

  “Always a good idea,” Grant replied walking up. “Come into my strategy room. We’ve got the same display, just smaller.”

  *.*.*.*

  Grant had developed a planning division under the umbrella of Carrie’s temporary command. “I know this is old hat to you, Commander,” Grant said to Luke. “But the concept is new for most of our officers.”

  Luke nodded his understanding. “I fight today’s war while you prepare for tomorrow’s war.”

  “Exactly. Every time we get an update on forces, my planning cell starts working on strategic and tactical options.”

  “Makes me feel like I’m back at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas.”

  Grant smiled. “We’re not at that level quite yet, but we’re working on it. Our cell should have some options for engaging the incoming force.”

  “Good,” Luke said savagely. “I’m ready to get back in space and find out where they took my wife.”

  Chapter Six – Face to Face

  Luke was feeling ninety percent recovered. The past week had been a flurry of activity preparing for a deployment to rescue his wife. The question was where to?

  The unknown fleet in the Fifteenth Family territory had disappeared and that brought up a multitude of questions. Had it just been a commercial convoy? A reconnaissance in force by the Greys? Or were they establishing a forward base?

  Without solid evidence to develop a concrete destination, Luke concentrated on general preparedness. If nothing else, all the work contributed incrementally toward building a military force strong enough to get Annie back.

  Establishing readiness for the combat squadrons and warships was relatively easy, they tended to operate on a constant basis. The real problem was getting the ground army ready. Fortunately, the new ground commander, retired General Julian Blackwell, was an old-style US army warrior. On arrival, he took control of Carrie’s entire army, including King Haejeog’s royal forces, and began whipping them into shape for just such a situation. An important factor in that process was military drill.

  Today, Luke stood in the reviewing stand while thousands of young soldiers marched by. As each formation passed in review, he returned a smart salute in response to their present-arms. The entire procedure was very much like Earth’s military.

  Luke glanced at the senior officer standing by his side. “I can tell from this parade that you’re from Earth.”

  Blackwell shook his head. “Nope. Everything you’re seeing here stems from locally developed traditions. I was surprised too, but these men have been marching in formation for a lot longer than we have on earth.” He snapped a salute to the soldiers parading in front of the stand prompting Luke to quickly follow suit. “I was glad to see it though,” the general said. “The Haiyanas military officers understand how important discipline is. Drills like this are important. The men complain about it, but at the same time, it makes them proud. We didn’t do enough of it back home.”

  “What unit were you in?” Luke asked.

  “Three Corps.”

  “No kidding? I was an ALO with First Cav. Long time ago.”

  Blackwell frowned. “Yeah. I heard you were an Air Force toad.”

  Luke chuckled. “And proud of it. We never did parades.”

  “In all seriousness, Commander,” Blackwell said. “We’re ready whenever you call us. The word has spread through the ranks. This new mission has captured the men’s hearts. None of the locals had ever heard of the Greys, and the thought of an alien invasion is surely terrifying. My local counterpart tells me his people haven’t been this motivated for millennia.”

  “I’m glad the royal army was available,” Luke said. “At least King Haejeog was paranoid enough to keep a large standing force.”

  “These kids are pretty green,” the general warned. “But they’ll give their all.”

  “I’m counting on it General. Is there anything else you need? If there is, this is the time to say so.”

  “The troops are well equipped, Commander. I’m sure there will be surprises, but we’re as ready as can be. What I’d like more of is troop carriers. I understand you’re churning them out as fast as you can, but more is always better.”

  “How many soldiers could you launch today if you had to?” Luke asked.

  “Thirty thousand,” the general said. “We’re focused on mobility preparedness, so one hour; that’s all I need.”

  That was good news. Luke was certain that when the time came, he would need an army to rescue Annie. He doubted she was being held on a spaceship. The Greys had to have her stashed on a planet somewhere and the more he thought about it, it had to be a planet in Nobility space.

  *.*.*.*

  After the parade Luke kept his promise to have a family dinner with Carrie. He had been driving himself hard and it was slowing down his recovery. She nagged him to take some time off, even if just for a meal with his sister. She was right. Comfortably full and with the kids off to bed, it felt good. He slouched in an easy chair in her living room and watched her get perched on an overstuffed couch.

  “Isn’t this better than a cold sandwich?” she asked with a smile.

  “Yeah, it is. But it’s difficult to not be working. I’d like to visit you more, but there is so much to get ready. Who knows when we’ll get a lead on where Annie is?”

  “Your body has to be ready too, Luke.”

  He sighed. “I know. But if something doesn’t turn up soon, I may take off on my own. It’s driving me crazy to just sit here, waiting.”

  He knew that Carrie disagreed. Space was too vast. How could he hope to find her in the Grey’s half of the galaxy? But rather than argue the point she changed the subject.

  “So anyway,” she said. “I found out Eolin and Ttal aren’t really siblings. It was your doing, actually.”

  “How do you figure that?”

  “I wondered if a DNA check would tell me what that royal implant actually did to me.”

  “I remember you took a cheek swab from me back on Moonbase,” Luke recalled. “I didn’t pay much attention at the time.”

  “You never do.”

  Luke smiled with an aggrieved expression. “I was busy after the Bakkui attack.”

  Carrie waved away his standard excuse. “You’re always busy. But my point is, I did confirm for myself that you and I are genetically related. I’ve got the paperwork somewhere.”

  “Sadie wasn’t lying to you,” Luke pointed out.

  Carrie shrugged. “Just so you know, while I accept the premise mentally, I still have trouble thinking of you as my big brother. I say it to myself all the time, but mostly it’s to convince myself on an emotional level. To me, you’re still the Commander. You never seemed to have that problem.”

  “That’s true,” Luke agreed. “Don’t know why. I thought you were a cute kid when you started working for Ambrose back at Moonbase. When I learned that you had become my little sister, I was just like, okay. That works for me.”

  “It’s taken a while to sink in,” Carried admitted. “But I’m getting used to it now.
In a way, it’s comforting. Except for daddy, this is the first time I have had someone looking out for me. But back when all this happened, I wouldn’t have put it past Sadie to lie.”

  “Annie’s the same way,” Luke said, reminiscing. “She doesn’t trust any of the AIs. Especially George.”

  “I’m not that bad. You and I have the only two royal implants so that gives us a whole other perspective. And my time with Gimi helped a lot.”

  “So, you tested the kids at the same time?”

  “Yeah. Just out of curiosity. I didn’t know what planet they had come from and I thought we might build a DNA database someday. Thanks to the Bakkui, there must be millions of underage refugees scattered everywhere. I heard you added that to your to do list. Anyway, it turned out they come from different planets. They were just two refugee children who were put together a couple of hours before I met them. From a warped point of view that was good news for me. It means I didn’t kill their parents when I destroyed Bonbu. I was afraid they would hate me for that when they got old enough to figure it out.”

  “You were relieved?”

  Carrie waved her arms and sighed over-dramatically. “You have no idea.”

  The juvenile gesture was uncharacteristic of his little sister these days. “You’ve changed too,” Luke said. “You were always fun loving. Now you’re so serious.”

  Carrie’s expression darkened. “Just guilt for a few billion souls.”

  Luke nodded, regretting he had made a comment that sent her down that thought process. Carrie was the only human in all of the Nobility’s history to have personally destroyed two planets along with their entire civilizations. He had tried to console her in the past, but it was a useless endeavor. He searched for a new topic to change the subject.

  George’s voice from an overhead speaker interrupted Luke’s musing. “Commander, we have a new reconnaissance report. The force we previously lost track of has reappeared and is on the move. The likely destination is this system.”

  Luke jumped to his feet. “Finally!” It meant he wouldn’t have to go on an impossible search. The Greys were coming to him.

  “When will they arrive, George?” Carrie asked.

  “Four to seven days.”

  “Call a staff meeting,” Luke said. “Palace conference room in thirty minutes.”

  “Acknowledged.”

  *.*.*.*

  Luke faced his senior staff around the table. They all looked a bit nervous. The late evening summons about an impending alien invasion was certainly reason enough. But their underlying confidence highlighted a readiness for action.

  “Thanks for coming,” Luke opened. “I want you to think about a few things. First, obviously, make sure your areas of responsibility are ready for the Greys’ arrival. I don’t see this being a social visit. Second, their sudden reappearance indicates the possibility they launched from a planet inside Nobility space, or at least on our side of the border.”

  “Any idea where?” Elaine asked.

  Luke pointed to the projected display behind him of the local region of the galaxy. “The initial drone report located them inside Fifteenth Family space. This new report does too. So why didn’t we get a border crossing warning?” He looked at Elaine. “Doesn’t our monitoring array cover all Nobility space?”

  “Not completely,” Elaine said. “We still have a few holes. Patrick, show the map for our reconnaissance array.”

  The screen displayed a Verizon-like coverage chart. With few exceptions, the display included all Nobility space for the royal families. Several notable voids in Fifteenth Family territory stood out, but the border itself had complete coverage.

  Luke pointed at that part of the map. “We’ve monitored the border for months and yet this new contact was right in the middle of Fifteenth Family space. There has to be a Grey base inside Nobility space.”

  “What if there is?” Grant asked. “You want to raid?”

  Luke grimaced. “I would if I knew where. And consider this; if they are on a human occupied planet, that raid would also be a rescue mission. How many unknown planets do you suppose contain populations of forgotten humans?”

  “Was that question for me?” Patrick asked.

  Luke looked at the ceiling a bit startled. He was not used to including Patrick in discussions the way he had with George. “Not really. But go ahead if you have the answer.”

  “I do not,” Patrick replied. “Although, I suspect many thousands.”

  “There you go,” Luke said. “I bet we have a Grey infestation and don’t even realize it. And that is the third item I want you to think about. How would we launch a ground assault on a human populated planet that is being held by Greys? I want a strategy by noon tomorrow. Questions?”

  The faces in front of Luke said there were hundreds of questions, but no one spoke. The Commander had just pointed out that preparations were far from complete and only a few days remained before he would have to meet the arriving Greys.

  *.*.*.*

  Luke stood on Lulubelle’s elevated viewing deck, looking out in the direction of the approaching Greys. The enemy ships were too far away for a visual sighting, but Luke wanted to see the hostile icons when they first appeared on the transparent glass. How they would deploy their forces and what might his best countermove be?

  Behind Lulubelle, a combination of three hundred Phantoms and Starfighters were holding in formation.

  Grant sat in the captain’s chair below, studying the tactical display. Luke had promised himself that this time, he would not get involved in single ship engagements. Instead, he would concentrate on the overall battle strategy.

  Lieutenant Elaine Cain, Lulubelle’s tactical officer, now transferred from Valentine, called out, “Got them! Displaying now.”

  A tight cluster of icons appeared in the viewing window, dead ahead.

  “Not the smartest formation,” Luke muttered to no one.

  “Their speed is decreasing markedly,” Elaine said. “They might be coming to a stop.”

  “How far?” Luke asked.

  “Ten AUs at the moment. They’re still closing, but slowly.”

  “You think it’s a feint?” Grant said.

  “Who knows?” Luke replied. “Maybe they want to talk.”

  Grant shrugged. “I guess anything’s possible but that would surprise me. Let’s make sure they’re not trying to sneak anything in the back door.” He pointed to Lieutenant Sebastian Sanford. “Reconnaissance, expand our surveillance inside the solar system. Search for enemy drones. Destroy anything found.”

  “Aye, sir,” Sanford responded.

  Luke considered his options for a moment. “I guess it’s time for a Plan B. If this is going to be a negotiation, then I want Carrie here. See what you can do.”

  “On it, boss,” Grant said.

  Ten minutes later, Elaine called out once more. “It looks like a single ship is moving toward us ahead of the rest.”

  Grant nodded as though he had expected this all along. “It’s definitely powwow time. You going to talk with them?”

  Luke shook his head. “Too early to tell. If my guess is right, I think we’ll sacrifice our young Miss Fitzgerald first.”

  Lieutenant Sandy Fitzgerald perked up. “Sir?” she squeaked.

  “You’re the communication officer, I believe?” Luke said.

  “Yes sir?”

  “And your training includes first contact procedures?”

  “Yes sir, with human populations. Not with aliens.”

  “Not to worry. It’s still first contact for us. And since they are indicating a desire to talk, I doubt they will open discussions by murdering our spokesperson. Nor do I think they will start with their most senior officer. If we get an invitation, we’ll dress you up in a fancy uniform and send you over. You don’t really need to negotiate with whoever is in front of you, just demand to speak to their boss. Tell them you don’t deal with minions.”

  The light came on for Fitzgerald. She was
not being thrown out as a sacrificial lamb. “Understood, Commander. You want me to be the advance team. Got it.”

  “Go get a uniform ready,” Luke said. “Make it gaudy.”

  “Aye, sir.” She hurried from the bridge.

  Luke settled in the observer’s chair. “May as well get comfortable. I suspect this will take a long time.”

  An hour later Elaine spoke up. “All Grey vessels have come to a complete stop. The solo ship is exactly halfway between our two forces.”

  With a nod from Luke, Grant spoke to the navigation officer, “Move us forward…slowly. Have the rest of our formation match theirs.”

  “Aye, sir.”

  *.*.*.*

  “All stop,” the navigation officer said. “Range, five hundred yards.”

  From the viewing window Luke concentrated all his energy on contacting Annie. After several minutes, he was confident that she was not on the dreadnought. A movement near the massive vessel caught his eye. “What’s that?”

  George projected a telephoto visual on the tactical display screen.

  “It looks like a miniature pentagon,” Grant said.

  A five-sided, one room structure was emerging from a cavernous bay in the side of the Grey spacecraft. Large paned windows ringed the entire object. Inside was a long, narrow table with only two chairs, one at each end. One was shaped more like a camel saddle. That would make sense for an intelligent four-legged vertebrate. The floating pentagon appeared to be a neutral location for discussion.

  “It’s a negotiation room,” Luke said.

  Inside the facility, a Grey stood at a low podium nudging a joystick back and forth, maneuvering the building to a stable position halfway between the lead dreadnought and Luke’s much smaller Starfighter. Once the conference room was stabilized, a utilitarian looking shuttle left the dreadnought and docked with the negotiation room. The Grey inside it exited the facility through an airlock and returned to the dreadnought.

  “Have one of our engineers go examine it,” Luke ordered. “Better have a few soldiers accompany him.”