The Tortuous Path (Fall of the Terran Empire Book 2)

by G. P. Hudson

  “Does she talk that much when you’re mounting her, Reynolds?” Blake said. “Because that would annoy the hell out of me.”

  “Consul, I’m sure you’re familiar with my reputation,” Reynolds said.

  “Of course,” Blake said. “Who hasn’t heard of the Butcher of Allimania? You’re even more of a monster than she is. In fact, the two of you make quite a pair. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised to see her standing next to you.”

  Reynolds ignored Blake’s jabs. “Then you know what will happen if you defy me.”

  “Yes, you genocidal bastard, I know what will happen. You will slaughter millions of innocent people. Families. Children.”

  “And their blood will be on your hands.”

  “No, you monster. Your hands are the only ones stained with blood. But don’t worry. One day you will get what’s coming to you.”

  “I don’t understand your position,” Reynolds continued. “You can’t win. Surely you must know that. You must also know that I’ll have to make an example out of you and your population. Why bring armageddon down on your people?”

  “Because I’d rather have this entire star system burn than bow down to someone like you. Is that clear enough for you, Reynolds? I will never surrender to you, nor will the Volsung people. So, do your worst. But I promise you, we will make you pay for every inch of this system. You think you’ve fought battles before? You have no idea the hell you are about to-”

  Blake’s face vanished from the comm display as Reynolds terminated the connection. “Self-righteous prick,” Reynolds muttered.

  “I’ll enjoy meeting him when this is all over,” Reese said.

  Reynolds glanced over at the Avar premier. He hadn’t known about her involvement with interrogations. He needed to keep a closer eye on her, as she might turn out to be a more significant threat than he first thought.

  Turning back to his tactical display, he focused on the ongoing battle. His fleet had used a three-pronged approach to invade the Volsung system. As before, his capital ships had bypassed the jump gate and entered deeper in system, before the rest of his fleet poured through the gate. That was the first surprise.

  Under normal circumstances, a jump gate would be heavily defended with autonomous weapons and many warships. It merely made tactical sense, as a jump gate acted as a celestial choke point. But the Volsung had abandoned their gate. The autonomous weapon systems were still in place and needed to be cleared, but the warships were conspicuously absent.

  Reynolds quickly realized that instead of defending the gate, the ships had moved to the system’s populated planets, and its central space station. There, they added their firepower to the existing defenses, greatly amplifying their strength. While he still believed his fleet could prevail, victory would come at a steep cost. That was not the outcome he wished for.

  He wanted to add the Volsung ships to his fleet, not destroy them. Had he still been fighting under the Imperial banner, he wouldn’t have cared. But he needed to build his forces if he hoped to stand against the Empire and take the throne from Cherenko.

  He chewed on that thought for a moment, savoring the idea of himself as emperor. Could he really do it? Of course, he could. It would be the beginning of a new era, and the nobility would have no place in it. But first, he needed this goddamn system. And that was his problem.

  The realization struck him like a sledgehammer. He had been going about this all wrong. His fleet hadn’t gotten soft. He had. He was the Butcher of Allimania. Why the hell was he playing nice? His success with the Avar and Tran systems had seduced him into thinking that he could merely add each system’s fleets to his own. That made him cautious. Careful not to destroy his future resources. A ridiculous attitude.

  He turned back to his tactical display, eying the system’s three main populated Volsung planets. The homeworld, Volsung Prime, was by far the largest regarding population, but the smaller ones were not insignificant. The smallest of the three, New Liskeard, had populated one of its continents with several cities. Imperial sources stated that millions lived on the planet. It was the perfect target. Let’s just see how steadfast Blake’s bravado really is.

  New Liskeard was heavily defended, with clusters of orbiting weapon systems, and a fair-sized fleet ready to pounce on any ship venturing too close. There would also be surface weapons in place. All of which served as an effective deterrent if he wanted to keep the planet.

  “Captain Travers,” Reynolds said, feeling his infamous iron will return. “Order all available capital ships to ready coilguns. They are to target the populated continent on the Volsung planet known as New Liskeard, and fire on my mark.”

  “Yes, Sir,” Travers said.

  “What is happening?” Premier Reese said in a worried tone. “What are you doing?”

  “I am targeting the planet’s population,” Reynolds said, feeling more confident in his decision by the second. This was the answer. The only answer. He understood that now. “The planetary defenses protect it from a missile strike, and my ships can’t get close enough to use their plasma weapons without being fired upon. My capital ships, however, are equipped with extremely large coilguns and can fire huge tungsten projectiles at devastating speeds. Those projectiles are low tech and do not have a heat signature. They’re just giant spears. The tungsten spears will blow right past the defensive systems and enter the planet’s atmosphere. Each spear will then hit the surface with the force of a tactical nuclear weapon. I intend to perforate the entire continent.”

  “I don’t understand. Isn’t it better to capture it?”

  “Yes, but that won’t happen without a lot of damage to my fleet. If enough damage is caused, the Volsung leadership might believe they can win. I’ve decided it is not worth the effort. This system’s population needs to feel dread, not hope, and dread is what I am about to give them.”

  “But, you can’t-”

  “Are you giving me orders now?”

  “No, of course not. I just-”

  “Good, because I’d hate to have to throw you in the brig for insubordination.” Reynolds watched the realization wash over her, but where was the fear? She bounced back faster than he expected.

  “Destroying the planet will terrify the population, but it also might cement their defiance.”

  “Yes, that would be unfortunate. How many cities do you think I’ll need to scorch before I weaken that resolve.”

  “How many?”

  “Yes. How many cities? Two? Three? Ten? How many millions of people will I need to slaughter before Consul Blake surrenders?”

  “I… I don’t know.”

  “Neither do I. Why don’t we find out?”

  Chapter 36

  “I think we should still do the job,” Danny said, referring to the agreement they had made with Mr. Leventis to hijack a Zeta transport. He sat in one of the ship’s conference rooms with Isaac, Gerry, and T199.

  T199 was one of the original freed clones. He had been hunting them for Zeta when Danny and Gerry had captured him. Isaac then upgraded his chip to release him from his bondage. Once he understood how he had been enslaved, he agreed to join the group. Since then, every freed clone chose to stay and fight. Danny often wondered what would happen when a clone decided to go his own way, or worse, remain with Zeta.

  “The Tran system has fallen,” Gerry said. “We have no idea what has happened to Mr. Leventis. The way I see it, any agreement we had with him is now void.”

  “I don’t care about the agreement,” Danny continued. “I want to free the clones on that ship.”

  “There are also the weapons that Mr. Leventis wanted,” Isaac said. “They might prove quite useful in the days to come. But you are right about the Tran system falling. I don’t see us returning there. Not with that Admiral Reynolds in control.”

  “Why does his name keep coming up?” Danny said. “I feel like we can’t get away from that animal.”

  “I feel the same way,” Gerry said. “He’s really
complicated matters by going rogue.”

  “He’s a madman. I can’t believe we had actually fought for him,” Danny said. “At any rate, when we agreed to hijack the shipment we only had one battleship. Now we have three. It’ll be a piece of cake.”

  “Like our Tran excursion?” Gerry said sarcastically.

  “That was a calculated risk, my girl,” Isaac said. “Betrayal, unfortunately, is always a possibility.”

  “I have a question,” T199 said. “What do we do after the mission?”

  “I don’t understand,” Danny said.

  “What is our long-term plan?” T199 continued. “You want to free more clones, right?”

  “Yes, that’s right,” Danny said.

  “How are we going to do that?”

  “Okay, let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Gerry said. “We were lucky to capture the two battleships. You saw the trap Masterson had prepared for us. I can guarantee you he’ll have safeguards in place preventing us from capturing another of his ships. Frankly, I’m surprised we were even able to free the clones on board.”

  “He cannot stop my universal upgrade,” Isaac said. “He would have to completely redesign the clone implants, and that is not something he is capable of.”

  “How do you know that?” Gerry said.

  “Do I really need to remind you of the fact that I invented the implant?” Isaac said.

  “No, but it’s been invented. The hard part is done. Why can’t Masterson modify the original design?”

  “It’s not that simple. The implant is embedded within the brain. It cannot be removed. Now, he can indeed create new clones with new implants. But the existing clones can all be freed. And I’m confident I can defeat any new modifications he comes up with.”

  “Didn’t Masterson create you?” Gerry said.

  “Yes. You know that.”

  “So why can’t he create another ‘you’?”

  Everyone looked at Gerry in stunned silence.

  “I suppose he can,” Isaac said finally. “In fact, I am certain he has already done so.”

  “So, there could be another Isaac out there?” Danny said, trying to wrap his mind around the concept.

  “Hell, there could be hundreds of Isaacs,” Gerry said emphatically.

  Why didn’t you say anything?” Danny said.

  “I didn’t say anything because I didn’t think it important,” Isaac said. “And you’re wrong. There may be other clones out there with my genetics, but I am the only Isaac.”

  “A technicality,” Gerry said.

  “No,” Isaac continued. “Is there another Gerry out there? Another you? No, there isn’t. You are all individuals, as am I. My consciousness is my own, as is my imagination. Copying my DNA and augmenting the clone’s brain does not inherently give that clone my imagination.”

  “What difference does it make?” Gerry said.

  “All the difference in the world. Don’t you see? I invented the implants because I imagined their design first. My imagination and creativity are the culmination of many things, and my DNA is only a small part of that equation. Not to mention the fact that the implants Masterson would use on any other Isaacs would limit their freedom, a key part of my creativity.”

  “So what?” Gerry insisted. “You already invented the implants. Don’t you think another clone with your aptitude can improve on it? They don’t need your imagination anymore.”

  “Perhaps, but I will always be one step ahead of them. Of that I am certain. Without freedom, Masterson’s clones will never match my capabilities. Sure, they can take my design and improve on it, but it is still my design. They will never understand it as I do. Nor will they conceive of the new versions I’ve come up with.”

  “What did you just say?” Gerry said accusingly.

  “Calm down,” Isaac said. “I have not created anything. This is all in my head. Mind you, my new implant design would be a tremendous improvement.”

  “How so?” Danny said, curious about what Isaac had been up to.

  “The implant inside your brain is used to control you, but it also gives you many superhuman capabilities. What if you had the advantage of those capabilities, without the corresponding threat of slavery?”

  “That’s bullshit,” Gerry said. “An implant can be compromised. The moment it connects to a computer system or another implant, it makes itself vulnerable. I learned that from you.”

  “You are correct, of course,” Isaac said. “But what if a compromised implant could not control the brain it was connected to?”

  “How would that work?” Danny said, intrigued by the concept.

  “As I said, your implants were used to control you. Masterson genetically engineered you to ensure that that could happen. In fact, you were engineered from the start to be more adaptable to all your implants.”

  “You’re saying our brains were customized to work with the Zeta technology?” Danny said.

  “Precisely. Look at your body. It is a marvel of engineering. All your limbs and all your senses have been augmented with technology. If your DNA had not been modified, your body might reject many of the implants.”

  “Interesting. I never thought of that, but it makes sense,” Danny said. “So, what happened before Zeta? You said that the Empire did augment some of its soldiers.”

  “Yes, the key word being ‘some’. They screened the soldiers to find the ones with the least chance of rejection. Masterson did away with all that. You were in effect optimized for your implants. It would be challenging for the Empire to match your inherent compatibility with the implants without a clone program of their own.”

  “I’m surprised they haven’t,” Gerry said. “But what about your new design? What makes it different?”

  “I believe I can trick the human body into accepting it. It does involve some genetic manipulation, but only to the point where some gene expression is inhibited.”

  “Uh huh,” Danny struggled to understand what Isaac was saying.

  “Think of a switch,” Isaac continued. “If the switch is turned on, the body rejects the implant. If it’s turned off, the body accepts it. Simple as that. That switch will be built right into the implant.”

  “Okay, I think I get it now,” Danny said. “But I still don’t know how I feel about it. Why would we want to augment regular humans? You see how they are. All they want to do is steal, enslave, and kill each other. All you’ll be doing is giving them more tools to do so.”

  “You do have a point, my boy,” Isaac said. “In the end, I am a scientist, not a philosopher. And like I said, I haven’t built anything.”

  “Alright, let’s get back to this transport,” Danny said. “We know its timetable and its route. I still say we go ahead and take it. I think the benefits outweigh the risks. Any objections.”

  The others shook their heads saying no.

  “Good. Then we move on the transport.” Danny turned to T199. “To answer your question, I think the only thing we can focus on right now is to build on what we’ve accomplished. But you are right. We can’t stay in metaspace forever. When we’ve freed enough clones, Masterson will know justice.”

  “Know justice?” Gerry said incredulously. “What are you going on about now?”

  “Exactly what I said. Masterson needs to answer for his crimes.”

  “Are you daft? The man is untouchable.”

  “For now. The point is, so long as Masterson is alive, we will constantly live in fear of-”

  A klaxon blared throughout the ship, warning everyone of a potential threat. At the same time, a comm came through to the conference room from the bridge. Danny answered the comm, and one of the bridge officers appeared on the wallscreen.

  “Forgive the interruption,” the officer said. “But you’re needed on the bridge. It’s Zeta. They’ve found us.”

  Chapter 37

  Plasma beams and missiles sprang out of the Zeta battleships but struggled to reach their fleeing targets. Danny’s ships had no choic
e but to run. They were completely outnumbered by the Zeta armada, and if not for the distortions of metaspace, might have already been destroyed. Unfortunately, those same distortions also allowed the fleet to catch them off guard. Somehow Zeta had evaded their sensors and snuck up on them.

  “Damage report,” Danny ordered from his station on the bridge. He had reluctantly fallen into the role of commander, even if he shared the responsibility with Gerry. Isaac and T199 had no interest in leading the free clones. Gerry, on the other hand, felt it better to lead than follow, and had pushed Danny to step up. As far as the freed clones were concerned, it was Danny who sought greater clone freedom, making him the natural leader.

  “Metaspace is destabilizing their plasma beams at this distance,” said the tactical officer. “They are having minimal impact on our shields. Some missiles are making it past our countermeasures, but shields are holding.”

  How long would that last, Danny wondered. If more ships got into range, their combined firepower would eventually overwhelm the shields.

  “Detecting electronic probes,” Annie said. “They are looking for weaknesses in our network’s security.”

  “I thought they needed to be connected to us?” Danny said.

  “They are attempting to elicit a response from our systems. Without a response, they cannot mount a cyber assault. This strategy does seem foolish, as I can use their probes to attack them instead.”

  “Wouldn’t they know that?”

  “It seems a logical conclusion. Are you suggesting that they have laid a trap for me?”

  “Yes, that is exactly what I am suggesting. Zeta surely knows how you hacked the other ships’ systems by now. There’s no way they haven’t devised a counter to your tactics.”

  “It is arrogant of them to assume they can defeat me.”