by Wayne Basta
But were the officers innocent? That thought had never occurred to him before. If it was wrong to imprison all of those people without cause, were the people who kept them confined just innocent bystanders? On one hand, he thought they had to be.
They were just following orders. But he also knew it was the responsibility of every officer to uphold the principles of the Alliance. Just following orders was not an excuse for obeying an unlawful order.
Maarkean looked over at his sister. Saracasi was giving him a terribly odd look. It felt like she was staring at an unusual growth coming out of his cranial horns. He returned the stare, and she smiled at him.
The smile reminded him of a parent smiling proudly when their child accomplished something. It felt very unusual, because their relationship usually went the other way.
“Regardless,” Lahkaba finally said, “I doubt anyone else will see it that way. I think there is just as likely a chance that those who were opposed to stronger action will be even more opposed to it now.”
Maarkean decided to get to the point of this conversation. “You think they will feel more comfortable with an SPC and some grenades to help them?”
Lahkaba cocked his head and looked at him questioningly. “You want to give them what we took from the Alliance?”
Shaking his head, Maarkean tried to dissuade the Kowwok of that notion immediately.
“No, but I would like to sell it to them. We’re pretty much out of money. If we can’t sell this stuff on Enro, we might not be able to leave.”
With an uncertain shrug, Lahkaba said, “Maybe. If they are willing to take stronger action, buying military hardware might be a way of sending a message that we won’t be intimidated.”
“I’m sure your powers of persuasion can bring them around,” Maarkean said with a smile.
After he said it, he realized he wasn’t sure if he was talking about Lahkaba convincing the Congress to buy the SPC or to take a tougher stance against the Alliance. That he could have meant either one bothered him.
Arrival on Enro saw Maarkean’s warnings about fuel reserves come dangerously close to coming true. When they touched down outside the city of Perth – the starport would have charged a docking fee they could not afford – they barely had enough fuel to make a safe touchdown.
While Maarkean, Zeric and Lahkaba went into the city to find out about the Congress, Saracasi was forced to remain behind and set up the ship’s emergency solar arrays.
The solar arrays would never draw enough power to operate the engines, but in space they were designed to provide enough backup power to keep life support running.
With the intense cloudiness that Perth was under at the time, Saracasi wasn’t sure the panels would be able to draw enough power to even keep the lights on. While the temperature was quite cold, it was above freezing, so running the ship’s heating systems was not essential.
By the time she had the arrays online, Maarkean and Zeric had returned. Saracasi had been disappointed about not getting to accompany them, because she had wanted to see the Congress in action. Her resentment was decreased somewhat when she learned that everyone except Congress members was being excluded from the meeting. The rule was intended to keep reporters and potential Alliance spies out of the proceedings.
The next several days proved to lack any real excitement. Lahkaba returned late the first night to inform them that he had been given rooms in a local hotel by the Sulas delegation. When they all questioned him about what had happened, he told them he was not allowed to discuss anything that went on in the Congress. He looked reluctant to say that, and Saracasi suspected his inability to confide in them was half the reason he had taken the rooms in the city.
Since he was not allowed to share anything about the Congress, she tried to quiz him about what had become of the people on Irod. Lei-mey would certainly be among the delegates, and she would know the latest. Lahkaba had only been able to tell her that some of them had returned to their homes and some were still there. That was not enough to answer her questions about what had become of Chavatwor, Faide and Asirzi.
The downtime gave Saracasi a chance to make some long-needed repairs to the Cutty Sark. Much of the battle damage she had taken in the escape from Sulas had yet to be completely repaired. Maarkean and Lahkaba had patched up the worst damage, mainly getting the transmitter working again, while they had waited on Kol. But neither of them was a real engineer, and the work had been amateur, at best.
Lacking new supplies, Saracasi was forced to make most of the repairs in a similar patchwork way. She complained vehemently to Maarkean about the shoddy state of the ship and the likelihood of complete failure. Secretly, she enjoyed the challenge of trying to figure out how to get things working again. Still, she fantasized about what she would do if she ever had access to unlimited supplies and parts.
Lohcja proved to be the one who enjoyed their being stranded on Enro the most. The planet was primarily populated by Ronids, and he spent most of his time in the city visiting with his own kind. Zeric’s enthusiasm for being near a city with no one hunting them or shooting them had been tempered when he had learned it was a Ronid planet.
Maarkean and Gu’od continued their training now that they had a lot of open space to work in. The pair would go on long runs into the surrounding woods and return hours later covered in sweat, bruises and cuts. At first, the bruises and cuts were all on Maarkean, but as time went on, some would occasionally appear on Gu’od. Whenever that happened, Gamaly would frown, but she would go out to meet them with bandages and disinfectant.
After almost a week on Enro, their routine was interrupted by the arrival of three ships that set down in the field near them. Saracasi identified them all as small transports similar in size and capability to the Cutty Sark. All three had also seen better days.
When the ships landed, Saracasi was working on the dorsal hull. She quickly made her way down and joined the rest of the group, which gathered at the boarding ramp. She was surprised to find Lahkaba there, as she hadn’t noticed him approach while she worked. Everyone but her was armed, and Zeric kept glancing back at the SPC still in the cargo bay as if he was considering bringing it out.
A single individual from each ship headed toward them while most of the rest of the ships’ crews headed in a cluster toward the city. Gamaly said, “At least they don’t appear hostile. Not if they are sending most of their people away.”
“Could be a ruse,” Zeric said, still holding a rifle at the ready.
As the small group approached the Cutty Sark, they were able to make out faces. The dark Terran in the lead she recognized as Solyss Novastar, whom they had met on the Black Market. The Liw’kel she did not know. The Braz with them had a green screfa and a jovial expression on his face. When she recognized him, she knew her brother wouldn’t be thrilled.
“Frac,” Maarkean said, letting out the Braz’s name in such a way as to make it sound like a curse. Fracsid Relis was a fellow smuggler they had encountered on a number of occasions. The man claimed he could get anything for anyone anywhere, if the price was right.
In Maarkean’s opinion, the price was always too high, and he was always annoyed by what he called the immature antics of the man. Saracasi found him amusing, but she had never had to work directly with him.
Maarkean looked distressed at the sight of them. Saracasi wasn’t sure if it was just because of Fracsid or something else. In the excitement of the news about the Kreogh Sector Congress, she had almost forgotten the strange meeting with Novastar on the Black Market.
She had not talked to Maarkean about that, but she suspected the idea of some more people wanting to follow him on a grand quest to snub Alliance authority did not sit well with him.
When the group got within earshot, Maarkean called out, “Captain Novastar, I didn’t expect to see you so soon.”
When they were close enough, Novastar stretched out his hand with a wide smile. “Our business did not take long. It is not quite the numbers I
was hoping for, but it’s a start, right?”
Saracasi wasn’t the only one who didn’t understand what the man was referring to, because Zeric asked, “A start for what?”
“Major Ocaitchi’s squadron, of course,” Novastar answered as if it were obvious. He then turned toward the two others. “This is Fracsid Relis of the Unending Justice; my crewman Kard is his cousin. And Eri’dos Ar’cher of the Durandal II.”
Fracsid had a big grin on his face as he looked at Maarkean. Saracasi was not sure if he enjoyed tormenting Maarkean or was completely unaware he annoyed him.
Neither of those would surprise her, but she suspected the latter. The man was amusing and could usually carry through with his promise to get what he claimed, but he was not especially perceptive.
The other smuggler, Eri’dos Ar’cher, looked to be a completely different sort. The look he gave each of them was cold and calculating. Unlike Fracsid, who wore a pistol on his hip, Eri’dos had no visible weapons. Her first impression of the Liw’kel, however, suggested that he had knives or small blasters concealed somewhere on him.
Ar’cher just nodded at Maarkean, but Fracsid continued to grin and said, “Long time, no see, Maark. How’s the ship holding together, Casi?”
To avoid Maarkean saying anything unseemly, Saracasi answered quickly, “She’s good. Better than the Justice, I’m sure. I never took you for anyone interested in politics, Frac. What are you doing here?”
“I’m not,” he said. “But I’ve heard the stories about Maark’s exploits, and it sounds exciting.”
Maarkean frowned at that, and before Saracasi could say anything else, he unleashed a tirade. “Excitement? You’re here for excitement? Do you think this is fun? Turning against your government and causing the death of her servicemen and women, a group of people you were once a part of, is not fun. If you want some excitement, do a poor job next time you try to sneak past Alliance security patrols. Then you can have all the excitement you want while they chase you down. At least then, when they catch you, you’ll only be thrown into prison instead of being executed for being a terrorist.”
The grin on Fracsid’s face disappeared, and everyone looked at Maarkean in astonishment. He continued, holding everyone’s attention with his rant, “This isn’t a game, and this isn’t fun. It’s not a grand adventure, and I’m not some damn hero. I’m not some kind of revolutionary leader, either. I saved my sister from a life in prison. That’s it. Now I’m on the run, with no money, no work and a warrant hanging over my head. If this is the life for you, then, by all means, jump right in.
“I actually believe Novastar has good intentions with this squadron he’s trying to form. But we’d just be pirates in all but name. That raid on Dantyne was a mistake and the wrong thing to do. Doing more things like it will only harm the chances this Congress has of succeeding. Associating with us is only going to make the rest of you into traitors too.”
Saracasi had never seen her brother speak so passionately. The others looked just as surprised as she was. She found him hard to read, but if she had to guess, she would say Lahkaba did not look particularly happy. The rant had not been directed at him, so she was unsure why.
“Are you done?” Lahkaba asked sharply.
Maarkean nodded.
Lahkaba said, “You may be right about Dantyne. We probably did come close to crossing a line there. But I don’t think we crossed it. We may have gone there just to steal stuff, but we ended up doing more than that. No one was killed, and we were able to inspire the people of Dantyne to stand up against the Alliance’s harsh rules. Their delegation is now one of the most outspoken for a stronger response, when before, they were quite against it.
“We formed a Congress to try to speak as a united front. But we could hardly agree on what to send in what was basically just a letter of grievances. It wasn’t until you stood up and acted at Olan that things changed. Before, people would complain in private, and only a very few would complain in public. Now everyone’s talking openly in public. The voice of the people got so loud the Alliance declared martial law on Sulas.”
Lahkaba paused and rubbed his forehead before continuing. “But none of that matters anymore. A packet ship arrived in orbit this morning. That’s why I came out here. The Alliance government has responded to our message.”
A sense of dread filled Saracasi. It was clear by Lahkaba’s manner that the news was not good. She had been hopeful that the message, even if Lahkaba had considered it weak, would have gotten the Alliance to listen to the people out here. The fact that it had been weak had made her more hopeful it would be listened to. Weak was, most likely, more peaceful.
Lahkaba continued, “The Alliance government has declared that all members of the so-called Kreogh Sector Congress are to be arrested as agitators and insurgents. It has also declared that all planetary governing bodies are hereby disbanded and all power of government now rests solely in the hands of the Alliance appointed governors.
“One of the Enro delegates has already received a tip that Colonel Cage is dispatching troops to Perth to arrest the Enro Parliament. There are three Alliance bases on this planet; they won’t take long to arrive. I’m sure if they knew we were here, they would arrest us, too.
“It’s ironic, though,” Lahkaba said with a sigh. “The time stamp on the message from the packet ship was less than three weeks after the prison break on Sulas. The fastest packet ship would take two months to reach the Alliance capital. So when they decided on these actions, there was no way they could have known about that. They declared us traitors and disbanded our governments, and all we did was send a letter.”
When Lahkaba stopped speaking, the whole group remained silent. Saracasi felt sorry for her friend. She knew he had felt as hopeful for the Congress’ success as she did.
She also felt sorry for Novastar and his bunch. They had come here hoping to join Maarkean’s fight, only to be told there was no fight.
She also worried about what would happen next. Without fuel, they would be stranded here when the troops arrived in the city.
Being on the outskirts, they might avoid notice, but it was unlikely that their position out there wasn’t known. Once the troops arrested the delegates, they would come to get those who had attacked or escaped from Olan.
“What’s the Congress going to do now?” she asked. There was a small chance they might have come up with a plan.
“We’re disbanding,” Lahkaba said sadly. “We’re all returning home. With the legislatures disbanded, we no longer have any authority, and none of us want to be arrested.”
That squashed Saracasi’s last hope. They had only the hope of begging or stealing fuel and escaping before troops arrived. It was not the glorious end to their time as rebels she had secretly imagined. But it was the end Maarkean had said they would face.
“But we don’t have to give up. We can keep up the fight you started on Sulas,” Lahkaba continued. “Now we have more ships, and we can gather even more support. They called us rebels. Let’s go be rebels.”
“No,” Maarkean said quietly. Saracasi almost didn’t hear him, and it wasn’t until he continued that she was even really sure he had spoken.
“No. Call the Congress back. They aren’t running. The Alliance has no right to disband the legally elected leaders of any planet. They’ve gone too far this time. We’re not going to allow that to happen.”
Saracasi blinked in surprise. The calm determination in Maarkean’s voice rattled her, but also gripped her. She found that she wasn’t the only one grabbed by his words.
“But what can we do? There are highly trained Alliance troops on their way. The Congress can’t stop them.”
“We can if we fight,” Zeric said. “They won’t be expecting any resistance. We can scare them off pretty easily. It will probably just be troop transports. They wouldn’t see a need for an escort.”
Maarkean turned to Novastar. “Looks like I’m going to need your squadron after all.”
&nbs
p; Novastar nodded respectfully, Relis smiled like a boy with a new toy and Ar’cher’s expression remained the same as it had through the entire conversation. They all pulled out their comm devices and began calling their crews back.
Turning back to Lahkaba, Maarkean said, “We’re going to keep the Enroian Parliament in place. And you need to get Congress to authorize this.”
Confused, Lahkaba said, “What do you mean?”
“We’re not going to be criminals anymore. I don’t think the Alliance should be able to do what they are about to do. But if the representatives aren’t going to make a stand against it, I’m not going to, either.”
Pointing to Novastar and the other smuggler captains, he said, “None of us are. Either they do something, or we do nothing.”
Lahkaba looked uncertain. Saracasi wasn’t sure if he objected to Maarkean’s plan, but he was clearly less enthusiastic than he had been a moment before.
The smuggler captains all seemed eager and ready to put their lives and ships on the line at his order, and they had just met Maarkean, though admittedly they were here in the first place because they wanted to follow him.
Hesitantly, Lahkaba said, “I agree with you that we can probably repel these first troops. But convincing the Congress of that in such a short time will be difficult. Gathering them together again might itself be impossible.”
“Then you better get moving,” Maarkean said flatly.
Spontaneously, Lahkaba gave him a salute and then dashed to the vehicle he had used to get out here. Lohcja followed him while Maarkean turned to talk quietly with Zeric. Gu’od and Gamaly remained standing impassively in the background as if they weren’t sure what to do next.
Saracasi was impressed with her brother’s change of attitude. She was definitely seeing the command presence his old Navy buddies had told her about.
When he had given her guidance or orders in the past, it had always been in the tone of a parent or a brother. This had a definite difference in attitude.
