Talosian Chronicles 6: Armageddon

by Ben Winston

  "Yes it is, but it will give our kids some practice working as a team, we get to deploy some of them and get some temporary relief from the over-crowding we're starting to see." Ian snorted. "Some of our folks will be getting deployed to Earth in their primary rolls, but using a few battalions for this would also help. It'll give everyone some much needed experience with planetary operations, before we have to start fighting for real. I just don't see enough 'bad' not to do this."

  "What do you see as 'bad'? Maybe we can counter it?" Luke asked.

  "Well, displaced workers in depressed areas to start with. Colonel Carlson pointed out to me that there are a lot of people down there that rely on the income from the drug trade; especially in depressed areas. We could recruit a few of them, but honestly, how many of them would be willing to leave the planet?" Ian pointed out. "The unknown amount of secondary effects the removal of these assholes will cause, like destabilizing governments and such. Honestly, we have no real idea how many little fires this is going to start."

  "What are we going to do with the 'evidence' collected for trial? Surrender it to the World Court as well?" Luke asked.

  Ian shrugged. "Honestly, that's more your area than mine. Honestly, I'd like to see the money used to help the communities impacted the most by our actions. As for the drugs, we do have legitimate and legal agencies in the Alliance that would buy the stuff for use to actually help people. Although, I can't imagine a helpful use for Methamphetamines."

  "Actually, it has a use; with only a slight modification, it is a very effective pain killer and anesthetic for Caldarians. Studies are still underway, but it looks promising," Luke replied.

  Ian cocked his head at his friend. "Do I even want to know how you know that?"

  Luke chuckled. "Trade requests from the Alliance; some of the stuff seemed a little questionable to the Council, so we asked for a report on them. Honestly, I was surprised to learn of it. I just wonder how they even knew about half this stuff. It seems that the rest of the Alliance are curious about us and have been doing research.

  "That group of refugees from the Echelon System are already getting set up to grow Marijuana and are investigating the production of Opiates and three other medically restricted crops. It would seem the Benesian exile world is ideally suited to this kind of cultivation," Luke replied, grinning.

  "Is someone going to start cooking Meth out there then?" Ian asked.

  "I doubt it, there's too many volatile chemicals involved. If it pans out as a viable drug, there's a good chance the Alliance will be leaving it's production to us," Luke replied. "Yay us."

  "Yeah, well, who says it has to be done on Earth?" Ian replied. "We can set up the labs for it on some isolated, barren asteroid or dwarf planet or something. Besides, if it's only beneficial to the Caldarians, we won't need to worry about supplying the entire Alliance."

  "True, it just feels weird to even discuss it," Luke replied. "Anyway, I'll get to work on this mess right away, maybe we can head off a good portion of it before it happens. Good Luck with Interpol, Admiral." Luke grinned.

  Ian stuck his tongue out at him before closing the channel.

  After talking to the heads of the various training commands and working out how to handle this request, Ian asked Alex to place the call for the head of Interpol. He was connected with a Miss Olivia Shapiro, head of the International Drug Intervention task force.

  "Miss Shapiro, I'm Ian Williams, Commander of the Terran Defense Forces. I understand you requested our assistance?" Ian asked.

  "Admiral Williams, thank you for returning our call. Yes, we would very much like you help in this matter. Honestly, considering everything that's going on, we honestly thought you would decline the request."

  "Well, to tell you the truth, we almost did. But, I spoke to my training commanders and we agreed that assisting you would be good practice for some of our troops. I wanted to make sure you understood that if we agree to do this, we'll be basically taking it over. Like we did with the terrorists, we will investigate, track, arrest and hold the accused until they're trial by the world court," Ian replied. "We do understand how many people we're talking about here. It's going to be a very busy time."

  "How so? There are only a few thousand primary targets in our investigations. We estimate less people than you arrested for Terrorism," the middle-aged woman replied.

  Ian nodded. "I see. Miss, we are talking about all of the cartels, everywhere, in every country. If they are involved in drug production and/or trafficking, they will be arrested, regardless of social standing or political position."

  "Ah, I see," the woman replied. "That is certainly going to be a problem for my superiors. I told them how you handled the terrorists and that you would insist on full autonomy. I think they assumed you would stop when told to." She grinned. "Personally, I'm all for it. Our hands have been tied by this from the beginning. Still, they agreed to let me submit the request to the UN." She hesitated. "Admiral, I feel that there is something else going on here; something to either get your technology or to put you in a bad position with the people. I don't have any proof mind you; just a feeling.

  "Shortly after I was allowed to make the request, one of my people over-heard a conversation about a strike mission involving a certain mercenary unit. Normally, this would not bother me as we try to track and prevent atrocities as well. However, the people speaking were not form the counter-terrorism unit, but from operations. My man felt they were speaking of a planned mission that was dependent on another event," she replied nervously. "I feel that the event they were speaking of is your first mission here."

  "Madam Shapiro, if your office is bugged, you will be killed for telling me that," Ian replied.

  She smiled sadly. "I know. I am certain I will not see another sunrise, but I felt you had to be warned. The corruption infecting the governments of this planet is not limited to just them. The head of operations is Vladimir Ivankov; a former KGB senior officer. He should never have been selected for this organization, but because of connections, he was chosen. He is supposedly former Bratva and made many political connection in the Russian Federation. He has been hailed as a champion of reform. Admiral, the only former members of Bratva are dead, and he is more likely than not one of the people you will want to arrest."

  "One moment please, Miss Shapiro," Ian asked. When she nodded, he muted the channel. "Alex, I need to see Major Dancer and have the Damocles prepare for departure. I'll need to speak to Cindy too, but she needs to leave right away."

  "The Major is on her way, The Damocles is responding to the alert and preparing for take off. Colonel Williams is standing by on channel five," Alex said as she opened the door to admit Star into the office. Since Ian was on the comm, she used the door instead of just materializing in the office.

  "Star, I need you to hack the Interpol databases and capture as much data as you can. They've asked us for assistance with drug intervention, but it's beginning to look like it's a set up. Please inform Operations I will be sending the Damocles down to retrieve Mrs. Olivia Shapiro, the Head of the Drug Task Force for Interpol. We'll need quarters for her as well," Ian finished.

  Star nodded. "I'll request extra data storage from Engineering; that is a very large database."

  "Thanks Star," Ian replied, smiling and dismissing her. He opened the comm to Cindy. "Hey sweetheart, I need you to go get someone. She put her life on the line to get us some information and now she needs our protection. Miss Olivia Shapiro, she's at the main Interpol compound in France."

  "Understood, Lissa says she can find her in route. Is this a quiet extraction?" Cindy asked.

  "She needs to be 'dead'. Stage her suicide in her office, but the priority is getting her out safely. Her office is being monitored," Ian replied. "No one can know you were involved."

  "Understood Sir. Damocles is sneakin'," Cindy said. She winked at him and closed the connection.

  Star nodded and left the office. Ian returned to the call while he waited for Cin
dy to arrive. "May apologies. Mrs. Shapiro. There was another matter I had to deal with." Ian tapped his ear to let her know he was speaking for the 'listening audience'.

  "I completely understand, Admiral," the woman replied.

  "Now, as for your safety; can you make it to one of our construction projects local to you? You can get shelter there until we can retrieve you," Ian said but shook he head. "I'd send a team directly for you," he was nodding now, "but, we don't have anyone available at this moment." He typed on his keyboard and brought up Cindy's official Terran Defense Force Identification so she could see it on her screen.

  She smiled and typed 'I can read lips'. "I don't think I can, Admiral. I appreciate the offer, but I doubt I will even leave the building alive. I knew telling you was a death sentence. I don't plan on giving those fools the satisfaction. For what it's worth Admiral, I feel you are doing a great service for our people. I just wish I could have been as effective." She was acting depressed and suicidal, setting up the situation for Cindy and her team. "If I could ask a boon of you, I would have you make arrangements for my Luciano." She forced a tear out.

  "You have a son?" Ian asked.

  She shook her head sadly. "No, Luciano is my cat. My one vanity; I bought him as a kitten. He is a rare breed; Egyptian Mau. He has been a good friend over the years. He deserves to be taken care of."

  "I will see what we can do, Miss Shapiro. It's the least we can do for your warning," Ian replied.

  "Now that you know, what will you do?" she asked.

  "I'll need to speak to my intelligence and operations people, but we will deal with them. It might have to wait until after the battle we are preparing for, but we will find a way to correct this issue. Busting drug dealers is one thing, but dealing with corrupt organizations is another; we simply don't have the resources for that at the moment," Ian lied. "I thank you for the warning, it'll keep us from making a huge mistake at a time when we need to focus on protecting the people."

  "This is Officer Lissa Dancer of the Raptor Damocles. I now have control of the monitoring devices in the room. Miss Shapiro, please move over to your office door while open one of your windows," Lissa said over the connection.

  "That was fast! I was running out of stuff to say. I am curious though, how are you going to stage my suicide?" Shapiro asked.

  "Magic," Cindy replied as she stepped through the window and into the room. As she left the Damocles' cloaking field, she became visible. "Miss Shapiro, if you will accompany me, we can stage the scene. I'm sure you don't want to see what we are going to do in here."

  "Cindy, you'll need to stop by her house and get her cat, Luciano. He needs to come too," Ian said.

  "I love cats!" Cindy replied. "Will do."

  "Sir, Major Eischens is on the comm for you; he says it's urgent," Alex said.

  "Thanks Alex," Ian replied and opened the comm once again. "What's up Ike?"

  "Sir, do you remember we tagged one of the Caldarian freighters so we could figure out where it was going?" the man replied. He looked very concerned about this, and that made Ian uneasy; Major Eischens was Ian's chief intelligence officer.

  "Yeah, they were in one of the dwarf galaxies just outside our own, right?" Ian asked.

  "Yes Sir, although it got put on the back burner so to speak, we have been monitoring them. Two weeks ago, they began massing their ships in one place. I was preparing a report on it for you once we figured out what they were doing, since it was unclear. Now we know; they were preparing to leave. The entire fleet of ships jumped to hyperspace this morning," Eischens replied.

  "If they were running out of food, that stands to reason I guess. So why are you so worried about it?" Ian asked.

  "We plotted their course. Five Super-Nova class, and about a hundred and fifty assorted smaller vessels will be arriving here, just inside Uranus' orbit, but on the far side of the sun, in roughly three months," Eischens explained. "Sir, I checked with Mrs. Laskar already; this isn't the force she saw, but admitted that there were hundreds of warships in her vision. The Benesian women that are also seeing this confirmed that Caldarian ships are part of the attacking force. If this is accurate, we now have a time-line."

  "Fuck! I'd hoped for more time," Ian said. "Ike, compile every scrap of data you can get your hands on; potential enemy strengths, arrival times, possible attack patterns, as well as how far along our preparations are. I'll want a full briefing in four hours. Alex, please try to have Alliance High Command attend as well as our full command staff. After that meeting, I'll need a meeting with Luke and the Council, please include the UN if possible.

  "Has the Damocles returned yet?" Ian finished.

  "They are on final approach, Sir," Alex replied.

  Ian nodded. "Please ask Officer Lissa to report here for a special assignment. Have Major Corvis and the Icarus team report to Major Eischens to assist him in preparing this briefing."

  "Thank you, Admiral. That'll really help," Ike replied.

  Ian grinned. "Well, since you actually have to do some work, I figured I better get you some help!" He teased. "Seriously though, I'm putting you in a tight spot, Ike. I know that; just do the best you can in the time we have," Ian replied. "Good work on this. Talk to you later."

  Ike chuckled but nodded. "Will do, Sir and thank you."

  Ian nodded and closed the channel. "Have Cindy and Miss Shapiro tag along with Lissa please."

  Alex was on the comms with someone, but she nodded that she understood and would handle it. Ian went over to the replicator in the office and got himself a cup of cappuccino as well as Alex's favorite drink. When he took it to her desk, she smiled up at him.

  "Thank you, Sir. Colonel Williams, Officer Lissa and Miss Shapiro are on their way. The military briefing is set up for the large conference room in four hours. The political briefing is still in the works, but it looks like it'll be ready, in the same room, in six hours. Sir, it'll be the full UN, not just the Security Council. Since you didn't specify, I assumed you meant the entire body." When he nodded, she continued. "I'd have liked to give Major Eischens more time, but it's going to be late at night in New York as it is," the woman replied.

  Ian nodded. "We'll make it work. I doubt any of them are going to be able to sleep after this anyway."

  "Sir, I spoke to Admiral H'joles directly. He was very concerned about this news, but asked me to assure you that we will not be alone; the Alliance will be there to defend us," Alex added.

  Ian nodded. "Yeah, I know they will. The question is, will it be enough?"

  "With the Alliance fleets here as well as our own preparations, surely we stand a better chance, Sir," Alex replied.

  "Everything we can do before they get here improves our odds, Alex." He snorted. "You've seen the same reports I have; this fight will most likely be the largest battle in history. Thousands of warships from three different agencies all fighting in one sector. With that much destructive force unleashed in one place…" He shook his head. "There is simply no way to calculate odds or outcomes; there are too many variables. All we can do is prepare and when the enemy arrives do the best we can to defend our people."

  Alex nodded. "I understand Sir. Colonel Williams is here."

  Ian smiled at her. "Just keep the faith awhile longer, Alex." When she nodded, he turned and walked over to the conference table as Alex opened the door for the new arrivals.

  Cindy and Lissa entered the office and walked over to the conference table, Miss Shapiro was staring around her in awe, and holding tightly to a large, gray, tabby stripped cat; Luciano.

  Alex went to the replicator and got a litter pan for the cat, then got a bowl of water and premium cat food. The VIP now taken care of, she asked the three new humans if they wanted anything.

  Olivia took Luciano over to the litter pan and sat him down so he could check it out. He sniffed it and walked all the way around it before stepping in and relieving himself. He stepped out, quickly cleaned himself, then proceeded to investigate the rest of the off
ice and discovered the food.

  "Welcome aboard, Miss Shapiro. As you know, I'm Ian Williams, this young lady…" he indicated Alex. "…is my assistant and resident miracle worker, Alex." He paused as the two women greeted one another.

  "Miss Shapiro, I'm going to break a few dozen rules here, because we need your help. My instincts tell me I can trust you, and that's what I'm going to do. If you agree to this, I'm going to have Cindy take you down to Marine country and have Master Sergeant Ames certify you with our weapons and fit you with armor. While you're doing that, I'm going to have a shuttle made available to you as well as a pilot, a few Marines and a couple of Techs.

  "Tomorrow, you and Luciano will head back to Earth to help Colonel Carlson with coordinating the installation of defensive weapons in various places around the world. I'll need you to work your magic to make sure they get finished as quickly and as painlessly as possible. I know you have no experience with the weapons or technology involved, but we can fix that. What I need is your skill at coordination and your ability to cut through the bullshit and make things happen.

  "But, understand, this is voluntary; I'm not telling you to do this; I'm only asking you to. You can say no," Ian explained.

  "Uh, Admiral," Cindy said. "She's literally fresh off the ship here, are you really asking her to jump into this? Has something happened I don't know about?"

  Ian nodded. "We have a better idea when the attack is coming; we have about three months left before all hell breaks lose."

  "Admiral, no one on the planet knows what's coming. Most of the planet has not been told any details. We know that you are preparing to defend the planet against an attack, but no one has given any details. How bad is this going to be really?" Miss Shapiro asked.

  Ian nodded. "We know the governments haven't been telling the people everything. To be honest, I kind of agree with them to a point. If full knowledge was widely known, there would be wide scale panic and riots, religious doom-sayers on every corner and no one would be able to get anything done. Once we get more of our defenses in place, and we have a better idea how much we'll be able to protect, we'll tell the planet the truth. They'll still panic, but we'll be able to tell them we've made preparations, and not just for the planet's elite."