“It was a tragedy.” Benno leaned closer to her, over the table. “I want you to know, XO, I appreciated the wisdom of your advice, but I didn’t try to take Ortiz out. He attacked me. I defended myself.”
“That may be true. This one necessary murder might not stain your soul, but it’s still fruit of the poisoned tree. All these deaths, whether in battle or self-defense, are a direct consequence of your decision to rebel and take over this ship. You can’t escape that, no matter what you do.”
Benno nodded. “Okay, but by that same token, I’m also responsible for the lives saved by the decisions I made. If I hadn’t mutinied, I for one would be dead by execution on a trumped-up charge. An unknowable number of us might be dead as well, killed off in Operation Executive Amber’s subsequent battles. And then there’s the entire population of Paradiso, rescued from occupation by foreign troops and whatever crimes they may have perpetrated. Rapes. Tortures. The decimation of locals to quell dissent. Maybe even complete genocide by orbital bombardment if the Terrans were forced to retreat. At what point does the number I’ve saved overcome how many I’ve been forced to kill?”
Ashton frowned. “Unfortunately, I’m not sure that’s how it works. I think we have to carry the full weight of our sins, no matter how many we save in the end.” They both maintained a silence between them for a long measure, but the silence felt meaningful, not awkward. Eventually, though, she continued. “For what it’s worth, Benno, I’m glad Paradiso is free. I’m glad the burden of their souls can’t weigh me down…like they might have through my or the Alliance’s inaction. I hope for the best with the other five worlds. Even if you end up burning for it, as you should, I’m hoping you can still do some good.”
Benno stood and began to pace, keeping the XO in his peripheral vision. Nervous energy suffused him, and only movement could relieve it. So much rode upon this next moment. “That’s why I wanted to see you, Commander. Circumstances and our own interpretations of duty have made enemies of us here…but we’re also allies in wanting to defend the Alliance. I need your help.”
She laughed once, incredulous. “I like you, Benno. I can even respect why you did what you did, but I can’t excuse the act. You’re a mutinous traitor. You killed your CO, other officers, your own shipmates. You stole our ship. And you imprisoned me. No. No, I won’t help you. Not ever.”
He returned to his seat and locked gazes with the XO. “Ma’am, I have to take Morgan’s Rock back from the Terrans. It’s the key to the other four systems, but I can’t take it alone. The TUN put an entire screening squadron and a heavy cruiser in there. I need more assets, assets that I couldn’t possibly get released legally, even if I weren’t a traitor. That’s where you come in.”
She slapped a palm down on the table. Her face reddened as she growled out, “I don’t come in anywhere. I won’t help you. Ever!”
Benno ignored her rejection. Instead, he a slid a tablet over to her. She looked down and saw a stellar system map for one of the central worlds displayed. He continued. “According to the CO’s briefings, many of the patrol units and garrison vessels normally assigned to the less fashionable parts of the Alliance were forwarded here, to the Magi system. That includes the squadron that used to cover the Morgana system, the Rock, the yards, and the depot there. I imagine those units were none too pleased when they found out they were pulled back to cover a central system that was never attacked, while the enemy captured the areas where they had just come from. I imagine they’re just waiting for an excuse to get back in there and get some pay-back.”
CDR Ashton looked back up at him, her eyes wide. Her face had gone from red to pale in the span of a single breath. “You can’t be serious. You can’t expect to just waltz into Magi, then demand those ships follow you back to Morgan’s Rock.”
“I can if you help me. There’s actual fleet hierarchy in Magi. They would never buy me as the CO. But you’re the XO. They’ll accept you as the new CO after the loss of our original Captain in a heroic clash against Terran forces. We sell our battle damage and loss of personnel as a result of combat action in Executive Amber. We make up some fake situation reports and new orders from deployed fleet command, detaching them from duty in Magi and sending them back to Morgan’s Rock.”
“You don’t think they’ll try to authenticate such a drastic change in tasking?”
Benno shook his head. “No, I don’t, because this isn’t drastic. This is a return to the status quo, to where those units should have always been. It’s what they’re likely already anticipating. Authentication would take several days, setting up courier transits into and out of Centralis. They won’t want to wait. Believe me, with urgent enough orders from high enough up, and with someone as trustworthy and solid as you, we can get them moving immediately.”
She slid the tablet back to him. “It’s audacious. I’ll grant you that. And if they already have intel on Executive Amber? Or they’re already on the lookout for missing fleet unit ACV Puller?”
“Then we die. But if we don’t get those ships to link up with us, we’d die trying to take Morgan’s Rock anyway. This is the only shot we have of surviving and of freeing the rest of the Lost Six.”
Ashton pushed away from the table as much as the cuffs would allow her. She looked disappointed. “It’s a pretty plan. It might even work if you get the encoding, tone, and format of the orders right. But, as I said, I will never help you.”
Benno nodded. “You say that, but I think that’s the pat, easy answer, the one your sense of integrity is forcing out of you. You say no because I’m a traitor and a mutineer, or because I killed a shitty CO and put you in the brig.”
“It’s neither pat nor easy. It’s just no…but yeah, those ‘trivial things’ do factor into my choice.”
“Well, I think you should perhaps reconsider with all facts in evidence. You don’t want to aid and abet a mutiny. Okay, I get that…but the truth is you’re not. The mutiny is done, it’s over with. You’re not going to regain control of the ship, and we won’t consider turning ourselves in until the mission is complete—a mission you should agree with in principle, even if you can’t endorse our methods. Ideologically though, you should be willing to help free these systems, despite who it means you’re working with. And if you’re worried about the consequences to your career for deigning to help us after our takeover, you have an automatic out. You’re a prisoner acting under duress. Anything you do has complete deniability, and I will create affidavits and log entries to that effect.
“And all that we’re asking you to do? We’re asking you to follow the spirit of your oath. We’re asking you to stand up as a figurehead while the deception goes on around you. All you have to do is stand there, nod, and not give us away. The result of your complicity is that we kick a bunch of Terran Turds out of another of our systems. We free an Alliance world—hell, we free five more Alliance worlds.
“Think of all the plusses that’ll put in your karmic balance, all the sins it might help negate…perhaps even the sin of helping us. And all because it’s the right thing to do.”
The commander gave him a tight smile. “Very inspiring, Benno. Okay, that’s the carrot. What’s the stick?”
He shook his head. “There’s no stick.”
“Really? I can settle on ‘No, not buying it,’ and you’ll just put me back in my cell?”
Benno looked at her, looked into the heart of one of the few aristos he had ever truly respected—and he understood her resolve. He realized rationalization alone would never be enough. Even threatening her would likely not be enough. No, with her it would have to be everything or nothing, even if he genuinely damned his own soul in the process. To get her to the point where his reasoning could sway her, he would have to back her into a corner with no other way out—not just for her own sake. For everyone’s.
He leaned forward. Benno could not pull off menacing, so he didn’t even try. Instead, he opted to mirror her own steadfast resolve, and he could feel the sincerity of
what he was prepared to do chill him to the core.
“You insist on a stick? Here it is: I can’t rescue my daughter unless we take Morgan’s Rock. My best shot at taking Morgan’s Rock is to have you play your role in Magi and play it well. Understand one thing, ma’am: I committed mutiny to save all I could of the Lost Six because what the Alliance did to them was wrong. But the only one who truly matters to me is my Mio. If it came down to a choice between her or every single other person on this ship, every single other person in the Alliance, I would choose her and damn you all. If you don’t do what’s right and help me, you’re forcing me to make that choice.
“Refuse to play CO to the forces in Magi, and I will start ending the lives of each and every loyalist you still command. Betray me, and before anyone can take this ship, I’ll space them all en masse. Even as the rest of the Alliance Navy tries to force us to surrender, I’ll ensure the brig and Section Four are sealed off and opened to vacuum. Their lungs will boil, and with their last breath they may well curse me, but I guarantee with their next to last, they’ll curse you.”
Amanda Ashton regarded Benno, but not in fear or horror or shock. If anything, she just appeared sad. “Ruthless. I wonder if I can believe you’d do it. You didn’t seem the type before all this.”
“I doubt I seemed the type to commit a mutiny either. Please don’t test me. Don’t force me to force you.” His lips pressed together into a thin line as he awaited her answer.
Her eyes narrowed. “This whole thing’s changed you, Warrant. I wonder what you might have been if this hadn’t come up, and we’d still seen and nurtured your full potential…instead of suppressing you out of some sort of misplaced classism.”
Benno smiled bitterly back at her. “If this hadn’t come up, I wouldn’t have had any potential to nurture. I’d have just gone on to be a crappy, inexperienced farmer, on my own land, trying to raise a daughter who might respect me if I worked hard enough. But that’s not possible anymore. No use dwelling on it.”
They glared at one another over the interrogation room table.
“I need your answer, XO. Will you help save us, help save your crew, and help save these worlds? Or are you going to make me prove my resolve?”
* * * * *
Chapter Sixteen: Mio
Mio arrived back at camp after night had fallen, to find the resistance members celebrating. She saw Harry standing on the outskirts of the group watching the revelry with a frown and went over to him.
“What’s going on?” Mio asked.
“We’re celebrating,” he replied.
“You don’t look like you’re celebrating,” Mio noted. “Not only that, you don’t sound very happy.”
“Yeah, well I think they’re making a big mistake.”
“What do you mean?”
“They had a raid today that was supposed to capture the Terran’s operations officer, so we could get information from him we could use to plan our upcoming raids. Unfortunately, he died in the assault.”
“That doesn’t seem worthy of a celebration to me,” Mio said with a sniff.
“No, that isn’t what they’re celebrating. While they were in his office, someone found the shuttle schedule for the next few days. They’re going to attack the starport tomorrow and try to capture a shuttle. If they can, they’re going to fly a big load of bombs up to the ship in orbit and blow it up.”
“Can they do that?”
“I guess it’s theoretically possible,” Harry said. “The problem is the plan is way too complicated and relies on too many variables going their way. Can we assault the spaceport? Sure. We could probably take it, although we couldn’t hold it for long. Do we have pilots that could fly the shuttle? I heard we do. The problem is getting the shuttle up to the destroyer and then getting back off once the bombs are placed. I think it’s a fool’s mission.”
“Why is everyone celebrating then?”
“It’s our first real chance to win. If we can destroy their ship, then they have nowhere to go and nothing to deter us with anymore. We can pick them off at our leisure. We win.”
“What about the missile system?”
“They could use the missiles in a surface-to-surface mode and shoot them at First Landing if they wanted, but I don’t know why they’d do that. The only chance they’d really have of survival is to surrender and throw themselves on our mercy.”
“Is this party going to go on long?” Mio asked. “I have important information.”
“No, it’s supposed to be over soon, since there’s a big meeting tomorrow morning to plan the attack. What’s your big info?”
“I’ll wait until tomorrow; I don’t want to spoil the surprise. It’s even better than the stupid old attack they’re planning. Everyone is going to love it.”
“Well, I can’t wait,” Harry said. “Anything is better than what they’re planning to do. Their attack would make a great fairy tale ending, but there are too many ways this can go wrong for it to be successful.”
* * *
The meeting the next morning was packed. In addition to everyone left in their camp, the aristo, Fernando Garcia, had brought in the members from one of the other resistance camps, and they had over 80 people waiting for the big attack.
This will be perfect, Mio thought. With surprise we can do this and win the war today.
“Welcome, everyone,” Garcia said from the center of the group where he stood with the other members of the ruling council. “This is a big day in Adelaide’s history; today we are going to take back our colony from the Terran invaders.”
He paused for a round of applause, then continued. “Today, we are going to assault the starport, steal a shuttle, and blow up the destroyer that has terrorized our people and killed so many of us with its orbital weapons. Today, we strike back!”
Another round of applause. “This opportunity is only possible because of your tireless efforts to resist. I know there have been many days where you were cold or tired, and you wanted nothing more than to end the resistance and go back to a nice clean bed with all the amenities of home. You have suffered through it, and you have made the necessary sacrifices to be victorious. Today, we regain our freedom!”
More applause. “Now, I know some of you are worried we risk too much, or we’re taking too big a gamble. To you I would say, ‘Yes.’ It is a gamble, but it is a necessary one. When this attack succeeds, we will throw off the yoke of the oppressors for all time. We will be free once more!”
Enthusiastic applause filled the meeting area. Garcia smiled and nodded throughout, basking in the glory of his potential victory. Finally, he waved at everyone for quiet. “Now,” he said, “before we break up into our strike teams to discuss individual targets and missions, does anyone have any questions?”
“I do, Mr. Garcia,” Mio called, standing up on the bench and waving her hand to get noticed.
Garcia rolled his eyes. “Thank you for your enthusiasm,” he replied, “but we don’t need any comments from the kiddy gallery.” Several people laughed.
“No!” Mio yelled. “I have something important to say!”
“Can someone find me a babysitter?” Garcia asked in a stage whisper, drawing more laughs.
“I’m as much of a fighter as anyone else!” Mio yelled. “I’ve killed four of the Terran troops. How many have you killed, Mr. Garcia? I haven’t even seen you on a raid.”
All the members of Mio’s camp knew this to be true, and they knew the food they ate daily was only through Mio’s efforts at the warehouse. Muttering broke out among the audience.
“Hey, Garcia!” one man yelled. “Let her talk. She’s got more backbone than I’ve ever seen from you.”
“Yeah, let her talk!” another yelled. “She is a warrior, despite her size.”
“Okay,” Garcia said with an audible sigh. “Go ahead, little one.”
“I may be smaller than you, but unlike you, I listen,” Mio said, drawing chuckles from the audience. “All along, we’ve been looki
ng for a way to cause sufficient harm to the Terrans that they will leave of their own free will rather than bomb us from orbit.”
“Yes, yes,” Garcia said, flicking his wrist as if to brush her off. “Thank you for your analysis.”
“I agree that we need a big victory, but you’re making a mistake.”
“Me?” Garcia roared. “You have the temerity to tell me I am making a mistake? Go back to your dollies, little girl, and leave the attack planning to your elders.”
“I will not!” Mio insisted. “I have something better. Yes, your attack would be great if it works, but I don’t think it’s likely it will. I found a secret way into the missile system base we can use to get in and attack. If we capture the missiles, we can shoot down the ship. Even if we just destroy them, they can no longer be used to shield the planet from our forces. The Terran destroyer will have to leave, and we’ll all be free again.”
“You have a secret entrance?” Garcia asked, sarcasm heavy in his voice. “Did this come to you in a vision?”
“No, I found it going through some tunnels.”
“Uh, huh,” Garcia said. “Well play time is over, and we are going to do what we need to do to regain our independence. We are going through with our attack on the starport.”
“Really?” Mio yelled. “While I was at the Terran base, I heard three soldiers talking, and they said one of our leaders is a traitor. That wouldn’t happen to be you, would it?”
All eyes turned to stare at Garcia, who looked uncomfortable at the accusation. “I am no traitor!” Garcia exclaimed. “I have done nothing but support our cause. If anyone is a traitor, it is you, young lady. We don’t need you making up stories right before we go off to battle, then have you slandering your leaders when you don’t get your way. One more word out of you, and I will have you taken into custody. I do not believe we need you in this assault if this is how you intend to behave.”
Mio stepped down from the bench, her face redder than an overripe gleppa fruit. It wasn’t fair—this wasn’t how it was supposed to go at all! She had the right plan. It was easy and could be conducted with little loss of life, but Garcia didn’t believe her. He probably was the traitor. If so, the attack was unlikely to succeed, but getting thrown into jail, or whatever the resistance equivalent of jail was, definitely wouldn’t help her cause. Besides, if there was an assault today that might end up winning the war, she wanted in.
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