by Ben Winston
“I thought our laws were set up to allow us to keep our freedoms?” Mary challenged.
“They are, but they are also balanced to provide for the greater good, which is why this law exists. If it helps, I will order John and Chloe to return here as soon as they can, depending on what the Tammerain decide to do,” Mark said. “Hon, you and the others are my friends, and I am willing to bend and even break a few laws to help you out, but this one I won’t. In this case, I happen to agree with it, and I’d bet my crown that your new friends do too.”
Mary squinted her eyes at him. “Okay, I’ll agree to come, but you have to grant me a two hour, private audience. You and I need to talk.”
“I think I can do that. There will have to be guards present, and I’d like for Gloria to be there too, but that’s not required,” Mark replied. “What do you have up your sleeve?”
“You’ll find out then. I’ll want Doctor Halverez there too. This’ll definitely blow a fuse for him!” Mary said.
“Okay, I’ve already sent the scout ship. It’s built on the same frame as the Flyer, but doesn’t have the modifications that the Marines needed. It also has a few other tricks that make it very fast. It’ll arrive in Vespa space in just under three days,” Mark said.
“Centauri to Vespa in three days!” Chloe asked, shocked. “How the hell did you pull that off?”
“Uh, it’s actually five days, and it left from Xanadu, not Centauri,” Mark said. “I can’t tell you how we did it, but before you ask, no, it can’t be applied to any of our armed ships.”
“You better add that to my reading list when we get back there,” Chloe said.
“Chloe, you do know that it’s impossible for you to keep abreast of everything don’t you?” Mark said.
“No I don’t, and I never will! You know me better than that!” Chloe replied. She turned and kissed Mary softly on the lips, then kissed a quiet Gloria on the cheek. “Go on, we need to lift. Don’t worry about us, Mary. There is a reason we are still alive and kicking after so many thousands of years. Trust us.”
“Call as often as you can,” Mary told her.
“We’ll keep in touch, Mary,” Chloe said.
Gloria smiled tenderly at Mark, who winked back at her. She took Mary’s hand and led her away. Chloe watched them for a moment, then closed the airlock. “Was it just me, or was Gloria unusually quiet?” Chloe asked.
“I shocked her to silence a couple of days ago, no one else knows about it yet, and for now, I want it to stay that way, okay?” Mark said. “I asked her and her parents to come to Centauri so I could officially ask her father’s permission to court her.”
“You did what?” Chloe asked completely shocked.
“Her parents don’t know either, so it’ll be a surprise for them too. But I really like her. She is a sweet girl. A bit young, but all of them are compared to us,” Mark said.
“Mark, you can’t marry her! You can never consummate the marriage!” Chloe said.
Mark nodded. “I know that, Chloe. Neither you nor John can have sex with Mary, but that hasn’t stopped you from caring about her has it?”
“Well, no, but we don’t have to deal with the Senate, and all that crap. You will both have to deal with them over this.” Chloe explained. “How will the soldier’s rights folks react to you taking a normal human as a wife?”
Mark smiled like a shark. “That issue will be resolved before Gloria and I get married. Besides, I only want to court her, not marry her yet. We need to see if we can live together after all.”
“Has there been a development on that which we don’t know about yet?”
“Well, not yet, but there is about to be. Because of what’s going on out there, we have prepared a press release for later today. We are going to announce that John did not in fact die, but instead ‘retired’ to explore the effect of an enhanced soldier rejoining normal life. It’ll further go on to say that we were lucky in that the planet he chose as a home was so close to an area the Tammerain decided to act up in. We have since reactivated Major Aster, and he has resumed his duties as the Commander of the Temporal Guard. I will also be announcing a new ranking system that will give all of you the title of ‘Guardian’. The new rank is to denote that you are no longer part of the active military, but rather a type of a reserve unit,” Mark said. “Once the current crisis is over, the remaining Temporal Guard will be deactivated, and retired to a planet of their choice. They will retain the title of Guardian as a sign of respect for the service given to the Realm.
“There is currently a discussion going on in the Senate as to whether or not to allow the Guardians to expand past the remaining four of you, and if so, what do we use as requirements. The crown will continue to support all Guardians on a one hundred percent retirement pay and continue to administer to their unique health and upgrade needs.”
“I imagine that last part will meet with some opposition from the Ministry of Finance,” Chloe countered.
“Nope,” Mark shook his head. “Because, even if they weren’t made Guardians, we would still be paying them as standard Marines. Yes, there will be a pay raise, but nothing there will actually change except for the account the money comes from. Everyone knows all of you are comparatively rich, since none of you spend even a tenth of your current pay, and beyond standard subsistence and housing, the crown will not be covering any other expenses – at least, not from that account anyway. We will have other programs in place to handle things if you folks want a new house or something.”
“Hang on a second, Mark,” Chloe said, and thumbed the comm by the airlock. “We’re clear, John. You can take us out anytime.”
“Thanks, that couldn’t have been fun,” John replied.
“Well, I had some unexpected help. I’ll tell you about it when I get up there,” Chloe said. She turned back to Mark’s hologram. “Why don’t you call and visit with John and me later tonight. I’m sure he would like to talk to you about it as well.”
“I’d like that,” Mark nodded. “Depending on what the Tammerain ambassador does, I’ll call you later. Thanks a lot Chloe. It’s really nice to be able to just talk to people again.”
“What time’s that press release supposed to come out, so I can make sure we watch it?” Chloe asked.
“I’ll be giving an address around noon, here. That should be two hours from now, so...” Mark said.
“Dinner time for us. I’ll make sure we see it. Good luck in the shark pool!” Chloe said, referring to the reporters.
“Thanks! Talk to you later!” Mark said and faded out.
Chapter 19
Two hours later, as the Guard sat down to dinner, they tuned into RNN, a privately owned news network, to watch Mark’s speech.
“Chloe, did Mark say exactly what he was announcing tonight?” Carl asked.
“Not in so many words, I think he wanted it to be a surprise, which is why I didn’t tell you guys anything about it,” Chloe replied.
“He’s not going to canonize us is he?” William asked.
“I don’t think he can do that. He’s not even Catholic if I remember correctly,” Alice replied. “Maybe they finally resolved the soldier’s rights issues.”
The speculative discussions ended then as the announcer introduced the event.
The view on the screen switched to the podium in the pressroom at the Royal Palace on Centauri, just as the Royal Chamberlin introduced Mark.
“Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press Corps, honored guests, it is my distinct honor and pleasure to introduce our King, Marcus Candlewood; long live the King!” He lowered himself to one knee, as did everyone else in the room according to custom.
“Please rise, everyone. We’ve got a lot to discuss this afternoon, and as usual, time is an issue, so I’ll get right to it. Please, try to hold your questions until I ask for them.” He touched the smart sheet he’d brought with him containing his speaking notes.
“There has been a long and, at times, hotly contested debate ove
r the issue of our soldiers civil rights with regards to the general public. We are pleased to announce that we have reached a resolution on this subject.
“Effective as of this announcement, and pertaining to Marines ‘younger’ than a thousand years, a trial period of unrestricted planetary access for enhanced marines will be allowed on the planet on which they are stationed, as well as their ‘home’ planet, as long as they still have direct family living on that planet. For this proclamation, direct family is defined as parents, siblings, children or direct, clear descendants of the Marine in question.
“For Marines older than a thousand, all rights and freedoms of travel are restored. Civilian travel restrictions apply to Marines that are off-duty as well as certain planetary restrictions requiring off-duty Marines to wear their uniforms while visiting, so your identity can be known. Planet of residence for all Marines, regardless of age, will be the planet on which they are currently stationed.”
Mark paused for a moment. “It goes without saying that this decision has made a lot of your leaders very nervous. That is the reason for the requirement for Marines to wear their uniforms while visiting a planet they are not a resident of while off duty.
“All Marines are aware of interaction restrictions with non-enhanced civilians. Any and all violations of those restrictions will be dealt with very harshly, up to and including permanent enhancement deactivation without decommissioning. For those not familiar with what that means, it is a very horrible and painful death sentence for a Marine.
“Now, I do have a lot more to discuss with you, but I will take a couple of questions on this proclamation. Mister Foster, I believe you were first,” Mark said, pointing at a man a few rows back.
“Ted Foster, senior reporter, Faster Than Light News. Thank you, Majesty,” he said while he stood and bowed. “Highness, how does this new proclamation affect the Temporal Guard?”
Mark smiled and nodded to the man. “Thank you, Ted. I’m sure you all know how I feel about the Guard, I don’t think it would come as much of a surprise to know that the Guard have complete and unrestricted travel access anywhere in the realm. There is more of an explanation for this, but it is one of the things we haven’t discussed yet, so if it’s alright with you, I’ll finish answering this question in a little bit.”
“Of course, Highness, thank you,” the man said and took his seat again. In the hubbub that followed, Mark picked another reporter. “Ms. Gordon, you’re next.”
“Diane Gordon, Royal News Network. Thank you, Majesty.” The woman said bowing and standing. “I know it’s off topic, but there are a lot of rumors making their way in from the frontier worlds of a new Tammerain incursion into our space. Specifically, Bethel’s Anvil, and the surrounding area. Can you comment on this?”
Mark sighed. “I will comment on it yes, but that will be the last part of our discussion. For now, I will only say that the rumors are probably true. I can’t say that they are, because I don’t know what you’ve heard. Does anyone have any questions on the issue I just announced?” Mark asked, and pointed to a small man in the front. “Mr. Collins?”
“Hiram Collins, Trinity News Service. Thank you, Majesty.” Once he finished bowing, he glanced at his pad. “Have any special precautions been put in place for civil authorities to use in the event a Marine does misbehave while off base?”
“No, there haven’t. The reason is because of a recently declassified function of enhanced soldiers. When a soldier is enhanced, the computerized control unit implanted in them maintains a link with a command computer capable of deactivating that soldier. Basically, we can put them to sleep and keep them there as long as we need to. Before you ask, yes, I have the same command in my controller.” Mark replied reminding everyone that he was still enhanced as well.
“The control codes required to do this are among the most closely guarded information we have, for obvious reasons. So, all any authority needs to do is make a call and the soldier in question goes to sleep to await a retrieval team to collect them. Obviously, it’s a bit more complicated than that, but not much. Civilian authorities are not authorized to do anything more than guard the soldier until the retrieval team arrives. All soldiers are equipped with personal data recorders that monitor the soldier, and his immediate surroundings, even when inactive. That means that if anything is done to that deactivated soldier, there will be evidence of it.” Mark said and touched his notes again.
“Now, the next announcement I need to make will undoubtedly take you all by surprise, but we hope it will be in a good way. A little over a standard year ago, the crown announced the death of Major John Jacob Aster during his deactivation procedure. We are pleased to finally announce that Major Aster is still alive and well. We did let him retire to the planet of his choice, where he has been living as a normal citizen. We asked him to undertake this ‘mission’ as a means of aiding us in making our decision regarding the soldier’s rights issues.
“At his request, he does not wish the crown to say where he went, because he likes his life there, and doesn’t want anything to change the way his community sees him. Of course, just the announcement that he’s still alive will let most of them figure it out, but he said he’ll deal with that when the time comes. He also asked me to pass along to you, the members of the press, a request to not attempt to locate him, for the same reason. Despite still being fully enhanced, he would like to try to remain living as a normal citizen of our Kingdom. As your King, we ask that you please try to respect his wishes in this matter. I think he’s earned it, don’t you?
“Now, just because he’s considered a civilian now, he does still feel a duty to us and as such, is still the leader of the Temporal Guard, so you will be hearing from him again, and I will give you more information on that in a minute.” Mark said and searched out a certain gossip columnist in the gallery. “Yes, Edith, Major Diamond knew all about it, and is with him right now.” She grinned and bowed to him, amid the chuckles from the rest of the reporters.
“I’m sorry, but I see I’m starting to run a little long, so if you don’t mind, I’ll continue on and get all of this out to you before we run out of time,” Mark said. ”If there is any time left, I’ll try to answer as many of your questions as I can before I have to get back.”
He again touched his pad, and nodded. “Pending approval by the Parliament, there will be a change in the status of the unit known as the Temporal Guard. These special and very select individuals will become an inactive reserve unit of our military. What that means is that, like Major Aster, they will be allowed to pursue their own lives as they see fit while remaining fully enhanced. The reason for this is because of something discovered during Major Aster’s decommissioning procedure.
“Marines enhanced before the end of the ninth Tammerain offensive can no longer be decommissioned as promised. Our specialists at the Center here on Centauri Prime, as well as several other, independent biological/molecular medical research institutes have agreed that after Marines that have been enhanced for an extended period of time, they lose the ability to survive the reversal of the procedure. The bodies of those soldiers have adjusted to the enhancements to such a degree that they have become an inseparable part of the Marine’s physiology.
All enhanced Marines, as well as any other soldiers that are within three hundred years of the conclusion of the Ninth Offensive are hereby ordered to report to the center for decommissioning. For some of you, it may already be too late to undo what was done, but we will do our best to honor that promise. If you are an enhanced member of our armed forces, and are within that limit, you have a choice to make; accept immediate decommissioning, and try to become a civilian again, accept decommissioning, and continue your service in a non-combat role, or remain enhanced, and remain as part of our military until you decide to retire permanently.
“For those of you that are already past that deadline, you have our most profound apologies, and we can only say that if we had known sooner, we never would have le
t you get trapped like this. I should mention that this issue was also a factor in the decision to allow them soldier’s rights. It took almost losing Major Aster for us to understand exactly what has happened to you. All we can do is try to make the best out of a bad situation.
“Now, back to the Temporal Guard. They are currently on active duty and on a mission for the Realm. However once that issue has resolved itself, they will be ordered to return to Centauri where they will be knighted.” Mark grinned at the gasp that went through the room. “Don’t blame me, this was Senator Albright’s idea!” he said holding up his hands. “The will become Knights of the Realm and charged with the protection of our citizens. Any disputes brought to them and settled will be honored as if made by a magistrate. Any criminals arrested by them will be treated as federal prisoners unless handed over to local authorities by the Guardian.
“As I said earlier, this is still pending full approval by Parliament, but that’s what has been agreed so far. They will remain on the Royal payroll and all that, so nothing will really change for them as far who pays them, and how much. However, their duties will be added too with the exception of during wartime, or a Realm wide emergency such as the one we are experiencing right now.
“As I said earlier, I would address the Tammerain rumors later. Again, I have no idea what you’ve heard, but at least you got the location correct. There was a Saurian listening post hidden on the colony world of Bethel’s Anvil. The Temporal Guard, led by Major Aster, sacked the base and killed the enemy there.
“However, we have been aware of a larger Tammerain fleet assembled just out of sensor range from the border. When the Guard sacked the base of Bethel’s Anvil, that fleet began moving forward. Since that time, we have received reports of an empire wide mobilization of forces within the Tammerain Empire.
