by Kal Spriggs
The three looked between one another. Finally, Kate spoke up, hesitantly, “The two other parties that are coalescing are the Conservative Party and what I'm calling the Architects. The Conservative Party is primarily made up of Faraday's original colonists. They stand for returning things, as much as possible, back to how they were. They don't have much of an actual loyal base, but some of what they talk about, particularly going back on the defensive and becoming semi-isolationist, has some serious traction among the more fearful representatives.”
Lucius grimaced at that. “Okay, and the Architects.”
“I'm going to list myself and Max, here, among their number,” Kate said. Lucius saw Aaron nod at that. “We're trying to build a nation and I like to think that most of us are thinking through the second and third order effects, possibly to the fourth and fifth order effects, of our actions.” She shrugged, “It's less about what we accomplish now and more about the traditions and behavior we encourage in the long term.”
“That sounds something like social engineering,” Lucius said suspiciously. Amalgamated Worlds had operated on the principles of social engineering. They'd tried to shape what people thought, how they behaved, and that had caused huge sections of earth's society to collapse and had brought the colonies into insurrection that led to the current events.
Kate shook her head, “We're not trying to change people. We're trying to change the behavior of government. Specifically, we're affecting what the people will accept from their government.” She cleared her throat, “To be honest, the way most people are getting along without much government interference is actually a positive benefit.”
Lucius shook his head, “Alright. I'm going to need to do a lot of research.” Hopefully he could manage some, tonight, while he rocked Kaylee to sleep. He wasn't going to miss his father-daughter time, if he could help it.
***
“Ladies and gentlemen,” Lucius said to the assembled parliament. “I'm here to update you on some recent developments. As you know, the Fleet went to seize Melcer from the Chxor over twenty days ago. You've already heard that we took the system and I am happy to announce that we did so without any losses.”
“You may also have heard that we have received an Ambassador from the Centauri Confederation, who appears willing to open up direct communications with our government. What you may not have heard is that we also have an envoy from Shadow Lord Imperious. Both of these individuals are of enough importance that I feel that you should be informed.”
He looked around the assembled men and women. He heard mutters of conversation at his announcement and saw a mixture of worry and confusion on most of their faces. The Shadow Lords were almost mythical, pirates who had looted entire worlds. To hear that one of them had sent an envoy was not something that any of them expected or really knew how to react.
“In the coming days,” Lucius said calmly, “our government will need to deal with such guests. In addition, we have other diplomats and envoys here who wish to make their own offers.” He thought, once again, of the envoy from the Shogunate. One more thing I need to address while I'm here, he thought. “We also need at least some of a framework for our government to function. In that interest, I'd ask that you select a president of parliament, a foreign minister, a minister of commerce, and a minister of war.” Those were the positions he felt they needed at least some leadership. The constitution they had ratified had a dozen more official positions, but he wasn't as concerned with positions such as the Minister of Education at the moment. That kind of thing, he felt, would be better if they took the time to select the absolute best person. Right now he needed people who could speak for their respective areas in both diplomacy and war. Their economy would power both those areas and he needed someone who knew the Faraday and United Colonies economic strengths and weaknesses and could discuss their limits.
“The Centauri Confederation has invited me and other notables to their diplomatic ship tonight for an introductory party,” Lucius managed to keep any sign of distaste off his face and out of his voice. Not that he hated such social events, though he wasn't particularly excited to attend them. No, his distaste was for the chaos and civil war that had shattered the Centauri Confederation and the poverty that many of its citizens lived in, while their political overseers lived lives of pure luxury. “I would like to bring our official government representatives to that event.”
The assembled parliament broke out into immediate discussion at that. Lucius smirked a bit at the furious action his words seemed to have evoked. “Thank you for your time, ladies and gentlemen.”
***
Given the choice between spending the entire evening with his daughter and meeting the Centauri Confederation's diplomat, Lucius would have gladly foregone the latter. Even so, he was dressed in his best and his daughter was back with Emilee by six, and he met up with Captain Daniel Beeson in the lobby of the military apartment building. The Faraday native looked more than a little uncomfortable in the crisp dress uniform of black and gray. No doubt some of that was from unfamiliarity with the social occasion.
For that matter, Lucius was a bit nervous. Back on Nova Roma, he had attended a number of social events. Unfortunately, his father's treason had made him and his sister into social pariahs. Events like this had gained an unpleasant mental connection. He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and smiled at Captain Daniel Beeson, “Ready to go, Daniel?”
“Yes, sir,” the younger man said. He was just as tall as Lucius remembered, but he still hadn't put on much weight since the liberation of Faraday. Stress and the loss of his entire extended family had made him lose most of his spare weight. “Though I'm not sure why you wanted me along.” He sounded a bit irked, but then again, Lucius's secretary had probably contacted him only a few hours ago. Lucius was certain that Daniel Beeson would get over his irritation. For that matter, the competent young man had survived far worse than short notice for a social evening. He'd gone against his father's wishes and signed up with Lucius back when the War Shrike first arrived at Faraday. Then, after their flight from the Chxor task force that seized the system, he had come back to infiltrate the planet and help lead an insurrection against the Chxor. He found out then that his entire family –mother, father, cousins, uncles and aunts– were all executed by the Chxor.
He had survived all that, to rise to command the Desperado-class battleship Peregrine in combat against the Balor. But the Peregrine and Lucius's old vessel, the War Shrike, had both been returned to the Nova Romans.
“I've invited a number of our officers to attend,” Lucius said cordially. “Consider it a broadening experience. The Centauri will have some of their officers present, as well. Meet them, talk a bit, get to know them as people.” It also would give Lucius a moment to broach his own suspicions to Beeson and to get him to look into the rumors that he'd heard from Perkins.
Lucius stepped outside and was surprised to find Sergeant Timorsky standing next to an aircar. “I called for a cab,” Lucius said.
“Yes, sir,” Sergeant Timorsky said. “And Colonel Proscia mentioned you might want someone professional to accompany you aboard the Centauri ship, maybe someone who knows their tactics.”
Lucius pursed his lips. “I hardly think their diplomat will stoop to kidnapping or assassination of a head of state.”
“Well, sir,” the Marine said, “I don't know about that. But it doesn't hurt to have someone who's good in a fight, does it? Besides, Lance Namori and I happened to have the evening free.”
Lucius just shook his head. “Very well. Sometime I'll have to figure out why you and Lance Namori have so much free time.”
“One of life's great mysteries, sir,” Sergeant Timorsky answered with a level voice.
Lucius sighed but he ducked into the back seat of the car, followed by Captain Beeson. He sat back in the comfortable seat and looked forward at Lance Namori. “Lance Corporal, I know that you and Sergeant Timorsky are very close-mouthed, so I would assume th
is goes without saying... but, what Captain Beeson and I are about to discuss cannot be spread about, am I understood?”
“Absolutely, Baron,” Namori answered. “If anyone asks, you were talking boring stuff about fashion and sports. Couldn't make heads or tails of it, sir.”
“Thanks,” Lucius said. He looked over at Captain Beeson, “Daniel, I'm going to ask you some questions and I want your honest opinion, don't hold back and I want to know everything you know, understood?”
Captain Beeson looked suddenly attentive, “Yes, sir.”
Lucius heard Lance Namori brief Sergeant Timorsky as the aircar took off, headed for the spaceport. “Some rumors have come to me, from various sources. Rumors about reinstating Amalgamated Worlds, rumors about conquering planets with the Dreyfus Fleet. Have you heard similar?”
Captain Beeson looked away. He took a moment to talk, “Yes, sir. Most of it from the same people. Some other stuff as well.”
“What else?” Lucius asked and his eyes narrowed.
Captain Beeson looked down at the floor. “Some nasty rumors, mostly, sir. Rumors that you'd become unhinged... that Admiral Dreyfus was acting in your stead. Some other stuff, like that Kandergain had twisted your mind, made you a puppet. I knew that was a load of crap... but speaking out against that kind of thing draws attention.”
“What kind of attention?” Lucius asked.
Captain Beeson grimaced, “Well, sir, you know we turned over the War Shrike and the Peregrine to the Nova Romans. Well, it didn't feel good to give up my command, but I accepted it. And the word was, as our crew transferred over, that I would step into a new ship as the commander.” He looked up and met Lucius's eyes. “But that didn't happen, sir.”
Lucius nodded, “And I'm sorry for that. You're a damned fine officer, I should have made sure there was a command slot available for you.”
“But there was,” Captain Beeson said. “Only I was told I had to interview for it, that there were other commanders who also were eligible. There was a review board, chaired by Captain Zappala. They asked all kinds of questions, some of them were really odd, and then afterward I heard that Captain Paulos received the Arapahoe.”
“Odd, how?” Lucius asked.
“What I thought about Amalgamated Worlds,” Captain Beeson said, his voice level. “Whose orders I would follow in a crisis. What I thought about rogue nations like the Colonial Republic. You know, odd... unless someone was trying to see who would be loyal. I think they might have let me slide, though, except I asked what any of this had to do with being a United Colonies officer right at the end. After that, Captain Zappala pulled me aside afterward and told me that things would go bad for me if I tried complaining about the board's results.”
Lucius felt his blood go cold. Outright threats and what amounted to a political screening, both going on under his nose. How could he have missed this... and why had his officers not come to him, already? “This is news to me, but it shouldn't be. I can promise you that I will act on it... but I need to know more.”
Captain Beeson sat back. “You want me to investigate, sir?” He sounded both surprised and anxious. Lucius could tell the other man was conflicted. On the one hand, there was loyalty to the United Colonies. On the other was loyalty to the Fleet... yet that same loyalty had not been returned. Lucius could see the thought as it flashed across his face. Some faceless group seemed bent on twisting the Fleet to their own political agenda and in the process they had left Captain Beeson without a command. That same group might well be behind the apparent disgrace of Anthony Doko. Lucius saw determination harden Daniel Beeson's face and he knew for certain that he hadn't misjudged the other man. “What authority and resources will I have?”
“I want this to be as official and above the board as possible... but I need to know how deep the rot goes, so that we can address it,” Lucius said. “First thing, gather together a group of people you trust. I've selected a few that I think are trustworthy, Ensign Perkins will be here tonight and I'll arrange introductions with some of the others. Ideally, a mix of backgrounds so this doesn't seem like some kind of witch-hunt. I want officers and senior enlisted involved. Right now it looks like a small group... but we don't know nearly enough to move.”
“And when the time comes to move?” Captain Beeson asked.
“Then I want to take all of these conspirators at once,” Lucius said sharply. “And even if we aren't certain who is involved at first, I want to take as many as we can, especially the leadership.” Lucius locked eyes with the other man, “You will put together a team that will arrest the leaders of this cabal... no matter how high they rank, am I understood?”
Captain Daniel Beeson met his gaze with confidence. “Absolutely, sir.”
“Good,” Lucius said. “Now, I believe we've arrived at the spaceport.” Lucius nodded at Lance Namori, who had climbed out and opened the door for him. Lucius stepped out and started towards the waiting shuttle, Daniel Beeson and his escort following behind. Now to see what the Centauri Ambassador has to say, he thought.
***
Santa Cruz, Garris Major System
Colonial Republic
October 4, 2403
“Azure squadron, break left!” Garret snapped out. He saw his squadron begin to shift, but too slow.
Fire strobed out from the squadron of fighters that had closed on their flank. The light guns of the Patriot fighters mostly peppered off the armored hulls of the Hammers as the fighters swept past at high speed. Garret bit back a curse though as flashing icons warned him of damage. Main gun is out, he saw, damage to the accelerator coils. That was bad. That meant some of the projectile rounds had punched through the outer hull and deep into his ship. Who knew what other damage they had caused along the way? Still, they could bypass that damage as necessary.
“Heller, get the gun up,” Garret said.
“Ya, working it,” Heller said.
“Vector break,” Garret said over his squadron net. “Shift to evasion pattern three.” His command was met with acknowledgments. The gunboats couldn't duel at close range with the lighter fighters. They'd already loosed their missiles at the enemy destroyers on Commodore Pierce's orders. A larger ship would mount turrets to deal with harassing fighters, but the gunboats' main defense was avoidance. Failing that, they needed support.
“Freedom Squadron, this is Azure Squadron,” Garret said. “We're engaged by enemy fighters, need some support.” Garret forwarded his squadron's coordinates even as he sent evasive maneuvers to his squadron. Lighter fighters could go through evasive patterns without much coordination, though they still tried to plan that into their attacks. The big gunboats, though, had larger drives as well as defense screens. Evasive maneuvers that led to a collision would be disastrous for the big craft.
“Roger, Azure.” A crisp voice said. “We're headed your way.”
Garret heard Heller's voice, “Enemy's coming back around.”
Garret bit back a curse. This damned fight was going on too long and felt too much like a setup. The convoy they were attacking was owned by the Salazar family, which they had expected some security for. However, the two cruisers, four destroyers and two escort carriers that met their ambush was far more firepower than anyone had planned for.
Admiral Mannetti had provided the initial information, Garret knew. She had also given them the initial plan... which had positioned the War Dogs much closer to the convoy than their normal tactics called for. Ostensibly, that was to prevent any of the Salazar family's transports from escaping... but it also meant that they were within weapons range of the defending forces. They had also only brought along one of the Halcyon destroyers and two squadrons of their fighters, who had clamped on the hull of the Warwagon.
At least the Warwagon was holding its own against the enemy capital ships, Garret saw. The ancient dreadnought had hammered two of the destroyers into scrap and had forced the other two to back off. Garret bit back a curse, though, as he saw one of the cruisers had circled aro
und the flank of the old ship. The Warwagon's main vulnerability was it's aft area, where its bulky engines prevented it's turrets from firing.
“Azure squadron,” Garret said, “Target update.” If they went after the cruiser, they would be setting targets when the enemy fighters came back around. If they didn't, the cruiser might cripple or even destroy their flagship. Without the Warwagon, though, the enemy ships would quickly shift targets to the gunboats and the Halcyon crewed destroyer and fighters. Garret uploaded the cruiser as their target. At this range, it wouldn't matter that they only had the standard mass driver rounds rather than the smart ones. That, at least, should allow them to go evasive after they fired.
“Enemy squadron is forty-five seconds out,” Heller said, her voice tight. It was one of those peculiarities of life that she sounded even sexier when she was nervous, Garret noted, not that he'd ever tell her that.
“Roger,” Garret answered. His squadron formed up and indicators came up to show that they had acquired the cruiser. “Engage,” Garret said over his squadron net. He squeezed his trigger and only then saw the alert, the main gun was still down. “Heller, dammit, get the gun up!”
“Working it!” Heller snapped.
He saw the other rounds from his squadron go out. At this range, the impacts were almost instantaneous. Fire blossomed from the side of the cruiser as the heavy rounds punched through its defense screen and smashed through its armor. The enemy cruiser staggered, trailing atmosphere and debris and outgoing fire from it slackened off to a trickle. It was no longer a threat.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Halcyon squadron was en route, his squadron could adjust course so that the friendly squadron could provide them with coverage.
“Gun is up,” Heller called.
“Roger, thanks, we're good,” Garret said. He switched over to his squadron net, “Azure Squadron, come to course–”
