by B. V. Larson
I was finally listening to her. I didn’t like what she was saying, but I had to admit, she had excellent points. History strongly supported her case. Normally in the course of human events, rulers came and went. The best of us avoided the task, knowing in our hearts the job was a serious pain in the ass and not worth the perks.
But times had changed. A bad ruler now could mean the end of everything.
“I don’t know if I can enjoy my steak now,” I complained.
“Sorry.”
“Let’s forget about it,” I said. “Just for tonight.”
“But you understand what I’m saying? You see that leadership can’t be left to chance now?”
“I know what you’re saying. I get it, but I want to enjoy our time together. Can we drop it for the rest of the night?”
Our main course arrived, and when the waiter glided away she leaned closer again.
“Yes,” she said, “for tonight. You deserve that.”
We had wine and excellent food for the next hour. Then I asked her if she wanted to see the rest of this hotel.
She looked at me almost shyly. “Sure.”
I took her upstairs. All the way upstairs, to the penthouse. There was marble, gold, incomprehensible paintings—the works.
Jasmine walked around the place making appreciative comments and sounds. We stood on the balcony outside in the dark, even though I’d assured my security people I wouldn’t.
We stared down at the living city. The streets were rivers of white and red lights. A breeze caught Jasmine’s long hair and fluffed it around her face.
“I can’t believe we’re really home,” she said. “I didn’t think I’d ever get back, you know. I want to thank you for this lovely evening.”
“Is it over?” I asked her.
She looked at me seriously. “Not if you don’t want it to be.”
I guided her toward the couch, where we sat and had another bottle of fine wine.
“What about the rest of the people in this hotel?” she asked. “Won’t they be wondering what we’re doing? Or taking pictures in the morning?”
I smiled. “There aren’t any other people in this hotel. I rented the whole thing. Nothing but marines on the bottom floors, and us at the top.”
She melted then, and it was good. I’d waited a long, long time to make love to Jasmine. It was worth the wait.
But later, when she was sleeping next to me, I couldn’t turn off my mind.
She’d planted thoughts there that wouldn’t go away. How was I going to handle this transition? Was I really going to put a civilian government in place and let them run this planet however they wished?
There were other possibilities, of course. I could establish a local planetary government, but place it under Star Force control. Maybe we’d call it a federation of planets or something.
I was thinking of more than what Jasmine had mentioned. There were so many things to work out. This wasn’t just about Earth; it was much bigger than that. The Worms of the Helios were involved, as were the worlds of the Centaurs, and the free humans in the Eden system. I had to remind myself we’d only seen seven star systems so far. There were bound to be more biotic aliens somewhere.
The Macros were still out there as well—and God knew what else. How did one build a government which could easily absorb newcomers for the joint protection of all?
I thought of empires and confederations. None of these plans conformed to the traditions I’d been born and raised with, and that bothered me.
I sighed deeply. Sometimes, I wished I could just go back to my farm in the Central Valley and wake up in the morning, as if from a very long, strange dream.
I listened to the sounds of traffic drifting in the windows with the sea breezes. Earth was alien to me, and yet homey, all at the same time.
The End
From the Author: Thanks Reader! I hope you enjoyed STORM ASSAULT. The Star Force series will continue with the ninth book. If you like the series please put up some stars and a review to support it. Let new readers know what’s in store for them!
-BVL
More Books by B. V. Larson:
STAR FORCE SERIES
(in chronological order)
Swarm
Extinction
Rebellion
Conquest
An Army of One (Novella published in Planetary Assault)
Empire
Annihilation
IMPERIUM SERIES
Mech Zero: The Dominant
Mech 1: The Parent
Mech 2: The Savant
Mech 3: The Empress
The Black Ship (Novella published in Five by Five)
OTHER SF BOOKS
Element-X
Technomancer
The Bone Triangle
Z-World
Velocity
Visit BVLarson.com for more information.
