A Game With No Rules (Perimeter Defense Book #4) LitRPG Series
Page 23
My sister was already nearing the end of her screed, but I managed to ask a question that had been bothering me:
"A strange message has come in from Imperial ships in the Nayal system saying that the Grand Duchy fleet and Alien ships are working in tandem. Can you confirm or deny such an alliance?"
My twin sister looked somewhere aside, apparently at the time. Then, she answered as if she hadn't heard my question:
"Georg, the throne of one Grand Duchy co-ruler is unoccupied, and I was thinking it didn't make sense to give it up to someone not from our family. Maybe mother was right, and you could join. But first, brother, you need to significantly reign in your desires and rid yourself of all this excess pride. With the second, it will be quite easy. In forty minutes time, you will get an important lesson that will unravel the myth of your invulnerability. A lesson that will upend all your fantasies about the balance of forces. So, let's talk after the battle. A lot will be clear then, that you don't know now. I wish you luck, brother! And make sure you don't die!"
* * *
My synthetic assistant placed a hot coffee on the console before me and, bowing down right over my ear, asked quietly:
"My Prince, is this risk really worth taking? It doesn't look like Duchess Violetta was joking or bluffing, when she talked about the unbeatable fleet just about to land on our heads. My human body language processing program says there is a 96 percent chance that your sister was speaking the truth."
"Yes, Bionica. Miya says roughly the same. My twin sister really was warning me of an upcoming danger, and Violetta believed that winning the forthcoming battle would be impossible, despite my skill. But are we really gonna leave without getting a glimpse of this all-consuming power she's using to scare us?"
The android girl's face twisted into a very authentic imitation of fear. I drank a sip of the burning hot roast-firo-nut beverage which, by my light hand, had practically officially begun to be called coffee. Even the demure and pedantic butler Bryle and my senior chef called it that now, and I had recently seen that name mentioned in an online culinary encyclopedia. Well, no matter. I guess I'd brought one word from my world into Perimeter Defense. It was my only serious slip-up in all this time. I smiled at my secret thoughts and nodded to my assistant, grateful for the coffee:
"The Queen of the androids always knows what this human ruler needs for a peace-making mood. Now, I'm ready to meet the fearsome unbeatable fleet, no matter how great their numbers. And you've got nothing to fear. All my ships are accelerating towards the Forepost-10 warp beacon now, and are ready to jump there right after the Queen leaves."
"Your Highness, aren't we even going to try a bombing run on the enemy?" asked Nicole Savoia, sitting to my other side.
"If we get a good opportunity, our stealth bombers will be sure to strike. But we've already used the cloaked bomber attack on Alien ship groups so many times that our enemies are sure to be expecting such a thing from us and will take countermeasures..."
I wanted to say what countermeasures a fleet could take to defend itself from cloakers, but I didn't have time. A siren started whining out, and the signal lights flickered on in alarm. The officers ran to their seats. The enemy had finally arrived! First a few large groups of red markers appeared on the tactical map then, at several-second intervals, other proportionally sized groups started arriving. A few minutes later, it finally became clear that the enemy somehow had an unrealistically huge number of starships. On the tactical map, my fleet looked like just a short green banner in front of a three-thousand-mile-long red armada. And the groups of enemy starships just kept coming...
I listened carefully to the messages of my tactics officers, ready at any second to command us to retreat.
"There's already more than eight thousand of them!"
"The enemy fleet is forming three clusters around its large ships. Distance to nearest group - twenty-five hundred miles."
"Nine Mammoths. Twenty-three other large starships of a familiar shape. But on closer inspection, they have turrets of a colossal size. Two hundred forty Behemoth-class battleships. Almost one thousand Sledgehammer cruisers. Three hundred Chainsaw cruisers and another two hundred of an unknown design."
"Identification of destroyers and frigates is still under way. Primarily Meteors and Ascetics..."
"Some of the enemy ships have disappeared from the radars! Two hundred cruisers we didn't recognize disappeared along with four hundred cloaked frigates of three different types."
Those seven hundred cloaked ships could be anywhere, which was too grave a threat to simply overlook. What was more, it had already become very clear that there was nothing to catch here. With such a distribution of forces, my fleet was not likely to achieve victory. I was already preparing to give the order to retreat when I suddenly got an alarmed cry from the tactician:
"A new large fleet has arrived! It's human! They've come from the Nayal system! Three thousand ships!!!"
"Three thousand ships? Where did they find that in Nayal?" I exchanged glances with Nicole ton Savoia, who shrugged her shoulders in surprise. Bionica, meanwhile, commented on the reports coming in from the tactics officers:
"These ships are certainly of human construction, approximately half of them have been recognized as the Purple House First Strike Fleet, now to be more accurate, a Grand Duchy fleet. These are the very ships Imperial Admiral Peres ton Mesfelle-Tesse was chasing. But the other fifteen hundred are very strange. They give an incorrect response to the friend-foe system, and none of them can be identified by radar signature. We don't have any such ships in our database!"
"That could only be the Antagonists!" I said with confidence, trying to turn from camera to camera on my own and zoom in the image, but finding it far too blurry.
Bionica, having noticed my fruitless efforts, did everything necessary to get more clear images on my screen. Although, at such a huge distance, even after processing, very little could be made out. It was really just the approximate outlines of the very largest ships. One was abnormally rotund and droplet-shaped, and another looked just like a trimaran. I had definitely never seen such starships before.
"All the types of Imperial combat ships we know were developed after the Gold House left the Empire. It is no surprise that the Antagonists developed their own ships in that time," said Nicole ton Savoia, as if reading my thoughts. "Those over there must be battleships. Those are cruisers. And that giant with half-mile-long cannons doesn't seem to have an analogue in Imperial combat starship classifications."
"Commander, incoming call from that massive ship!" the communications officer cried out, circling the ship I happened to be discussing with my assistants.
"Georg, Florianna is already deep in a crystal sleep. But I am prepared to cover you if anything should happen. I myself would like to know who's come to pay you a visit." Hearing Miya's thoughts gave me confidence, and I told the man to put the call through.
Bah! I'd seen this face before. On the screen, I saw Demyen royl Amelius ton Lavaelle, the very same Green House Crown Prince whose fleet I had so successfully trapped in an uninhabited system and forced to surrender. I was reminded that Demyen had given his word as a Crown Prince that he would never again plot against me or lead combat ships against my state. Now, my opponent’s face was beaming in triumph:
"Crown Prince Georg royl Inoky ton Mesfelle, I've been waiting for so long for the chance to get revenge on you for that shameful defeat! And now finally, the tables have turned. The Unatari fleet is trapped in a pocket, and now I will be dictating the terms of your capitulation!"
"Are you sure about that, Demyen?" I asked, trying to put the most malignant possible expression on my face. "Look at the data from your locators. See all that starship debris? That means you're not the first person who’s come to Khell and suggest I surrender. In the last half day, I have fought in three battles here, wiping the floor with two Grand Duchy fleets, and even forcing a massive Alien supercarrier to retreat. But my losses have been mi
nimal. What's more, I have even expanded my ranks with captured ships."
"Crown Prince Georg, you managed to force the Queen to retreat? I didn't even think such a thing was possible! I profoundly admire your talent! But that changes nothing. Even without the Queen, I have easily enough forces to cope with the likes of you. As you can see, there is a huge Alien fleet under my command. But that isn't everything! Look at my ships, they are perfect! They incorporate advanced Alien technology, having surpassed what humanity managed to build on its own over our two-hundred-year split! Admit it, Crown Prince, you're surprised! Just imagine the surprise of Imperial Space Marshal Abram Kovel when his armada met with a different Grand Duchy fleet in Perimeter Sector Three."
The man gave a self-satisfied chuckle. I, meanwhile, tried to maintain a calm demeanor, although the news that the Grand Duchy had another fleet just as terrifying as this one was, I'll admit, extremely dispiriting. All my staff analysts, and I together with them, had seriously underestimated the forces of the Grand Duchy. Meanwhile, my Unatari State spies, who I mistakenly considered borderline omniscient, had slept right through an alliance between the Antagonists and the Aliens.
"I won't hide it, Demyen, the unified fleet of the Antagonists, Purple House and Aliens was just as much a surprise to me as the fact that their commander has disregarded his oaths."
My opponent cringed in pain. Despite the whole ruse with changing the name of the Green House, in his soul, the former Imperial Crown Prince still understood that he had broken his word. But Demyen quickly came to his senses:
"Don’t try and provoke me, Crown Prince Georg. I understand perfectly that you’re trying to drive me mad in hope that he will make some error. But no, that will not happen. The Unatari Fleet is completely trapped in this and the neighboring systems, and there is no way for you to escape this trap. Whether here in Khell or the Forepost-10 system, I'll destroy all your ships. So, Crown Prince Georg, I suggest you surrender. Even for such a celebrated fleet leader as yourself, there's no shame at all in admitting the fact that you're colossally behind in both military might and technology."
"Georg, it wouldn't be even remotely hard for me to kill this impudent fellow. As strange as it may seem, Demyen is not being covered right now by a single Truth Seeker."
"No, Miya! Don't do that! Demyen thinks he's in control of the situation. He's self-satisfied and hopeless, and also thirsts to prove to everyone that he can defeat me. Any other commander in his place would simply trap my fleet in the unpeopled Forepost-10 system, if I retreated there. But I need the enemy fleet to follow after me. Remember, we can go beyond to Forepost-9, but his fleet cannot..."
"As you say, Georg. And yes, I can affirm as a Truth Seeker that Demyen is sure to chase after your fleet."
Well, if the second strongest Truth Seeker was certain enough to guarantee my success, I could stop teasing my opponent:
"Demyen royl Amelius ton Lavaelle, I would gladly stay here and chat with you, but my calculations have shown me that your seven hundred Alien cloakers are just about to reach my fleet. So, as such, allow me to bow out! All ships, warp to the Forepost-10 beacon!"
Dark Paths
DUCHESS KATERINA ton Unatari threw open the doors loudly and flew into a small room where I was dozing off on a love seat after all the agitation of the last few hours. I had just an hour and a half to restore my strength while my fleet charged its drives at the Forepost-10 warp beacon, so when Astra had come to see me in nothing but a transparent nighty, I had put her to sleep as well. My favorite didn't argue, although she was in a playful mood today and was clearly expecting an utterly different reaction, given that she had painted her body with some kind of complex glow in the dark pattern.
The semi-transparent Rosss, guarding me in my sleep, tried to stop my first advisor, but she had just waved off the deadly Alpha Iseyek, saying:
"Let me through! Georg, there’s something you must see!"
My cousin turned on the lights without asking and, not paying any attention to Princess Astra grumbling in dismay and covering her eyes with her hands, activated the wall screen. My own eyes had yet to accustom to the bright light, so I didn't see the image immediately, but I did recognize the voice of Emperor August right away:
"... in these trying times, we all must rally together for the sake of victory! Hundreds of millions of citizens of our great Empire must join together in a burst of patriotism to prove to the traitors in the so-called Unatari State and their puppet masters..."
What?! I shot up, instantly forgetting my exhaustion. Katerina turned on the sound with a remote and gave commentary:
"Cousin, this is being cycled on absolutely every news channel! It's a twenty-minute speech in which the Emperor announces that Unatari State psionics made an attack on his Truth Seekers, killing and paralyzing several of them. According to him, your betrayal was in order to allow the huge Alien supercarrier, which Krista and her group very nearly destroyed to leave the system. And at the same time, they say the Unatari Fleet, under your leadership together with the ships of Grand Duchy traitors in the Nayal system made a vile attack on the Seventh Imperial Strike Fleet, when it was bravely fighting off the incoming hordes of Aliens..."
"What drivel is this?!" I asked, sincerely outraged. "My fleet was never even in Nayal, which is to say nothing about the other, utterly ridiculous accusations! And proving that is elementary! I have footage in the databanks on my starships. I have the emergency recording devices. I have warp beacon data. I have a huge number of witnesses, first and foremost the residents of the Khell system, who will all confirm that the Unatari Fleet never went to Nayal. At the end of the day, I can even use the abilities of my Truth Seekers!"
"Wake up, Georg! Who would ever doubt and check recordings, when the Emperor himself made an unambiguous accusation before his subjects! You and I were called traitors! Ten minutes ago, the Empire officially declared war on the Unatari State! With his declaration, August declared you and me, along with all the other Unatari Fleet officers, traitors and deprived us of all titles and medals! So, our explanation and broadcast won't even be watched in the Empire! And no one would be able to see it, even if they wanted. All the warp beacons on the border have already been put into unidirectional data blockade mode, I've checked. Imperial propaganda gets through, but our broadcasts are shut out! Damn, my standing has already fallen by seven points in just ten minutes!"
What? It was my cousin's last words that hooked me, having stood out from the stream of hysterical yelping. Of course, Katerina's standing was falling after such accusations from the Emperor himself. But why hadn't I gotten any messages about mine? I opened the internal interface and looked in detail at my information:
Georg royl Inoky ton Mesfelle, Crown Prince of the Empire, Ruler of the Unatari State, Swarm Five-Star-Admiral
Age: 49
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Class: Aristocrat/Mystic
Achievements: Elder Chameleon Female, Discovered Arites, Got through Alien Blockade, Researcher of the Unknown, Imperial Land Grabber, Ex-Fleet Commander for Sector Eight, Malingerer, Respected by the Swarm, Dekeye Champion of No Rules Fighting, Defender of Humanity, Master of the Hive, Favorite's Iseyek Mating Dance, Peacemaker, More Territory than the Emperor
Fame: +83
Standing: +24
Strange. Both my title as Prince and heir to the Empire were retained, along with all my achievements. And my standing hadn't fallen one bit, either, as far as I could tell... How? Why was Katerina's standing falling, but for the exact same "sins," mine was staying exactly the same? And also, how could a signal from the Empire even reach us here in the Forepost-10 system? The Grand Duchy was blocking broadcasts from its enemies, right? But what if...
Here, I was visited by a thought that made my heart seize in fear. What if the clip of the Emperor was a falsification, and my second cousin was trying to trick me?! What could Katerina hope to achieve by that? The answer was obvious: she wanted the Unatari St
ate to get tied up in a war with the Empire! Here, after all, it was enough to simply begin combat operations, and there would be no going back. The war would be very harsh, and last until one side achieved total victory. Why would my advisor want such a thing? My cousin couldn't have been working for the Antagonists, right?! And by the way... Katerina was once official speaker of the Green House and had taken part in every important negotiation. And if the first encounter between mankind and the Aliens took place in Green House space, Katerina would certainly have been there to take part! The Alien Queen couldn't have meant my advisor, when she'd referred to a person who had taken part in those long-ago negotiations, right?
I have no idea what conclusion I may have come to, but right before my eyes there came a packet of new information:
Global fame increase. Current value: +84
Global fame increase. Current value: +85
Global standing increase. Current value: +25
Standing change. Empire Military faction opinion of you has worsened.
Present Empire Military faction opinion of you: +65 (veneration)
That meant there was no complete information blockade, and messages really were getting through. My fame was growing, as was my global standing. The fame was clear — more and more people in the Empire knew who I was. The standing as well — aristocrats and the representatives of various factions, as a rule, mostly did not like stagnation and would come out in favor of any changes, hoping to use that to reinforce their position. But the Imperial Military was a different story. They saw me as a fearsome enemy they'd have to reckon with, and the worsening of relations was totally predictable. But where were the negative changes Katerina had experienced?