Empire (Empire, Book One)

by Logan Rutherford

  The baby started to cry, although Mia was sure it wasn’t for the same reasons. It was more of a “my diaper is full of urine and I’m hungry” cry.

  “Okay.” Mia pulled the baby from her chest, smiling. “Let’s get you good as new.”

  The baby sat on Mia’s lap, looking around, smiling at everyone. She was much happier now that she had a clean diaper and a full stomach.

  “What’s her name?” Sam asked, leaning over.

  Mia shook her head. “I don’t know,” she said. “I’ve known her just about as long as I’ve known you.”

  Sam raised his eyebrows and smiled. “Really? You’re a real Saint Teresa, aren’t you?”

  “Just trying to do the right thing.”

  “Well, you’ve got to come up with a name,” Sam said, leaning back in his seat. “Can’t keep calling her ‘the baby’.”

  “I know, I’ve been thinking of a few but can’t decide on one.” In truth, Mia wasn’t sure she wanted to even name her. If she did, that’d be it. There’s no way she’d be able to hand the baby over to an orphanage after that. “I’m waiting to see if I can find any of her family first,” she said, trying to convince herself that was true.

  “Good luck with that. That’ll be nigh impossible, especially if you don’t even know her name,” Sam said.

  His intentions were good, but Mia still shot him a look. “Not helpful.” Before she could say anything else, her watch vibrated. She almost screamed and jumped up. Her watch was a classic. All mechanical. It was given to her by her father around the same time her sister died. For the most part, it seemed like an ordinary watch. Old school. No gadgets, no computers, nothing but a bunch of gears.

  So why was it vibrating?

  She looked down at the face of the watch, and a small hologram projected off the screen reading:

  Incoming call from Joshua Ivan.

  Chapter Thirty

  “Holy shit is that the Joshua Ivan?” Sam asked.

  Mia was stunned. She didn’t know what to do. It’s felt like forever since she’d talked to him. She wasn’t sure how to answer so, on a hunch, she pressed the only button on the watch, the dial on the side she used to set the time.

  The call connected and her father’s face projected inside the circular hologram that floated a few inches above the watch.

  “Dad!” she said, her heart overwhelmed with joy and guilt. It’d been so long since she’d seen his face. “Dad, where are you? Are you safe?”

  “Mia…going…you?” the feed was cutting in and out.

  “Dad? Dad, I can’t hear you. It’s cutting out!” her voice got louder and louder. She was desperate to talk to him. To let him know that she was going to be okay. She was safe.

  The baby leaned back, trying to see what was going on inches behind her head. She smiled at the hologram and Mia watched as his eyebrows furrowed, confused.

  “Is…baby?”

  “No, it’s not my baby, Dad. Where are you? Are you safe? Everything here’s destroyed.”

  “…love…you.”

  “I love y—”

  Call failed.

  “Dammit!” Mia shouted, slamming her hand down on the bench next to her. Her mind raced. At least he was safe. He looked to be unharmed, too. The hologram wasn’t big enough to see where he was at but she guessed he was still on the Empire. She couldn’t believe that they’d actually talked to each other. She’d spent the past few years resenting him and the past two, in particular, hating him. Or so she’d thought.

  She looked down at her watch. At first she’d hated the gift. He’d missed Beth’s funeral and that was how he wanted to make up for it. It was as if he was saying, “Sorry about your sister, sorry I missed the funeral, here’s a watch.”

  Eventually though, she got it. Her father wasn’t the best at relationships—wasn’t the best at showing his feelings. The watch was his way of doing just that, and now she knew it was also for keeping in touch with her, she understood it even more. Despite not speaking for two years, they were always just a button press away and she didn’t even know it.

  She looked down at the little girl in her lap. She grinned up at Mia, showing her four teeth. “Beth. Your name will be Beth.”

  Mia watched Beth for a few moments, before noticing that Sam was fidgeting in her seat, casting sideways glances. In fact, most of the people in the truck were throwing sideways glances her way.

  “What is it?” she asked him.

  “Okay, so was that the Joshua Ivan? The one who single-handedly thwarted the Mortuks during the last war? That Joshua Ivan? Is that a yes? I can’t tell. Are you saying yes with your eyes? Oh my gosh, you are,” Sam said, his questions coming out at sub-light speed.

  Mia smiled. She was proud to be an Ivan—she hadn’t felt that in a long time. “Calm down, Samuel. Take a breath. First of all, it wasn’t single-handedly. President Key was there too.”

  “You’re not helping the whole ‘calm down’ thing saying things like that,” Sam said, a smile stretching from ear to ear.

  “Yes that was him,” she said, moving on. “My name is Mia Ivan. What’s going on with the quantum network? I gotta call him back.”

  “The Mortuks must be doing something to interfere. There’s an ultra-high-powered military-grade quantum network node at the base we’re going to. It’s on a completely different grid than the civilian quantum network. It should allow you to talk to you dad like you’re standing right next to him,” he said with a satisfied smile.

  Mia let out a relieved sigh.

  The truck slammed to a halt. Mia gripped the bench next to her to keep from falling over. “Are we there already?”

  Sam shook his head, letting out a nervous breath. “Nope. Guess we’ve got someone else to pick up.”

  “We’ve got incoming!” Sergeant West yelled.

  Sam’s face turned a ghostly white and Mia’s heart sank. She put Beth back in her car seat and buckled up, despite the girl’s protests.

  “Stay here,” Sam said as the soldiers began to file out.

  “Give me a gun,” Mia said, reaching her hand out.

  Sam hesitated.

  “You know who I am. You know I have military experience. I need to defend Beth.”

  Sam let out a disapproving moan as he reached into his holster and pulled out his sidearm. “Only use it if you have to.”

  “Of course,” Mia said.

  Sam scrambled out of the back of the truck. Mia could hear the terrifying whistling of the approaching Mortuks in the distance. The whistling grew louder until it became a roar.

  The Mortuks arrived.

  After the roars of the approaching Mortuk fighters and the stomping and yelling of soldiers setting up a perimeter, the next sound Mia heard was that of the truck in the front convoy exploding.

  People screamed as they clambered over one another to get out of the truck.

  “Stay in the vehicles!” the soldiers screamed over the sound of their guns firing.

  Fat chance. Mia grabbed a bottle of the pillbies and shoved it in her pocket. Next to the pallet of supplies sat a box cutter. Mia gave one last look at the back of the truck. People were climbing over each other, fighting with the soldiers to let them out.

  She picked up the box cutter. She pushed it open and sliced through the canvas wall. She stuck her hands through the cut and ripped the hole wide open. “Exit here!” she yelled over her shoulder. She stuck the knife in her pocket, picked up Beth’s car seat and jumped out of the truck.

  Her feet hit the asphalt, the smell of burning gasoline and rubber assaulting her nose. Beth screamed as the Mortuk fighters began another pass. Mia ran towards the tree line, gripping Sam’s pistol tight in her hand.

  Something slammed into the ground behind her, sending a shockwave through the road. Mia fell forward, all her focus on keeping Beth upright and safe. She looked behind her and pulled herself off the ground. A needle ship skewered the truck, its front spire jutting through the makeshift door she’d used to esc
ape. Soldiers and the few survivors fled for the trees as the ship hissed open and the Mortuks filed out.

  “Come on, run!” Sam said as he hooked his arms under Mia’s and pulled her up.

  Mia’s adrenaline kicked in and they sprinted for the trees.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Hayden couldn’t keep his leg from shaking up and down.

  “Then I flew back and took out the Mortuks that were coming right up on our tail!” Vick explained to Millie, the excitement in his voice annoying Hayden.

  “I’m glad you were able to take some of those bastards out. Let them know we won’t go down without a fight,” Millie said.

  “We aren’t going down at all,” Hayden snapped, looking up at the two of them from his seat in the L-Cadet lounge.

  The two of them looked at each other before turning back to Hayden. “You know what we meant,” Millie said, letting her eyes roll slightly.

  Hayden shook his head and leaned back in his seat. “Whatever.” He could almost feel his nerves fraying. His adrenaline had long since stopped pumping and he was in the midst of crashing down from the high of his first battle.

  “What were things like on the bridge?” Vick asked.

  Hayden stood and walked over to the counter. He pulled a cup from the dispenser and filled it with water

  “Hectic,” Millie answered. “It was…I don’t know…sad, I guess. Seeing the captain of the Hayes go down with her ship like that.”

  “Any idea what went wrong with all of their vessels?” Hayden asked as he took a sip of water. He could almost see the destruction of ships he was supposed to protect in the ripples of the water.

  “No idea. It wasn’t just the Hayes either, was it?”

  Hayden set his cup down and crossed his arms. “What do you mean?”

  Millie walked over from the couches to the counter and leaned against it. “All the ships that were out there shut down at once. You didn’t notice that?”

  Hayden shook his head.

  “We were a little preoccupied,” Vick said as he walked next to Millie.

  “All the warships, fighters, escape vessels—everything—all went out at once. It’s like somebody tripped over the cosmic power cord and didn’t get it plugged back in in time,” Millie explained.

  “Everyone except for us,” Hayden said.

  Millie nodded. “Everyone except for us.”

  The door flew open and the red-haired L-Cadet from the bridge came running in.

  “Hayden,” she said, relief washing over when she finally saw him.

  “Yes?” he asked. He searched his memory for her name. Lily Norwalk, if he remembered correctly.

  “I’ve been pinging your tablet and searching all over for you. Captain Ivan wants to speak with you immediately. He’s in the meeting room next to his quarters.”

  Hayden felt his adrenaline begin to pump again. “Okay. I’ll be right there.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Ivan stood in the meeting room. The long table stretched almost from the door to the back wall, with three chairs on each side and two on the ends. The room was bare, the cold metal walls empty except for a couple of screens that showed information when necessary. Ivan smiled as he thought about how usually, at this point in the simulations, he would’ve called in a few of the cadets for a meeting. At that time, a surprise attack would happen and everyone would have to get from the meeting room to their stations in less than two minutes. In some of the bunk rooms, though, the alarm wouldn’t go off. So not only would the cadets have to thwart the surprise “alien” attack, but they’d also have to do so with less than their usual crew.

  In reality, however, the alien threat was real this time. There wasn’t much they could do while the Empire was traveling at faster than light speed but, when they exited their FTL jump, there was no telling what their surprise could be.

  The door opened and Ivan’s thoughts left him. He watched the door as his XO, Ben Tillows, entered.

  “You called for me, sir?” Ben asked. Ivan saw right through his attempts to act as if nothing was wrong. His hands shook, edging closer and closer to the pockets of his uniform, begging to be hidden behind the fabric. His voice was quiet and quivering and he made no attempt at eye contact.

  “Yes, I did call for you,” Ivan said with a smile. He crossed his hands behind his back. “Now get out.”

  Ben finally looked at him, confused. “I’m sorry, sir?”

  “You heard me, cadet. I said get out. You’re relieved of your duties as XO.”

  “Captain Ivan, sir, please don’t do this,” Ben said, stepping forward, finally showing some hint at a backbone.

  Ivan scoffed and shook his head. “Where were you during the battle? Where were you while your men were out there being slaughtered?”

  “Hayden Keys did the exact same thing while I was out there the first time we saw the Mortuks. He stayed on the bridge while twelve men died,” Ben said, not answering the question. His cheeks flushed red and he jammed his index finger into the table to illustrate his point.

  “Hayden Keys was on the bridge saving hundreds of lives. While I was incapacitated, he stepped up. Where were you, should I have become unable to perform my duties as captain of this vessel and her crew?”

  “I was stuck, sir,” Ben said, the words shooting out just a little too fast.

  “Stuck?” Ivan said, a small laugh escaping his lips. “You mind telling me where you were stuck, cadet?”

  Ben searched the corner of the room as if the perfect excuse were etched on the metal walls and all he need do to find it was look hard enough. “In an elevator. I was on my way to the bridge when the attack began and the elevator I was in must’ve been knocked out.”

  “Mhmm,” Ivan muttered. “Angelica?”

  “Yes?” the shipwide AI answered.

  “In the past two hours, were there any elevator malfunctions? If so, you need to send a couple of WorkerBots to fix them.” Ivan’s words came out sly. He wanted this over fast, but if Ben was going to try and play him, Ivan was going to play back.

  “Yes sir, there seemed to be a malfunction on elevator A58,” Angelica answered.

  Ivan sat up a little straighter.

  “Yeah, that’s the one I was on,” Ben said.

  Ivan gritted his teeth. Son of a bitch. Maybe the bastard was telling the truth. Ivan felt embarrassment creeping up on him but he swallowed it down. It didn’t matter. He knew Ben was lying. Ivan had dealt with enough kids like him in the past two years to know when an excuse was legitimate or not. But this time Ben had coincidence on his side.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Ivan said finally. “You weren’t there when I needed you. You’ve been relieved of your duties as XO.”

  “But you can’t do that! You have no basis for your claims!” Ben shouted.

  Ivan slammed his fist on the table. “Look around you! You think any of this is by the book? You think any of this is normal? You think I need a reason to demote you? Because I sure as hell don’t. You’re still a cadet, I’m your superior officer. If I told you to throw yourself out the hangar doors and into space, the only words I better hear out of your mouth are ‘yes’ and ‘sir’. Are we clear?”

  Ben didn’t respond. He clenched his fists, fuming. He was about to open his mouth to respond when the door behind him opened.

  Hayden Keys walked in.

  Dammit.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Hayden wasn’t sure what to expect but he guessed it made sense that if the CO had summoned him, his XO would be there as well.

  But then he looked back and forth between Ivan and Ben and had no idea what he’d just walked into. He’d seen that look on Ben’s face before. The feral, backed into a corner, do anything to get out, watch your back look.

  “Don’t tell me you’re putting him back in command,” Ben said.

  Ivan didn’t say a word. “You’re dismissed, cadet.”

  Hayden could hear the slight hint of nervousness in his voic
e. He smirked as he realized Ivan was finding out first-hand just what a loose cannon Ben was. He saw how his father ran his presidential campaign—it shouldn’t have come as any surprise to Ivan that the Tillows were crazy.

  “When we get to Earth, my father will hear about this. He’s going to bring hell down on you,” Ben said.

  He turned to walk out of the room but Hayden stepped to the side, bumping into Ben.

  “My father will hear about this too, Captain.” His eyes never left Bens’. “And as the President, I think he has final say regarding who rains down what on whom.”

  Hayden was shocked Ben didn’t deck him then and there, but instead he just stormed out of the room. Hayden looked up at Ivan, the two of them smiling at each other for the first time.

  But as quickly as the moment had come, it passed, and their expressions turned back to stone. “You wanted to see me, Captain?”

  “Yes,” Ivan said, taking a seat.

  Hayden didn’t sit. He crossed his hands behind his back and listened.

  “I was told you were the one who came up with the idea to use real bullets on the Mortuks instead of lasers. Is that correct?”

  “Yes, sir,” Hayden said, fighting back the urge to smile. Ivan was having to acknowledge Hayden’s accomplishments and that made him the happiest he’d been in a long time.

  “I don’t like you much,” Ivan said.

  “That’s blunt, sir.”

  “Yes, it is,” Ivan said with a smirk. “It’s also the truth. I don’t like you, or your father. In my opinion, the only halfway decent person in your family is your mother. Unfortunately for me, like your father, you’re the best option to be my right-hand man.”

  Hayden’s heart skipped a beat. Not at the fact that he was about to be offered the position of XO, but because Ivan let him in on a tidbit of his father’s military past.

  “The way you took control the first time we encountered the Mortuks, I should’ve left you as XO then and there. I let my personal feelings cloud my judgment and, after seeing what you did during the Comoran attack, I’d be foolish not to reinstate you as XO. Had I done so from the beginning, we might’ve been able to retrofit more of our laser weapons to fire the ammunition they originally did.” Ivan stood from his seat and walked around the table in front of Hayden. “What do you say we put our personal differences aside and figure out what the hell’s going on? Once we do—it might do more harm than not—but I’ll put a good word in for you. You can probably already get whatever assignment you want but it’s the best I can do.”