Chapter 9: The Final Day Begins
The last day should have been cold and miserable, rainy, or foggy. Anything but clear cool and beautiful. Mike awoke with Lisa already up. Lately she had been having trouble sleeping through the night. His steward had laid out a plain work uniform for him. He dressed in silence without the steward assisting him. He was glad for the silent and solitary time. A lot had happen in the last nine months. Not all of it good. But he had met his charter, and completed his mission. He had gotten every last mother’s child off Trena who wanted to leave. Lady Hawthorne’s census had come up with less than ten thousand people kingdom wide still refusing to leave the planet. Try as he might they were not going to leave. Lady Hawthorne’s girls had talked to many of these people and had discussed with them their decisions. They had made sure that none of them had any mental disease, that they understood the consequences of their staying behind. Some were old or others just didn’t want to leave Trena. Mike had wanted to force them to leave but the Queen’s Attorney had vetoed the idea he was trying to contain the law suites. He had insisted that every one of them sign a release that would hold the Queen and the evacuation command harmless should anything happen to them. These releases had been posted in the interstellar court. The court had validated them and had absolved the kingdom from any liability in their death. He had no idea how many others had escaped their census and were hiding out.
He walked out of the bedroom, and found most of the house empty of things. The Queen Mum’s residence had been cleared of the Wilson’s possessions, and packed up over the months, and now all the royal furniture and possessions had been packed and shipped to the transport that would take them all to Home. They were ready to leave.
Maggie had prepared a cold breakfast. As soon as her charges had eaten she and the rest of the palace staff would leave for their transport. They would be their personal staff on Home.
Everyone was subdued, even Abby. She sat on Mike’s lap as she ate breakfast. They had been slowly telling her what was going on. They like many parents, they had been concerned how they told their younger child they were going to leave the planet. That it was being destroyed. Mike and Lisa had been honest with the child. Up until the night before when her room had been packed up she hadn’t said much about it. Jill was at the academy making last minute preparations for the kids to be evacuated.
Later when his staff was together in the evacuation command center, the meeting room that served as his office he spoke to his team, “One more day. I know it’ll be tough. I am feeling all of your pain, I love Trena! It was a place that allowed me and Lisa to be together. To have our family,” He squeezed Abby gently she had accompanied her father, and looked to Lisa who had also accompanied him, “To have a second chance at love with a very beautiful woman; but more importantly to be with you all. It has been my most profound honor to let me serve you and your families. I hope what awaits us on Home will be as good. But we have to get through today. The Queen needs us to keep it together. We have three jobs today, the first is to close this office down, the second to make sure the kids at the academy have gotten safely off world, and then to witness the Queen’s abdication. I am going to go around the group.
“Larry?” Mike asked.
“We are ready to go. The abdication paperwork is ready, and the coronation papers for Jill are ready.” Larry Mercer answered.
“Lady Gray?” Wilson asked the sole remaining diplomat. The Thonian Ambassador had left with the Companions; they had been the last Thonians off the planet.
“We are ready to go.” The diplomat said, “All imperial personnel have been evacuated, my staff and I will witness the dissolution of parliament and the Queen’s abdication.”
“IRS?” Wilson asked,
“My hospital has been closed and aboard the Majestic, along with the Valiant. I go supralight in five hours.” the captain who replace Admiral Klond replied.
“Logistics?” Mike asked turned to David who said, “My team will be shut down in a couple of hours. We generated a lot of records and we want to make sure they get transported with us.”
“Fire?” Wilson asked.
“All firemen have been evaced. I have tried to protect as much fire equipment as I can; but it is anyone’s guess how safe they’ll be.” Janet answered, “I lift with you and the Queen after the abdication.”
“Police,” Mike turned to his old chief,
“All my cops are either evaced or on their way up. We are securing the academy landing site and the parliament site; but as soon as the kids are gone and the Queen is aboard we’ll be gone.” Lord James reported his wife and kids were waiting on the transport for him. He had the sacred duty of attending the last session of parliament.
“Everyone I will be the next to last person to get on the landing craft. The Queen will be the last one to step onto the landing craft to leave Trena. I don’t want to have to answer to her that I left one of you behind.”
They nodded understanding.
“General Qoum?” Mike asked.
“As soon as the Queen is safely aboard the transport and she gives the word, the mountains computers will switch on air defense system. That will turn the space defense system on hard. Anything not in low orbit will be fair target. Everyone has been told that if they approach the planetary surface they will be shot. This is in a hope to get some of the bigger stuff. We feel that that the automated defense systems will last maybe twelve hours before they either run out of ammo or become in op due to asteroids. This is the first time ever that an automated defense system has been left to run. I have planted sensors all over the place to monitor how well we did. We’ll use some the data when we build Home’s defense network.” Qoum said
“Mylea,” Mike asked.
“We’re as ready as we’ll ever be.” his XO replied, “I’ll have us packed up in a couple of hours. We’re almost there. I just want to make sure we don’t leave any records behind. I have a feeling we’ll have to defend our self in courts galaxy wide. This job isn’t done until we get to Home. I want your final reports within two weeks.
“Ladies, and gentlemen,” Mylea’s tone softened, “Thank you very much for your hard work. It has been an honor and privilege to serve with you. You have all done well. You have done a job to be proud of.”
“I concur,” Michael said, “Now if there’s nothing else let’s get this last day completed.”
“There is,” the Queen walked in.
“I want to thank you all for the work you have done on behalf of our people. I don’t think some of them know the sacrifices many of you have made.” She continued, “Thank you for your diligence, and your service. I may not see any of you again, or most of you again as we go our separate ways. I will always remember what you did. Especially, both you, Sir Mike and you Mylea. Mike wouldn’t have been able to pull this off without you.
“However there is one person who isn’t with us today who should be honored.” The Queen said, “After discussing this with General Qoum, and Princess Carroll. As one of my last acts as monarch, I am presenting the Order of Freedom to Jonesy, the Evacuation Command’s Chief Logistics Officer. As she is not with us today due to the sacrifice she made to make sure we had a future, I am asking that lieutenant Jones, of the Trena Militia to accept the order and medal on behalf of her late mother. Lieutenant Jones, please step forward.
“On behalf of a grateful nation, we honor you and the sacrifice your mother made in stopping the invasion fleet from the People’s Republic of the Stars.” The Queen spoke to the humbot, “Your mother’s sacrifice and the efforts she did to get my people to safety will go down in history as a noble, selfless effort.”
The Queen placed the white ribbon with a space black plate with the Trena star system embedded on it in sliver around the humbot’s neck.
“Furthermore,” The Queen said, “For the first time ever, in any service, of any star nation, I am bestowing the Medal of Honor on Alice Jones, in the service of the
crown.” The Queen put the blood red ribbon holding the Trena Medal of honor about the humbot’s neck. “Thank you for an extraordinary job. I know it isn’t much Alice, but your sacrifice was above and beyond what the rest of us suffered.”
“Thank you Majesty,” Alice said, she had not known that this was going to happen. When General Langtree asked her to attend the final staff meeting with him she had thought it was for something else. She had become his aid once she got to the maintenance group offices.
“Once again thank you all for your dedication and diligence,” the Queen finished.
“Dismissed people,” Michael said, “Your highness let get out of here and to the school.”
Every Last Mother's Child Page 242
