by Kal Spriggs
***
“Sir,” Ensign Miller said, his voice tight, “We're detecting three dreadnought-class vessels and over thirty cruisers, all of unknown design, along with another ten Liberator-class cruisers, several of them heavily modified.”
Lucius had just finished talking with Garret Penwaithe, so it took him a long moment to set his mind straight, “What?”
“Sir,” Forrest Perkins said, “We've a hail you need to answer... it is Admiral Collae.”
“Hello, Baron,” Admiral Collae said as Lucius answered the communication.
“Admiral,” Lucius nodded with narrowed eyes, “I see that you've made good use of the Chxor dreadnoughts you captured at Faraday.”
“Indeed,” Admiral Collae said. “I've no doubt your forces are scanning them as we speak. Let me assure you, my purpose here is entirely benign.”
“Oh?” Lucius asked.
“Indeed,” Admiral Collae said. “Halcyon holds little of value to me, now. The alien ships are non-functional and Admiral Mannetti has been neutralized. Thus, the planet has no value.”
“Not even their more contemporary ships?” Lucius asked as he read over the tactical analysis of Collae's ships. It was basic, but the dreadnoughts looked to have been stripped down to their hull and then modified from there.
“The base and ships are of some value... but I'm certain you'll be trying to get them as allies against the Chxor. Which is why I am here,” Admiral Collae's harsh voice showed some good cheer at the surprise in Lucius's eyes. “As you can see, I did benefit from our last alliance... even if you planned to betray me from the beginning.”
Lucius began to answer, “You planned to betray me from the beginning–”
“But I am not the one in possession of the Dreyfus Fleet,” Admiral Dreyfus said genially. “Which shows who planned what, I think.” He shrugged, “But I'm not here to argue semantics. I'm offering you my assistance in return for half of all the Chxor ships we capture.”
“Half?” Lucius arched an eyebrow.
“I'm certain you have assembled a ragtag alliance, Baron,” Admiral Collae said, “But I bring substantial firepower and unlike some others, I will find use for those ships other than as scrap, as you can see by my own fleet.”
Lucius made his decision in an instant. “Very well,” Lucius said. “I accept your offer. We depart in twenty-four hours.”
“Excellent,” Admiral Collae said. “I'll take up a parking orbit near Halcyon's moon so as to avoid any unnecessary conflict.” He cut the connection and Lucius sat back.
“Sir,” Captain Beeson said, “You can't be serious.”
Lucius looked up. “Why not?”
“He betrayed us before,” Ensign Perkins said. “Granted, I wasn't there, but I heard about it.”
“He is the enemy of the Chxor and the Balor,” Lucius said. “He brings a large number of ships... and he has every reason to go along with this.”
“What if he tries to seize Nova Roma?” Forrest asked.
“It's possible,” Lucius said. “The shipyards there would be a valuable prize for him. But the truth is... I would prefer Nova Roma even in the hands of a man like Admiral Collae over that of the Chxor.” He shrugged, “It is worth the risk.” He cocked an eyebrow at Daniel Beeson, “What can you tell me about his ships?”
“All three dreadnoughts have been converted into carriers,” Captain Beeson said. “I don't have any idea how many fighters he's crammed aboard those three ships, but... it's a significant number.”
Lucius nodded at that. “That's what I'd guessed looking at the emissions. I don't think anyone ever built a dedicated carrier that big before.” Admiral Mannetti's Harpy was the closest in size, and the Nova Roma built Helot-class carrier still massed less than a tenth of what a Chxor dreadnought did.
The Crusaders and the Patriot all had extensive fighter launch bays, but the huge ships also mounted massive weapons batteries. The Patriot mounted two full wings of fighters, even so... so Lucius wouldn't be surprised if Admiral Collae had managed something similar or even more aboard each of those huge dreadnoughts.
“The cruisers,” Captain Beeson said, “are a mix of custom hulls and retrofitted Chxor light cruisers. The custom hulls are built around the stripped out weapons from the dreadnoughts, each of them mounts one of the Chxor-built capital grade fusion beams with engines and power plants packed around it. They're more or less flying cannons.”
Lucius winced as he looked over some of the data. The radiation shielding on some of those ships was very minimal. The crews would likely be exposed to severe, possibly lethal, radiation levels every time they fired. Structurally, as well, he could see that the ships had no 'proper' hull. Instead they had heavy structural supports for the weapons and then prefabricated living quarters tacked onto the outside and armor plating over that.
“The modified Chxor cruisers?”
“That's a mixed bag, sir,” Ensign Perkins said. “I make out that a couple have had the firefly jamming systems and heavy defense screens removed... but we aren't certain what took their place. Certainly something that uses a lot of power, but we still aren't certain what, there's no external signs beyond the missing emitter arrays. A couple of the others, it looks like they've just tweaked the emitters, refitted the Chxor tech with more efficient human tech, maybe to make them more powerful, we're not sure.”
“Okay,” Lucius said. “I want you two to compare notes... and then go ahead and call him and see if he'll give you information on his ships capabilities. Then match what he tells you against your own estimates and see if he's telling the truth.” He sighed. “In the meantime, I've got some calls to make here on Halcyon... and I think I've got to give a speech. I hate speeches.”
Both men looked confused, “Sir?”
Lucius shook his head, “Political stuff. I should have brought Minister Bueller, she'd be better at this, I think.” He took a deep breath, “Right, get to it.”
***
Lucius took a deep breath as he stepped on the podium next to Harris and Jessica Penwaithe. The two politicians both had easy smiles on their faces, yet Lucius wondered at what went on behind their expressions.
Harris felt like a politician, through and through, which Lucius could tolerate. The information that Garret had passed along hadn't surprised Lucius... what had was how it had come to him. Jessica Penwaithe had struck him as something of an idealist. That worried him, in some ways. If he didn't quite match up to what she wanted, she could easily become an enemy... yet Lucius wasn't about to be directed by the woman's ideals. He already had enough responsibilities on his shoulders.
He would do what he knew was right... and if that happened to match up with what other people wanted, so much the better, he supposed.
The crowd was large for New Telluride, or so he had been told. It still made him feel odd to stand in front of a crowd of civilians. Addressing politicians was one thing, addressing normal people felt bizarre. He had spent so much time in uniform that he wasn't certain he understood normal people any more. Still, he had come to address the cameras as much as the people... and to send a message to Harris Penwaithe, his wife, and every other political animal on the planet.
“Thank you for having me here today,” Lucius said. He looked around at the crowd and he could sense an element of uncertainty. He didn't speak like a politician and they weren't quite certain what to make of him.
“I understand that your world is in something of a tumultuous state after Admiral Mannetti, Spencer Penwaithe, and Admiral Collae have all seized and lost power,” Lucius said. “I'm not here to talk about politics or anything like that,” he said. “I will say that your political leaders offered the world for annexation... but I won't hold your people to that. I didn't come here to be a conqueror, I came because people needed help and I saw an opportunity to remove a petty tyrant who also happened to be my sworn enemy.”
He felt a bit of pleasure in the knowledge that Admiral Mannetti was safely on her way to Far
aday and where his people would transfer her to a military prison, but he returned his mind to the matter at hand. “If the day comes that your people wish to join the United Colonies, then we will welcome you as brothers and sisters, as full partners. But, again, that is not my purpose here.”
“I came to help,” he said. “And now I go to help others.” He looked around at the crowd and saw mostly confusion. They didn't know what was being asked of them. Most of them, he would guess, were here to provide visual support for the politicians they supported. Some, he would wager, were even paid to attend.
“Nova Roma, my homeworld, has been under Chxor occupation for two years now. Billions of men, women, and children, under an alien yoke for years, under a regime which values human life even less than Admiral Mannetti valued yours,” Lucius said. “The Chxor have over three thousand vessels, over seven hundred of them dreadnoughts, in the Nova Roma star system. I'm going there with all the ships I brought... and little else. The United Colonies Fleet is recovering from a coup attempt and our forces are not fit to fight in that battle... so I've left them behind. Captain Tommy King has graciously offered to accompany me, as have the War Dogs.” Out of the corner of his eye, Lucius saw Harris Penwaithe start at that, clearly he had expected the mercenaries to remain to defend his homeworld.
He saw shock on the faces of the crowd as even the least aware of them did the math. They had thought his fleet a powerful force to reckon with, yet compared to what he had described, it was a tiny thing. “We will leave tonight, because we had already prepared for the attack, men and women and our other allies have gone in, expecting to be supported when they strike for freedom. I will not abandon them. I will stand by the people of Nova Roma as I have stood by the people of Halcyon... because it is the right thing to do.”
He gave the crowd a last nod, “I know that Halcyon has a powerful fleet of their own, built with sweat and no little amount of blood. If your people would allow it, I ask that your fleet join with mine. Together I feel that we can defeat the Chxor and free another world.” Lucius shrugged, “Yet if you decide not to support me, I will still go, because it is the right thing to do.”
He gave them a final nod, “Thank you for your time.” He turned away from the podium. Harris Penwaithe's face was frozen, a mask of a smile cast over an expression of panic. Jessica Penwaithe's expression was unreadable. He gave them both nods and then stepped down from the platform and his escort formed around him as he left the political rally behind.
He thought he heard them start to chant something as he climbed into his groundcar, but his mind had already focused on other things.
***
“That bastard,” Harris snarled. “He'll leave us defenseless! Admiral Collae is setting in orbit. He's no doubt told my father... who knows what that bastard will do. Probably have a fleet pounce on us as soon as the War Dogs break orbit.”
“It's not that bad,” Jessica said calmly. “We've got a couple of options, actually.”
Her husband spun on her, “Not that bad? You do know what my father will do to both of us, don't you? In case you didn't see the autopsy report, President Monaghan didn't die gently or in his sleep.” While she knew he meant the comment to shock her, if anything he had understated the case. What Spencer Penwaithe had done to the former President Monaghan did not make for pleasant reading.
“I know,” Jessica said, “But we've a couple options... and I think Admiral Collae has other concerns on his mind. Garret told me he's going with the Baron to attack the Chxor at Nova Roma for a share of captured ships.”
“Hah,” Harris said, “That's a fool’s errand. A few dozen ships against several thousand? Even I know how absurd it is, assuming that he's not talking up their numbers to make things seem more desperate.” Harris frowned, “I need to talk to Garret, find out how set Commodore Pierce is on this suicide mission.”
“Pretty determined,” Jessica said with a neutral tone, “from what I understand, he did give the Baron his word that they would support his attack after he helped them here.”
Harris waved a hand, “Commodore Pierce is a mercenary. I'll appeal to his bottom line. We've all of Admiral Mannetti's assets to draw on, now, after all.”
“We do?” Jessica asked. This was the first she had heard of that.
“Well,” Harris shrugged, “I had some of my people lock down her accounts first thing. We've got account numbers and access codes from ansible traffic and we've already transferred a lot of her funds into government accounts.”
By government accounts, she could reasonably assume he meant his accounts. “That's good to know, but I'm not certain we can convince Commodore Pierce to stay even if we offer him quite a bit of money.” She kept her tone as neutral as possible.
“Well, we have to, because our entire military wants to go off on Lucius's grand crusade,” Harris said bitterly. “If they go, we'll be left in a worse position than we were before we kicked out Nova Corp. We'll have nothing to defend ourselves.”
“What about the United Colonies offer?” Jessica said reasonably.
“You can't be serious,” he said. “Baron Giovanni as much as said that the rest of his fleet is worthless.” His dismissive tone suggested he hadn’t even considered the option.
“Our enemies don't know that for certain,” Jessica said. “For that matter, he said they wouldn't be fit for an attack, they can probably manage a defense quite handily.”
Harris shrugged at that, yet he didn't argue. “What else, you said we had a couple of options.” She could tell that the thought of joining with the United Colonies made him despair almost as much as the idea of falling into his father's hands.
“Our other option is to invite your father in,” she said reasonably.
“What?!” Harris demanded. “Even forgetting what he would do to us... he would be just as bad for Halcyon as Admiral Mannetti in the long term. He cares nothing for our people, it is all about maneuvers and political face, nothing else matters to him.”
“I know,” she nodded. “Yet how would it look for him if we invite him back? If we formally ask for his protection, even after the United Colonies offered us theirs?”
Harris nodded, but his face was grim, “It would be quite the play for him. He might, almost, forgive us for backing President Monaghan from the beginning.” He shook his head, “He would make damned certain that Halcyon was well defended, I'll admit. He'd look the fool if anyone hit it after that... but it wouldn't be what is best for our world.”
“What is best for our world?” Jessica asked.
He looked at her in surprise, “Freedom for our people. Freedom to live our lives without fear... for our children to grow up with opportunities that we were denied.” He sighed, “Of our two 'options' I'll admit that the United Colonies offers that, at least. Even if it may cost something more than I like in the terms of our say in things.”
“What do you mean?” Jessica asked. She leaned forward, actually interested to finally hear his reasoning. She knew that he feared a loss of power in joining the United Colonies... but she wasn't certain whether that was entirely his own ambition or something a little less self-serving.
“They're expanding, soon,” he said. “They'll have billions of citizens, while Halcyon's population isn't going to surge. We'll quickly find ourselves outnumbered, and by people with completely different morality and goals like those barbarians on Tehran, for instance.”
“Okay,” Jessica said. “So we get in there and get active, establish some political power and ride that wave. You know we're capable of that if we work together.”
He did a double take and then he smiled at her, “You know, you're right. I've been approaching this from a defensive position, but if we were more aggressive...” he trailed off and his dark eyes sparkled for a moment, “You know, sometimes I forget how much I love you.”
“Well,” Jessica smiled a bit, “We can't have that, now can we?”
***
Lucius froze as he stepped
into his quarters and found Kandergain awaited him.
“I was wondering if you would show up sooner or later,” he said. He swallowed, “I've... lost our daughter.” His voice broke as he said that and he felt tears well up in his eyes. How could she forgive him for this?
She stepped forward and embraced him and for just a moment, he felt as if everything would be alright. “I know,” she said. “And I know she is alive and well, because I also know who took her.”
“Who?” Lucius demanded.
“I can't tell you,” Kandergain said and stepped back, “because you can't act on the information.”
Lucius frowned at that. He thought through the possibilities. That meant either it was someone who was protected or it was someone he couldn't reach. The former included diplomats and heads of state, men and women who had plenty of reasons to organize a kidnapping like this. The latter included only a handful, the Shadow Lords and those who worked for them. “Tell me.”
“I won't,” Kandergain said. “Because you can't do anything about it. Trust me.”
Lucius nodded, but it left a bitter taste in his mouth. “Fine.” He grimaced, “Did you know about Admiral Dreyfus and his conspiracy?” He was half afraid that she would admit that she had known all along... and that the deaths of the men and women under his command could have been avoided.
She shook her head, “I've heard a bit of the news over the past week, but I still don't even know what happened. I know they're calling it the Dreyfus Coup, but your news services still don't have much distribution outside of Faraday.”
Lucius grimaced at that. He was certain that most other news services would merely note that some local unrest had made the system dangerous. “Admiral Dreyfus apparently has been playing a long game. He told me that his wife was a telepath...” he saw her nod at that, “and that she showed him some of John Mira's visions. He told me that in nine out of ten of those visions we lose.”
Kandergain winced at that. “So, what, he thought he could do better?”
