Harris said, “I just don’t want to see this thing come crashing down on anyone else. We created this problem and we should be the ones responsible for the consequences of what we did.”
Bannis nodded. “That attitude is one of the reasons I’m involved. The other, the bigger of the reasons, is that our world is being threatened again by the Earthers. And I won’t sit idly by while that happens. So you two go out and do what you gotta do, knowing that I’m here to support you.”
Tawn replied, “You’re a man of honor, Mr. Morgan. This world is lucky to have you.”
“So what’s our next move?” Bannis asked.
“Tawn and I will head back to Fireburg. You keep building those freighters. Trish and Gandy will continue to work on refurbing ships. You said you could get us a shuttle to use instead of the Bangor? I’d rather not drag Gandy away from what he’s doing.”
Bannis nodded. “Should be here in the next twenty minutes.”
The shuttle arrived and a jump was made to Midelon where the Bangor was parked. Tawn, Harris, and Farker continued on to Eden in the borrowed shuttle. Upon arrival, five New Earth destroyers sat in orbit alongside two Domicile cruisers.
Harris shook his head as the shuttle slid down through the atmosphere. “Can’t say I like the looks of that.”
Tawn replied, “You have to wonder what information the Earthers are giving to our forces. You think they’ll give us up and reveal the fact that they lost out to a single small pirate ship? Doesn’t seem like something they would want to talk about.”
“Maybe that’s why we were allowed in here without so much as a hail.”
The shuttle parked in the docking bay. Tawn and Harris made their way to the colonel’s office.
Robert Thomas waved. “Come in. Sit down.”
“Didn’t quite go as we’d planned,” Harris said.
The colonel sat back in his chair, tapping his fingertips together. We accomplished our goal of keeping that ore out of the hands of the Earthers. As an added bonus, with all the ships up in orbit, we can move about freely. You might have passed by our first freighter loaded with titanium plates heading for home. We should be making that run once a day from here on.”
“How goes our efforts with the pacies?” asked Tawn.
“They look to be right on the edge. I have a meeting scheduled with them in about an hour. Water will be running out in two days. Their conservation efforts have failed and we’re gaining support among them for a move to Jebwa.”
Harris said, “Any way we can convince a delegation to go to Jebwa for a look?”
“We’ve been pushing for that, but they’ve had no interest. If they’re getting as desperate as they should be, maybe this time we can convince them to go. Mr. Romero has made every effort to make that colony into the Eden they desire. They can move right in and be self sustaining within three to four months. Here, without water, their crops will be dying off at a rapid pace.”
Tawn and Harris, with Farker at their heels, followed the colonel to his meeting at the colony of Dove.
Three pacifists had been selected to speak with Robert Thomas. To them he was not a colonel, as they didn’t recognize military ranks. They were seated at a table when the team arrived.
The assigned spokesman gestured toward three beanbag style chairs. “Please be seated.”
The colonel sat and then said, “We have word that your water situation has become dire. My information says you may only be days away from having used up your reserves. Our offer at Jebwa remains available. And as I’ve mentioned each time before, should any of you want to visit the colony we have prepared, we would be more than happy to take you there. Our teams have even begun preparing the surrounding fields for planting.”
“No doubt your offer is generous, Mr. Thomas. And we do appreciate that you have gone through this effort, but we don’t believe it has been done on our behalf. You want control of this planet and its titanium resources. It’s war material, and we feel an obligation to prevent it from being used.”
The colonel leaned forward. “That is precisely why you need to accept our offer. We only wish to keep the titanium out of the hands of the New Earthers. They will use it to build warships. On Domicile, our politicians are retiring ships, not building more. Each of us has the same goal in mind. We want to prevent war.”
The pacifist seated in the center of the three, scowled. “Your position lacks a certain integrity, Mr. Thomas. In the heavens above we have both Domicile and New Earth warships. Each was brought here by the actions of your people. We are fully aware of the rumors that your colony is behind the theft of the Rumford mines’ freighter. How can we trust someone who permits or condones such criminal actions?”
Harris said, “The colonists at Fireburg didn’t take that ore, that was me. The cargo was destroyed before it could be used by the Earthers to build more ships.”
The pacifist asked, “And were any of the crew harmed?”
Harris was quiet for several seconds. “We tried to get them to surrender. They refused. When their warships arrived, we had no choice.”
“So you killed them?”
Harris growled. “The taking of their lives was done so that many thousands of others could be saved. Maybe even your own.”
The pacifist slowly shook his head. “Again, your violent actions go against everything we stand for.”
Harris nodded. “They do, but at least we’re honest about our intentions and actions. You know right where we stand and what motivates us. The Earthers offer nothing but lies and deceit. We know they have made repeated offers to sell you water for influence over your votes. You haven’t accepted those offers because of your principles. We’re of the opinion that was a smart move.
“However, your water is running out and you will have to make a decision as to which side to support. We offer you a complete colony where your self-governance remains intact. It’s a fertile planet where agricultural resources abound. As the primary colony, you will still make the rules and laws. You will be in full control.
“And I believe there is one aspect of Jebwa that you and your people are overlooking. You can go outside. You can walk from building to building in the open, with only your robes and sandals. You can stand out in the natural rain and let it wash over you. You can bathe in the streams and rivers as the waters there are completely unpolluted by industry. It’s a planet awaiting its symbiotic hosts.”
Tawn looked directly at Harris. “Where’d that come from? I’m kind of wanting to move there myself.”
The talk went on for most of an hour before the pacifists excused themselves for a private discussion, something that was out of character from their prior actions. Fifteen minutes later they returned.
“Mr. Thomas, we would like to accept your offer for a tour and inspection of the Jebwa colony. This in no way constitutes any agreement between us.”
The colonel smiled. “Excellent. We can leave whenever you like.”
“We are ready now.”
Colonel Robert Thomas, along with Tawn, Harris, and the three pacifists, boarded a shuttle. A run up through the atmosphere was followed by a jump to Jebwa and a descent down to land on a concrete tarmac beside a spaceport building. A driver was sent out with a wheeled vehicle to transport the group into town.
The colonel asked the transport driver to stop atop a hill on the edge of the Haven colony. “There it is, Mr. Marken. We call it Haven. You can call it what you want. You have housing, schools, shops, a hospital, and even a sports complex, which I know you have no interest in, but it’s there for whatever use you would want.”
Elias Marken, the spokesman for the pacifists replied, “I do like the lush green landscape.”
The colonel nodded. “All the land in this region is arable. Good quality soil. Water is plentiful, as you can see from the river running through town. You have a ready-made colony here, Mr. Marken. The current build will support thirty thousand colonists, so it leaves you with room to grow.”
“Much will have to be changed to align our symbiotic form of living with that of the surrounding land.”
“I’m sure you’ll have changes you will want to undertake, if only to make it your own. We’ve taken care to put in the utilities and other systems so they are sustainable and as environmentally friendly as possible. Driver, please go ahead and take us to the government building.”
As the transport began to move, the colonel continued: “You can see this whole valley is organized into farms. We’ve taken it upon ourselves to prepare the fields for planting. Your growing season here is almost year round. The lands on the southern end open into wide pastures for your ranches if you choose to have them. And we’d be willing to provide you with starter herds of virtually any animals you might want.”
“Seems you’ve thought of almost everything. This colony has to have been expensive to construct and outfit. Who has been bankrolling your operations?”
The colonel replied: “That would be private citizens who are concerned about the titanium falling into the hands of the Earthers, Mr. Marken. We feel our efforts here are worth every credit if it prevents the Great War from returning. With you and your people being about peace, I would think you would be eager to assist in any way you could.”
“Ideally the titanium would be left in the ground.”
“That would be ideal for both of us, Mr. Marken. Domicile doesn’t need titanium. We can build all the ships we want. If we leave the titanium in the ground on Eden, the Earthers will retrieve it and once again build ships and wage war. It’s what they do. It’s who they are.”
The tour of the town and its facilities and accommodations lasted for most of the day. The pacifists seemed impressed and were often stepping aside for quiet discussion. After returning to Eden, the two groups went their separate ways.
Harris plopped himself down in a familiar chair in front of the colonel’s desk. “You think they’ll move?”
The colonel shrugged. “Hard to say. I was encouraged by all the private discussions they were having. When the three of them stopped in the street, tilting their faces up to feel the Jebwa sun shining down, I was certain we had closed the deal. But now I don’t know.”
Chapter 18
_______________________
The decision came back after only a few short hours. The pacifists at Dove had accepted the Jebwa offer. A series of shuttles and transports were arranged for the move. Over the course of a week all twenty-one-thousand-odd Dove inhabitants and their belongings were taken to Jebwa.
Harris walked into the colonel’s office with a huge grin. “The last of them left an hour ago. What are we planning to do with Dove?”
“The water has been restored. I have a contingent of fifty of our fellow Biomarines heading over to watch over it. And for the question you’re about to ask… we have a vote scheduled for this afternoon where we will be electing a new president and senate council. From there we begin to enact the laws we’ve had sitting in the planning stages for months.”
“How we gonna deal with the Earthers?”
“We’ll slow their progress with a series of regulations and inspections. Taxes will follow. They won’t be happy with what’s coming. We’ll be in control from here on out.”
“We still set for dome two to be up and running?”
The colonel nodded. “We’ve moved about five hundred workers in so far. Mr. Romero claims to have another eight hundred coming in the next few weeks, and more after. We should be finishing up on dome three about that same time. That all depends of course on us getting some income from the plates we’re shipping back home. Otherwise we’ll be having to slow operations to a crawl.”
Harris propped his feet up on the corner of the colonel’s desk, drawing an unhappy stare. “Sorry… just out of curiosity, how many Bios do we have working here?”
The colonel powered up his wall display, revealing a chart. “Almost twenty-three hundred. Once dome two is up and running, most will begin to transition back to the Retreat on Rabid. They appreciate the opportunities we’ve given them here, but they’d like to get back and get started on their civilian lives. Personally, I’m right there with them.”
Tawn sat forward. “You’re leaving us?”
“I’ll stay as long as I’m needed, but yes, at some point I want to go home. The management of this colony can be turned over to someone more capable.”
“It’s not the management we’re worried about,” said Harris. “It’s the security.”
Tawn added, “That’s my concern as well. How do we protect our assets here?”
“That will have to fall to the regulars. Some of us may be willing to stay on for contract, but most have let it be known they are ready to leave the hot-box. Their Eden is back at the Retreat—which continues to grow, by the way. We now have two-thirds of the Bios committed to living there.”
Tawn sighed. “I’d kind of like to get back there myself.”
“Each of your properties have become quite valuable. I know you don’t need the credits, but your purchases should pay off nicely should you ever want to sell.”
Tawn looked over at Harris. “Well, I’m not selling mine.”
Harris chuckled. “If you’re looking for a commitment, you might as well forget it. I have no idea what the future holds. Maybe I’ll sell it, or maybe I’ll build my own dome over it.”
The colonel scratched the back of his head. “Speaking of that, a number of us have been talking about doing just that. I know the war is at a standstill, but it could reignite at any time should the Earthers get their hands on the titanium they need. I’d like a build a dome similar to this one, shield it, and place a few of these rail cannons around it for defense. We don’t have warships of our own, but we can fortify.”
In the days that followed, Eden’s first President, Fritz Romero, as well as a council of twelve senators, were elected to office. The Earthers were invited to participate, but were not allowed to vote on senators of their own. The fix was in, and the Domers assumed full control.
The second and third domes were completed, and construction of the fourth and fifth was moving along rapidly. The Rumford Mine continued to have water problems, with a decision finally being made to drill a new well. The colonel sent out his men to scout new locations for a counter well.
Sale of the titanium plates back on Domicile had gone better than expected. Bannis Morgan’s friends followed through with increased support. The new freighters were well under construction with the first of the titanium plates being fitted to their frames. The first Morgan-produced trade-freighter was expected to begin flight tests within a month.
Trish and Gandy had managed another three escort ships delivered, one a Banshee and two Zwickers. Tawn and Harris headed for Domicile to pick them up.
Harris walked to the warehouse with Tawn. “You think they’re ready to get back out there with us?”
Tawn shrugged. “Hard to say. Building ships is what they both like to do.”
Gandy greeted them as they walked in. “We found two more Banshee hulls. One is really rough, but the other is in good shape. It was part of a collection in a closed-down museum. The owner had recently shuttered because of a lack of business. With the war over, people no longer have an interest in war machines.”
Harris asked, “So you’re not ready to come back out with us?”
Gandy shook his head. “No, we are ready. Mr. Morgan’s team is willing to do everything that’s needed.”
Trish added, “Except for the railgun. We’ll be doing the refurb on that once they’re done with the rest. So we’ll have to come back in a few weeks for that. Otherwise, we’re ready to fly.”
Tawn said, “Well, gather your things, then. We’ll be heading out to get the Bangor. Now that we’re in charge of Eden, there’s no issue with us flying it around.”
Trish asked, “Any word from Jebwa?”
Harris replied, “As far as we know, they’re adapting. Crops have been planted and an
imals penned or pastured. They’re well on their way to their utopia.”
Trish said, “We do have one question to ask.”
“What’s that?”
“We have a cousin. She’s a computer specialist. Super sharp. Anyway, she helped us with the Banshee systems. We thought she’d be a good addition to our team.
“I know the Bangor now has a modern computer, but I think it’d be worth our while to let her look it over. If we have any more issues with bugs and stuff she is really good at sniffing them out. Someone tried to plant some in our last Banshee. Sharvie was able to find and eliminate them.”
Tawn asked, “You willing to vouch for her?”
Trish nodded. “With my life. Like I said, she’s our cousin. And she’s very patriotic and a big fan of the Biomarines.”
Harris puffed up his chest, sporting a grin. “Well, bring her around so we can meet her. If she likes Biomarines she must be smart.”
Tawn chuckled. “We’ll see if that sentiment holds once she’s met you.”
Harris winked. “I’m lovable enough. Might be something you need to work on though.”
Trish said, “If we’re heading back to Eden, can she go along?”
Harris looked at the time on his comm bracelet. “If she can be here in the next fifteen minutes.”
Trish turned and yelled, “Sharvie! Come on!”
A short, heavyset girl waddled out to meet them. “This is exciting.”
Trish said, “Sharv, this is Tawn Freely and Harris Gruberg. You have your tablet?”
Sharvie Withrow nodded. “In my pack.”
“We hear you’re some kind of computer genius,” said Tawn.
Sharvie half smiled. “I majored in security. Tried to strike out on my own, but contracts have fallen dramatically since the truce. Could barely feed myself. I’m thankful Trisha came around with this job. Couldn’t have found anything more fun or exciting to work on. I mean… a real, flying and functional Banshee. That is awesome.”
“Well, at least she’s enthusiastic,” Tawn said.
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