Last Measure of Devotion (TCOTU, Book 5) (This Corner of the Universe)

by Britt Ringel

  “Bes is classified as a K-one-V star… so, technically orange, although it’s so close to the G-class stars that its light is yellowish-white.” The large man rumbled out a long sigh. “Been a long time since I’ve seen it.” He brought a mug up to his mouth and tipped it. After a lengthy draw, he smacked his lips and offered, “Uhlan has been more of a home to me than Bes ever was. I suppose it’s that way for all of us privateer captains, eh Garrett?”

  Heskan nodded. “That sentiment probably extends to every captain in any fleet, Frank, although I’m at the point in my career where I’m ready to call a planet my home.”

  McDaniel examined his companion meaningfully for a moment. “Yup. I’m about getting there myself. Maybe another year of fighting left in me.” He pursed his lips and added, “Well, maybe two. And speaking of, you sure you don’t want my ship in your vanguard? It could use a brig.”

  Heskan shook his head. “No, but thanks for the offer. I need to keep your company’s ships safe. After all, we’re going to need them when we defend Seshafi in the next round. I just feel bad that I’m forced to place one of your snows in the van.” Heskan regarded the rotund man with distressed eyes. “There just wasn’t anyone left,” he apologized.

  “Lieutenant Reynolds has done well with Jinete, Garrett,” McDaniel replied. “And he’s no coward. He’ll give you a good pass.”

  “I know all of you will,” Heskan said. “Just tell your ship captains to stay defensive. We’ve already won this battle in a sense and the vanguard’s mission for this skirmish is to simply play defense to retire intact.”

  The seemingly modest mission was more complicated than it sounded. The four-ship vanguard would almost certainly be lining up against a reinforced Saden van that could double their numbers.

  “You could always just agree to terms before the hostilities commence, Garrett.”

  “I know but I think Commander Vernay’s main can knock out one, maybe two ships, if we’re organized properly. When Sade comes at us in Seshafi, it’s going to be with superior numbers and I’d like to whittle them down a bit if we can.” Heskan pointed at the privateer with a smile. “I’m hoping Uhlan can land some big hits for us.”

  McDaniel smiled broadly in return. “Wring every ounce of advantage that you can. Did you learn that from the Commonwealth or during your time spent in Secure Solutions?”

  Heskan looked back at the wall screen. “I learned that in a star system that held a sun remarkably similar to this one.”

  Chapter 5

  “Captain Garrett Heskan and Commander Anastacia Vernay,” the Saden attendant stationed at the ballroom’s entrance boomed over the commotion.

  Heskan did his best to ignore Vernay’s mumbling about how marriages never seem to last these days. He took his eyes off her playful smile and let them sweep over the room. The ballroom was large enough to seem spacious but small enough to look crowded. It was located on Sade Prime, giving its designers free rein with the vaulted ceilings, grand staircases and orchestra pit. Such an expansive compartment in an orbital would have been folly, but planet-side, it added to the grandeur of these balls. Wide, double doors stood across the baroque room, opening into a grassy courtyard.

  Heskan felt Vernay’s elbow jab lightly into his side. “There’s our Red Admiral.” She hastened her pace toward Sade’s Lord of the Admiralty.

  Scrambling slightly to keep up, Heskan cautioned, “Stacy, I know I said you can be a little saucy tonight but try not to get yourself into a duel, okay?” The duo approached Wallace, in conversation with his highest-ranking officer, Admiral Salene Lane.

  “You never let me have any fun, Captain.”

  Heskan swore he saw the muscles in Wallace’s jaw clench but the tension in the elder man’s face relaxed instantly. “Welcome, Captain. I trust you remember Admiral Lane.”

  “Admiral Lane,” Heskan dipped his head in a brisk greeting and then looked to Wallace’s vacant left side. “Was your lovely wife unable to attend tonight, Viscount?”

  “Regrettably so. She has a separate function that demanded her presence but she sends you her warmest regards.”

  Heskan made a half turn toward Vernay. “And I trust you remember Commander Vernay, Viscount.”

  “Yes, your untamed angel.” Wallace smiled ruefully as he turned his attention upon the diminutive officer. “I’m afraid we started off badly, my lady. It’s my understanding that you played an instrumental role on Elathra when Garrett assumed command of the fleet after Admiral Cooke—”

  “Was murdered,” Vernay finished for him. She returned his smile with a dazzling one of her own.

  Heskan felt the temperature of the room drop several degrees before Wallace corrected, “Fell during negotiations—”

  “With a figurative knife in his back,” Vernay pressed caustically. “Placed there by a life-long friend.”

  Wallace shook his head and grumbled at Heskan, “Is her only redeemable quality her prowess in battle?”

  Vernay took a quick step toward Wallace and rose to the balls of her feet. “You can add loyalty to my friends, Viscount, and as for any other redeemable qualities, you’ll never know.”

  Heskan sighed outwardly and raised his eyes to the heavens.

  * * *

  Elsewhere in the ballroom, the Tannault brothers embraced and stepped back from each other. “You look well, Peter.”

  The Saden commander smiled warmly and winked at his brother. “Better than some here on Sade considering the thrashing we took in Seshafi, Joseph.” He sipped his drink casually and scrutinized his brother.

  Joseph Tannault winced slightly at his sibling’s remark. “Were there many Saden deaths during the skirmish?” He lowered his head in memoriam before stating, “Lieutenant Rice was killed with his entire bridge crew during Dash’s first pass.”

  The Saden’s eyebrows arched upward in surprise. “I didn’t realize a Seshafian ship captain had been killed. We were lucky though, considering the brutality of the skirmish. Many ships suffered casualties in the lower decks but no ship captains perished. How is your new fleet commander, Joseph?”

  “Different. He has the support of the CEO and the Board but he’s also ruffled feathers among some of the naval officers with his unconventional ways.”

  Peter Tannault chuckled. “Not just Seshafi’s officers, brother. Your fleet commander has sent shockwaves all the way through the Saden command hierarchy.” He looked around quickly to ensure the conversation was private. “Admiral Wallace is still spinning himself in circles trying to uncover his Hollaran service records.”

  Joseph Tannault grinned shrewdly while placing a hand on his brother’s back. He leaned closer to his sibling and said, “Well, he’s going to drill himself into the ceiling then because he might be looking in the wrong place.”

  * * *

  “If I may have your attention, please,” Wallace called with a loud, confident voice.

  It took only a few moments for the multitude of conversations to die out. The ball was well into its second hour with the participants enjoying their first dinner course around an enormous, single banquet table.

  The host rose from his seat at the table’s head. “Honored guests, trusted friends and respected rivals. We join in our time-honored tradition of feasting at the dining table before feasting on the field of battle. Each of you honors not only those seated here but every Saden and Seshafian alike, including our revered dead.” Wallace brought his head down in a moment of silence. Admiral Lane stood with wine glass held high and stated, “To our revered dead.”

  “Here, here,” responded the crowd. Goblets were tipped and their contents touched the lips of each imbiber.

  Per tradition and as Seshafi’s ranking officer, Heskan stood next and extolled, “To Archduke Riston Dunmore.”

  “Here, here.”

  Saden Commodore Harrow stood and offered, “To Archduke Joshua Covington.”

  “Here, here.”

  Heskan knew the ritual would last close to ten mi
nutes, as corporate tradition demanded the commemoration of a long list of figures, living and dead. After the lengthy tributes were completed, goblets were refilled yet again.

  Before the dinner guests could break into separate conversations, Wallace broke protocol with an additional announcement. “Ladies and gentlemen, if you would indulge me for one last item of note.” He motioned nonchalantly at an attendant who beat a hasty pace toward the admiral. “Although not fully in step with typical procedure, there is precedent for the following presentation.” Wallace’s smile grew wider. “Captain Heskan, would you please step to the head of the table?”

  Heskan felt his stomach drop at the request. He had been given notice of the toasting ceremony and even witnessed it his first time in Seshafi but he never saw the host invite his opposite number to the head of the table before. The congregation buzzed over the unscripted spectacle before them. When he reached Wallace, Heskan turned to face the crowd and felt his eyes instinctively lock with Vernay’s for support.

  Wallace scooped up a parchment embedded with a datachip from his attendant and boasted loudly, “I must confess that it is my greatest pleasure in presenting you, good Captain, with Sade’s proper and righteous casus bellum, to be resolved in due haste following our current hostilities.” He waved his free hand into the air in a flourish while presenting the parchment for Heskan’s acceptance.

  Half of the dinner guests laughed and applauded at the showmanship while the other half gawked in a shocked silence. Heskan felt his face turn a bright red. He quickly accepted the document and looked helplessly at its contents.

  “What say you, Captain?” Wallace boomed over the crowd in expectation.

  Sadens from the table echoed, “What say you?”

  Heskan’s stunned expression evaporated as he recalled one of the last communications he transmitted to the Red Admiral in their previous encounter. “This suits me fine. I’ve only just begun.”

  * * *

  The sweat-soaked sub-lieutenant climbed awkwardly down the shuttle’s ladder while shooting venomous looks at her craft.

  “That was very impressive, Lieutenant Gables,” the Lagrin lieutenant commander praised as he noted the former privateer’s unusual gait.

  The young pilot growled intemperately. She cast a final, irritated look back before turning to face the newly designated “Air Boss,” whose green uniform reminded her of the Hollarans. “That was an unmitigated disaster, Karl.” Gables grumbled a second time and tacked on an incomprehensible sentence to her tirade.

  Earlier in the week, Lieutenant Commander Karl Soffe, formerly of the Unadex Corporate Navy based in Lagrin, urged Gables to dispense with the formality of ranks when speaking in private. Gables initially resisted but quickly adapted as it became apparent just which of the duo were instructor and student.

  “You said these Dunnings racing dinghies were maneuverable,” Gables said in a scathing tone she normally reserved for her missed approaches back at New London.

  Soffe tilted his head to one side. “They are, Denise, and they’re some of the fastest ships built by humans—”

  Gables shook her head and cut him off. “I don’t care about speed, Karl. We’re not going to outrun a GP laser. We need maneuverability if we want to survive longer than a few seconds.” She threw her hands up in frustration as a thunderous noise drowned her out. To her right, a second Dunnings shuttle landed and the containment field separating the craft from the rest of the hangar blinked off.

  The dejected air boss advised over the racket, “They’re more maneuverable than anything else we have.”

  Gables waved Sub-lieutenant Vivian May over before returning her attention to the Lagrinite. The man, easily ten years her senior, looked crestfallen. She sighed. “Look, Karl, the potential is there. I think these crates have the structural integrity to hold up under stress but we need to beef up the inertial dampers. I’m using every trick I was taught in the war and I’m still close to blacking out while jinking.”

  May reached the pair and removed her helmet. Her expression was fierce. “Well, the new targeting package is worthless. Unless we’re planning on only firing warning shots, we need the software to be a lot more accurate and don’t get me started on this notion of using kinetic kill weapons.” She ran a hand quickly through her dark hair to calm herself before adding, “We also need more deflection on our laser turret. At the ranges we fight, one degree isn’t enough. Larger battery packs would be nice too.”

  Gables watched Soffe’s shoulders sag as he mumbled, “That’s not the final software for your ships. It’s just what we had immediately available.” The man crossed his arms defensively while shaking his head.

  Gables reached out to place her hand on the defeated man’s shoulder. “Commander, we’re not saying that this won’t work. We’re just giving you the information you need so you can go back to the weapons shop and get things right.” She pointedly looked at May and prompted, “Right, Viv?”

  May’s eyes widened in understanding. “Oh! Yeah, we can work with these buses,” she promised as she pointed toward Gables’ shuttle. “In fact, our trainers back on New— at the new flight school were pretty close to this.”

  “It’s amazing how far we’ve come in just the first weeks,” Gables added. “And you know how much Seshafi is grateful for not only Unadex’s support but her discretion in this.”

  This was exceedingly true. When Vernay approached Gables two weeks ago about an initiative that would field actual fighters in defense of Seshafi, the pilot jumped at the opportunity despite her reservations. Although immediately dubious that such a program could be implemented not only so quickly but also in secret, every other Brevic pilot had signed on as well. During their travel to Ugrit, one of the smaller star systems inside the Unadex Corporation, Gables learned that the mostly uninhabited system was optimal for such a clandestine endeavor. Operating near the system’s outermost gas giant, far from the mining operations closer to the system’s star, and flying without navigation beacons afforded the privacy required.

  Initially, Gables felt distrustful of the rival corporation’s motives. Nearly two weeks later, that skepticism melted away as she grew to understand just how much Unadex could gain from the deal. We’re teaching their officers fighter operations, Gables realized early on. They’ll be one of only two corporations with that skill set. In fact, they’ll know more about how to conduct fighter ops than Seshafi.

  Gables studied such a sailor now. Karl Soffe had served sixteen years in the Unadex navy before “retiring” to accept special duty in the Ugrit star system. As a condition of his retirement, Soffe, along with fifty-seven other former Unadex sailors, would accompany the fifteen Brevic pilots aboard their makeshift “auxiliary carrier” back to Seshafi to act as space traffic control and ground crew for the shuttles. The auxiliary carrier, a racing tender undergoing hasty, radical reconstruction at Ugrit’s orbital, would carry a score of highly modified racing shuttles into battle. Docked alongside that tender, two Seshafian freighters were also undergoing makeovers.

  Based on Soffe’s expression, Gables judged her flattery had its intended effect. “Just tell the techs that we need stronger dampers and a more flexible mount for the GP to sit in.” She smiled at the man. “We’re close, Commander. It may not seem like it but we’re close.”

  May slapped a hand on the broad back of the former Lagrin officer. “Give us the right equipment, Commander Soffe, and you’re going to be amazed at what we accomplish.”

  * * *

  The day after the Saden ball, a firm knock interrupted Heskan’s deskwork. Before him laid the entire week’s exercise schedule. He had planned it meticulously, attempting to anticipate every contingency, every possible outcome that might occur during each step of the coming battle. While in the midst of the preparation, it occurred to Heskan that this was the first time he was solely responsible for a fleet’s exercise. He had tapped all of his experience when dealing with Shane Durmont and CortRon 15, his observation
s of Admiral Hayes’ task group and his collaboration with Komandor Lombardi’s hybrid fleet. The amalgamation of these experiences created what he hoped was the perfect roadmap of where his fleet would start and where it would finish.

  The first leg of the trip began with his next command. “Enter.”

  The door retracted and Captain Nguyen entered the office with crisp strides. “You wanted to see me, Captain?”

  Heskan nodded. “Yes, I did.” He gestured toward a comfortable chair placed strategically near the side of his desk. “Won’t you please sit, Yon?”

  Nguyen took the proffered chair and speculated, “Is this about the exercises, Garrett?”

  “Yeah.” Heskan inhaled deeply and then stated matters plainly. “Yon, I’m not good at dancing around issues so let me just get to the point. Admiral Cooke’s death demonstrated how vulnerable this fleet is if the man at the top is killed. I know that his murder was an extremely rare occurrence—”

  “Without precedent,” Nguyen stated gruffly.

  Heskan’s head nodded a second time as he affirmed, “Yes, but now that it’s happened, we must have a contingency plan in place in case it happens again.”

  Nguyen shook his head skeptically. “Oh, Captain. I hardly think Sade will make another attempt on our fleet commander. They’re already looking at serious penalties and sanctions from The Courts on Nessus. Is there any word on the hearing, by the way?”

  “Archduke Covington managed to get the hearing on The Courts’ calendar before Sade could log their casus bellum. The hearing will take place before their attack.”

  Nguyen leaned back with a satisfied look on his face. “We remain one step ahead of them. How many more weeks will that buy us?”

  “At least a month, probably more. All witnesses will have to travel to Nessus to testify. How long does it take The Courts to make a ruling?”

  “A matter of days,” Nguyen answered. “With any luck, the penalty they impose on Sade will be sufficient to make their casus bellum not worth the price.”