by Wayne Basta
“Oh, nothing important. I just have to be the one to enter them. They’re tied to my biometric signature. So even if I were stupid enough to give you access, they wouldn’t do you any good,” Josserand said, a touch of glee in his voice.
Hiding her frustration, Saracasi forced a smile onto her face. “That’s fine. You were going along with the assault team either way.”
“An assault team won’t be necessary,” Josserand said. “My people can handle it. Just drop me off on Mirthod and tell me where you would like me to bring the ship.”
“Joss, you seem to be misunderstanding the situation,” Saracasi said, keeping her voice quiet. “You’re going to take my team onboard, and you’re going to help them seize control. Then you’re going to stay out of their way until the end of this war. Then, if you’ve done all of that and haven’t pissed me off, we’ll hand the ship over to you.
“Now, if you decide you want to be obstinate, we’re just going to find the nearest empty rock and dump you on it. Either you’re going to help us just like I’ve described, or you’re useless to us. The choice is yours.”
Josserand gave her a look through narrowed eyes. When he didn’t immediately respond with some form of sleazy comment, she knew he would agree. Putting the loathsome man out of her mind, she turned to Solyss. “Solyss, how did you want to handle the infiltration?”
“It’s a big ship, but I think a small team will be best,” Solyss said. “The Fox has a big security force, but it’s mostly used to keep riffraff in line. Assuming the bypass codes work out, a small strike force should be able to take the bridge and engineering sections. At that point, we can signal the rest of the fleet to jump in and secure the rest of the ship.”
Saracasi nodded. “The Chimopori is still undergoing repairs, but you can take any of the remaining gunships.”
“Actually, the Chimopori will be perfect. Coming in with a damaged ship will better explain why we’re fully loaded with marines. We fled to the safety of the Black Market after a failed attack on the Alliance. We do have the Fox’s permission to use the ship as a repair base,” Solyss said.
“Good idea. Let’s make it more convincing. All of our gunships have been operating as a unit. We’ll send the entire force in, loaded with marines. Unless the ships moved, they aren’t far from Dantyne. You can say you were raiding the Alliance forces there but were caught by a task force and had to flee.
“I’m also sending Commander Brieni along with you. He’s the only one here who’s served aboard this class of ship and will have knowledge that could be useful, should Josserand’s virus not live up to the hype,” Saracasi said.
Solyss frowned, but before he could say anything, Davidus said, “The commodore has made it clear to me that this is your mission. I’m just along as an advisor.”
“All right, then, let’s get this started.”
As Zeric strode into the Ba’aar sports complex, he wasn’t sure if he felt glad to find the Rogues still here or not. Their presence in the complex meant they were still alive—and he didn’t have to search the planet for them—but it also meant they hadn’t made much progress in the fight against the Alliance.
The sentry at the entryway passed ahead word of his coming, and by the time Zeric reached the basement’s main room, it had filled with soldiers. He felt pleased to recognize so many faces among them. There would have had to have been deaths among them in the months since his departure, he knew, but at least not everyone he knew had died.
In the center of the group, her eyestalks hovering in a neutral mid-extension position, stood Ymp. She hadn’t been thrilled when he had announced his departure. He couldn’t blame her, since he had left the responsibility for all the lives here on her shoulders. On the other hand, a neutral expression wasn’t one of her disquieting glares, so he took that as a good sign.
After spending a few minutes smiling and shaking hands, Zeric managed to make his way to Ymp. Even though he felt glad at every familiar face, he was especially pleased she was still here, alive and well. He had grown attached to her, relying on and respecting her, but he could never let her know that.
“It’s good to see you again… General,” Ymp said with a pleased tone. “I see you’ve brought guests.”
Beside Zeric were Lahkaba, Kumus, Sienn’lyn, and an Alliance prisoner, Hari Dolan, who had come in with him. Saracasi had offered the Alliance officer to Lahkaba to help with his negotiations. Zeric hadn’t relished the idea of keeping track of a prisoner during their insertion, especially while trying to make his way here quietly, but Dolan had proved to be no trouble. And if it helped get Maarkean out, he could go along with it.
“Oh, you know me—the more the merrier,” he said, then made his tone formal in order to settle the celebration some. “What’s the situation, Major?
“All’s quiet, General,” Ymp replied. “Since your departure, we’ve run several raid and sabotage operations, resulting in damage or destruction to multiple Alliance vehicles and personnel. We’ve lost five troops to enemy fire. Currently, we’re in a stand-down position per orders from Minister Kantor.”
Zeric frowned. Only five deaths was a nice low number but also very surprising. Even with troops as good as the Rogues, deaths were bound to occur during war. Either the Alliance had been especially inept, or Ymp’s definition of ‘several’ was low.
Out of the corner of his eye, Zeric saw his aide, Kumus, embracing his brother, Kelvine. The family reunion brought a slight smile to his face. Maybe the low number of operations, and resulting low number of deaths, was a good thing. It had allowed two brothers to reunite.
His feeling of cheer faded quickly as the sight reminded him that Gu’od and Gamaly would never have that reunion. Thousands of other families were in similar positions. As much as he might be glad the war hadn’t destroyed the Stryker family, he hadn’t come here to avoid fighting.
“Major, I’ll need a full briefing on what has occurred planet-wide. And set up a meeting with the other division leaders. It’s time we showed the Alliance the door,” Zeric said, his tone grim but confident.
Ymp’s eyestalks perked up, and she smiled that eerie Camari smile. “Sergeant Ocif, send a message to all unit commanders.”
“Aye, ma’am. What shall I tell them?” Obod Ocif asked.
“Tell them, ‘Zeric’s back.’”
The full report Zeric had gotten from Ymp about what had occurred since he had left had been disappointing reading. He had expected Jairyd to mandate an increase in operational tempo along with reducing information-sharing, given that the other man’s plan had been to wage a guerrilla war against the Alliance.
The troops had done that, but not to an extent Zeric thought useful. What the troops on Sulas had accomplished would amount to little more than a minor annoyance to the Alliance. In some ways, their actions hardly counted as more than petty vandalism.
When the conference call with all the division commanders started, Zeric had a pretty good idea of the cause. As the commanders came onto the screen, each made some comment of greeting to him. Most appeared pleased to see him. Jairyd and Kantor were the prime exceptions.
“General,” Jairyd said, “I didn’t expect to see you back here without our fleet coming with you.”
“Our fleet’s needed elsewhere at the moment,” Zeric answered evasively. “I’m here to ensure that when they do come, Sulas offers a warm welcome and not blaster fire.”
“We’re making progress there,” Jairyd said defensively. “Our insurgency has kept the Alliance on their toes.”
“Right,” Zeric said, trying to keep his reply non-accusatory. He didn’t want to turn this meeting into a fight. “And now it’s time to cash in on that disruption to end the occupation.”
“Mr. Dustlighter,” Kantor said, not using Zeric’s rank, “Sulas has been doing very well defending itself. Your advice is appreciated but unnecessary. General Kil’dare has done a remarkable job running things in your absence.”
Zeric said nothin
g in response. He found Lei-mey annoying, but she had given him some useful advice for how to deal with politicians. Instead of immediately following his instincts to tell Kantor to shut up and go to hell, he carefully considered his response. The man was, after all, doing what he thought best for his planet and his people. He should take that into consideration in deciding how to respond.
After taking that moment, he then decided to go with his instinct. “Thank you, Minister Kantor. Your recommendation has been noted. Now, kindly get the hell off this comm channel. This is for military use only.”
Kantor’s face went red, and he started fuming. “The Union military is here at the request of the Sulas—”
The screen with Kantor shut off as Kumus dropped him from the conference. Zeric nodded appreciatively to his aide. The young man really knew how to help without being told.
“Now that that’s out of the way,” Zeric said, trying to sound light, “let’s move on to important matters. The guerilla campaign has run its course. It’s succeeded in keeping the main part of our forces intact and the Alliance from reasserting full control over Sulas.”
Zeric felt that that characterization of the situation was an exaggeration, but he didn’t want to pick a fight with Jairyd. Giving Kantor the brush-off might have some negative consequences later, but that was later. Getting into a pissing contest with Jairyd might undermine the entire operation.
“Now it’s time to push them off the planet,” Zeric went on. “First step, we need to improve our intel on Alliance deployment. We need to know how many troops we’re facing and where they’re deployed. We’re going to begin a series of small raids, just like you’ve been doing for the last few months, but this time, a few of them are going to have more objectives than simple destruction.
“Once we ascertain where they’re weakest, we’ll hit them and hit them hard.”
Several heads on the screens nodded in approval. Jairyd frowned but didn’t argue. He did, however, raise the point that was Zeric’s biggest concern. “What about the fleet in orbit? The main reason we’ve stuck to guerilla tactics is to avoid a retaliatory orbital bombardment. Once we come out in force, there’s nothing stopping the fleet from doing that,” Jairyd said.
“The fleet will have something more pressing than us to worry about,” Lahkaba replied cryptically.
Zeric had completely forgotten that Lahkaba was here. After kicking Kantor off the line due to this being a military conference, he probably should have done the same to Lahkaba. But he didn’t think of Lahkaba as a politician. He had asked him to come to Sulas in order to fight.
When the Kowwok had told him that he would be able to get the fleet away from Sulas for a short window, it had surprised Zeric. Lahkaba hadn’t said how and had refused to explain further, though Zeric guessed it must have something to do with their Alliance prisoner, Dolan, and Lahkaba’s plan to get Maarkean released. Zeric trusted the Kowwok, but he still found the whole suggestion sketchy.
“And either way, it won’t matter,” Zeric said. “The Alliance fleet won’t fire on a civilian population center. We’re enemies, and they’ve done a lot of terrible things, but Admiral Sartori isn’t a butcher. We cannot underestimate her and the response she’ll give, and the fleet will definitely pose a threat—but not from a blanket bombardment.”
He hoped.
Katerina smiled. It amused her that the rebels thought so highly of her. While it wasn’t her goal to win the hearts of the rebels, she couldn’t help but feel flattered. She had always considered it a sign of a good military leader to be respected by one’s enemies. Most commanders thought it was more important that their enemies feared them, but fear only went so far.
“This report from our asset is recent?” she asked, looking up from the transcript.
“Yes, ma’am.” Brigadier Rendaliss, her intelligence chief, nodded. “We received it just hours ago. We can confirm that Zeric Dustlighter and Lahkaba have returned to Sulas.”
The results from the intelligence report were disturbing. The guerrilla tactics the rebels had used on Sulas had been annoying but insignificant. While their intelligence unit had been unable to learn the location of the rebels’ hiding place, they had been able to learn the times and locations of many of the attacks. To cover their ability to intercept the rebels’ communications, she had been forced to allow most of the attacks to occur without response, but she had been able to avoid any serious harm befalling her troops.
Now the rebels were going to step up their assaults. While this would be good for her—the Alliance had the advantage in a straight confrontation—the note about her fleet being preoccupied worried her. It could just be bluster from Dustlighter, trying to reassure the troops, but she had learned never to underestimate her opponents.
An attack by the rebel fleet was possible. It had been several weeks since she had lost contact with the task force sent to the rebels’ hidden capital of Irod. She had held off on sending any other ships for the time being. If the rebels had repelled her forces, the fleet should have reported back by now. If they had completely destroyed the task force, then they were more powerful than she had anticipated, and sending more ships would likely be a waste of resources.
“Let’s not drag this conflict out any further,” she decided. “Plant false intelligence where they intend to strike. Allow these raids to be carried out. Find us a weak spot for the rebels to attack. If they want to come out of hiding, let’s give them the chance.”
Rendaliss nodded. “I’ll meet with IX Legion command and figure out a good location. We’ll have details for you by this afternoon.”
“Very good, Brigadier,” Katerina said and returned his salute.
When Rendaliss left, Major Anderson, Dolan’s replacement, came in with a thoughtful look on her face. Once they were alone, she said, “I’ve just received a report. It seems one of the rebels’ congressional delegates, Lahkaba, has turned himself in to our forces. He’s requested to speak to you.”
Katerina leaned back in her chair. This was an unexpected turn of events. According to their intelligence, it was Lahkaba who had a plan to distract her fleet. Likely, turning himself in had something to do with that plan. But how?
“I assume he’s been searched?” Katerina asked.
“Yes, ma’am. He had nothing on him but his clothes. Full medical scan as well. No subcutaneous implants,” Anderson answered.
A bomb or assassination attempt had been an unlikely plan, she knew. While she knew the rebels were capable of such an attempt, it wouldn’t gain them anything here. Her death would do nothing to move the fleet and would, in fact, increase the odds of a retaliatory bombardment against Zeric’s forces.
She could throw Lahkaba into a brig cell just like Maarkean and Lohcja, but her curiosity was piqued. “Very well. Let’s see what the delegate has to say,” Katerina decided.
Chapter Twenty-Four
It felt good to be back aboard his old ship. Solyss liked Gallant and was proud of what she and her crew could do, but Chimopori had been his home for years.
Of course, crowded with Marines and all the various combat upgrades, she didn’t feel quite the same. It was nice to have Kard back on the crew, though. His old Braz crew member had been commanding the ship in her role as a gunship for the last several months. It had matured him. Gone was the carefree boy with fantasies of grand adventures. In his place stood a much more somber man who had seen people die as a result of grand adventure.
As much as the old Kard had had a tendency to annoy him, Solyss felt a pang of sadness that he was gone. So many things had changed and so many people had died so far in this war. The crew and pilots aboard Gallant. General Numba, General Ocaitchi. Gu’od.
Shaking himself out of the dark place his mind was going, Solyss returned his attention to the approaching Black Market. The giant former warship hung in space before them. The hangar bay door stood invitingly open.
Over the comm system, he heard Htaretter’s voice. “Black Market, thi
s is Bright Blade, leading Union Gunship Squadron One. Requesting permission to dock and make repairs.”
It had been decided for Htaretter to do all the talking with the ships. The Fox was a dealer in information, and odds were that he would know that Fracsid commanded the squadron from aboard Cutty Sark. With Cutty Sark gone with Zeric, and given their cover of escaping a losing battle, they had opted to pretend that the ship was part of the losses.
A tense few seconds went by before the reply came. “Permission granted, Bright Blade. Enter starboard docking bay.”
Solyss let out a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding. Getting aboard the ship was the biggest obstacle. If they had been denied docking rights, the whole plan would have gone nowhere. It could still fail in a multitude of ways, but at least it could get started.
“All right, Sax. Take us in,” Solyss said, clapping a hand on his Nothan pilot’s shoulder. “I’m going to check on the marines.”
Isaxo nodded in reply, and Solyss left the flight deck. He passed through the crew area before coming to the entrance to the cargo bay, which was filled to bursting with marines. Before he opened the door, Asheerah stepped out of her quarters.
She had her armor on, though she wasn’t yet wearing her helmet. Her face wore that perpetual frown of grim determination and the silent threat not to mess with her. He had known her long enough to get to know the person underneath that tough shell, and, he admitted, he loved that woman.
But this was Asheerah in her armor, preparing to go on a mission. She had taken to the role of marine officer well, though she didn’t like being subject to others’ authority. Fortunately, she respected Zeric and Ymp, the officers above her. And, though he had never really understood why, him.
“Everything ready, Ash?” Solyss said, taking advantage of the moment of privacy to use her name. From here on out, it would be Lieutenant Aru and Major Novastar.
