The Price of Liberty (Empire Rising Book 4)

by D. J. Holmes

  “You’re welcome,” James said. “I know your city is still reeling from all the damage and the loss of life, but with Fairfax’s help you should be able to put things right. Maybe in the future you can hold a celebration ball in that large reception room and this time I can dance with you. I still remember the red dress you wore the first time we met.”

  “Do you?” Suzanna asked, her mischievous grin from earlier returning. “I don’t know where that red dress went in all the commotion. However,” she continued as her grin widened, “there are a few pieces of lingerie I brought from London which are just that shade of red. Maybe the honorable Captain would like to see me in those instead?”

  “I think I can give my approval to that suggestion,” James said with a grin of his own. “Lead on My Lady,” he said as he turned Suzanna back towards the Council Chambers. “You have been assigned rooms in the Council Chambers haven’t you?”

  “Indeed I have Captain,” Suzanna replied with a wink. “How convenient.”

  *

  HMS Discovery, Andaman system

  Twenty light-years away, as James’ eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep with Suzanna in his arms, Gupta’s shot open. An emergency COM message from the bridge blared across her quarters, dragging her out of a blissful sleep.

  “What is it?” she demanded over the COM channel.

  “Lots of new contacts Captain,” Discovery’s second Lieutenant responded. “You better get up here, it doesn’t look good.”

  Throwing on her uniform, Gupta ran out of her quarters and onto the bridge. “The Indian fleet?” She asked.

  “There can be no doubt,” the Second Lieutenant responded. “It looks like the Indians have brought every ship they own.”

  Gupta gawked at the numerous contacts on the gravimetric plot. “Turn us around,” she ordered after shaking herself. “Take us to the shift passage back to Haven. We have to warn the fleet as soon as possible.”

  Chapter 36 – Enemy in Sight

  Today, with the refinements made to the shift drive it is almost impossible to detect an invasion fleet before it arrives. Unless, of course, it attempts to launch an attack through a Sun Gate. In the past, the shift drive could only take ships along predefined shift passages. By picketing such passages, fleets could get advanced warnings of approaching enemies.

  -Excerpt from Empire Rising, 3002 AD

  21st December, 2467 AD, 8:00 am, Harrison, Haven

  “And that is why I urge you to vote in favor of becoming a British Protectorate. Not just because I believe it is what is best for our people, and not just for ourselves either. But for our children and grandchildren and all the subsequent generations of Havenites. Space is a dangerous place. We have come to learn this the hard way. With the British we will be united in strength.

  “I hope you will consider my words carefully. Thank you for listening to me and thank you for resisting the Indian invaders. We have only been able to reach this day thanks to your efforts. And let us never forget those who made the ultimate sacrifice for us,” Suzanna said, bringing her second speech of the day to a close. Without further ado, she stepped off the platform that had been set up in Harrison’s town square.

  A round of applause followed her as she descended to where James was waiting with a smile. When Suzanna first announced her return to Haven, public opinion had been very mixed. Many rumors had been circulating that Suzanna had abandoned Haven when she had realized the Indians were planning to invade the colony. The speeches Fairfax had released had put an end to those. Many of the population were still wary of her, yet others had warmed to her quickly and as James had spent the last week traveling around Haven with her, they had been greeted by largely appreciative crowds.

  “Where to now?” James asked as he took Suzanna’s hand and they strolled towards the shuttle waiting to take Suzanna to her next engagement.

  “Duluth,” Suzanna answered. “It’s the third largest city on Haven. I have two speeches to make there.”

  “I can’t tell you how glad I will be when all this is over,” James responded. “This isn’t exactly what I thought I was signing up for when I joined the navy.”

  “I’m sure you didn’t,” Suzanna said with a chuckle. “But you did when you married me. So you will just have to learn to like it. When this vote is over I’m sure you can go back to Endeavour. But don’t think this is the last time I will need you at my side. You are too handsome to leave hidden away in space. Your smile alone should win us a few hundred votes today.”

  “And here I thought you wanted me at your side because of what I have done for Haven,” James quipped.

  “There is that,” Suzanna answered. “But people forget the past quickly, your good looks are as useful as your achievements. You’re just lucky you are so handsome or I might have had to trade you in for a better model.”

  “Ha,” James shot back. “I think Fairfax would have something to say about that.”

  “I suppose he would,” Suzanna responded as she walked up the ramp into the shuttle. “I guess I will have to keep you for now.”

  “That’s right,” James said with a smile. While he hadn’t enjoyed the last two weeks of speeches, he had certainly enjoyed the amount of time he had been able to spend with Suzanna. Between the week of negotiations and two weeks of speeches, it had been the longest they had spent together since they had been married.

  “Do you know where we are going pilot?” Suzanna asked once she had sat down and donned her flight helmet.

  “Yes My Lady,” the pilot answered. “I have already been in contact with Duluth flight control. They are expecting us in twenty minutes.”

  “Very good, you may take off when you’re ready,” Suzanna replied.

  Suzanna turned away from the pilot and opened up her datapad. Whilst the main sections of her speeches for today would all be the same, she had insisted on including parts relevant to each town or city she was speaking in. Each had a slightly different history and they had all fought the Indians in their own way. Suzanna wanted to make sure all the people she spoke to knew she cared for them.

  James watched the Haven forests whizz by the viewing port of the shuttle. It’s hard to believe the day of the vote is here already, he thought. The negotiations with the resistance leaders had been tough. They had refused to settle for anything Fairfax initially offered them. Instead they insisted on haggling until they were able to get Fairfax to give them better terms. Overall though, James was confident Fairfax had achieved all he had set out to do. As far as the British government was concerned, as long as they were recognized as the official owners of Haven and thus had free access to the system and the shift passages to Vestar and Kulthar, the Havenite people could do what they wanted. The final terms settled on with Pennington clearly stipulated Haven would become part of the British Star Kingdom. All that was left now was one final day of campaigning.

  In the long term, Fairfax recognized it would be better for the British Star Kingdom if the Havenites came to see themselves as British. It would take at least two or three generations, yet it would prevent future unrest or rebellion. Beyond Haven becoming a part of the British Star Kingdom, all the elements he had fought with Pennington over had been aimed at producing better integration between Britain and Haven. For the most part, Pennington’s demands had done little to hamper Fairfax’s long term goals and he had been happy to give her many of the things she wanted. The final document outlining just how both nations would proceed if the people voted to become a protectorate didn’t entirely satisfy either side. Yet to James’ surprise Pennington had given it her approval, and she had done so publicly. Not all the resistance leaders had followed her stance, but many had.

  Chief among those who had walked away from the negotiations had been Jonas Maguire. James knew he was even now touring around Haven giving speeches urging Haven to vote against becoming a protectorate. The outcome of the vote was therefore very much in doubt. Due to the widespread damage to the planet’s infrastruct
ure and the huge effort that had gone in to preparing for the vote, not many polls had been taken. Those that had gave varying estimates. Some suggested the vote was on a knife edge. Others that it would pass, but just barely. Either way, James knew even though he didn’t particularly enjoy it, what he and Suzanna were doing was important.

  “Have we changed direction?” James asked the pilot as he stopped thinking about the vote and paid more attention to the landscape around him. “We’re approaching Liberty aren’t we?”

  “Yes,” the pilot responded. “I received a priority message a couple of minutes ago. I have been ordered to get you both to the Council Chambers immediately. I thought you had heard it over the COM channel.”

  “I was daydreaming,” James explained. “Did the message say why?”

  “No,” the pilot answered. “It just said I was to get you there ASAP.”

  “Very well,” James said. He reached over to Suzanna to touch her shoulder and draw her out of her thoughts. “You may not need your speech just yet. It seems we have been called back to Liberty. I think Fairfax wants to speak with us.”

  “What’s happening?” Suzanna asked. “Has there been some unrest?”

  James’ COM unit beeped, alerting him to a message from Endeavour. It was only text.

  Discovery has just returned. She has sent a signal using her acceleration profile; Enemy Approaches. Mallory.

  “It’s the Indians,” James said once he read the message. “They have sent a fleet to Haven. Discovery has just jumped into the system. The Indians can’t be far behind.”

  “The Indians,” Suzanna said in alarm. “Our scouts didn’t find any sign of the Indians preparing for an attack. Why have they come back?”

  “Our scouts didn’t find any ships massing in the Andaman system,” James corrected. “There was always a risk they were still planning an attack. If they are back, then it means they have decided they can’t afford to lose this war. It also means they will be coming with nearly every ship in their fleet. If there is going to be a battle then it is going to be a bloody one.”

  “It means we have to make sure this vote is successful,” Suzanna said. “The people of Haven’s decision needs to be sent to the UN before the Indians occupy the planet again.”

  “I suspect that is what Fairfax wants to discuss,” James said as he reached out and took his wife’s hand. As he squeezed it, she squeezed back. They spent the rest of the flight in silence as they contemplated what the next few hours would bring.

  *

  12:30 pm Liberty, Haven

  James and Suzanna were sitting in the conference room where the negotiations with Pennington and her delegation had taken place. Pennington and Clare Edwards were there along with Fairfax, Admiral Cunningham and Brigadier General Heinz.

  “The first message from Discovery should arrive any second now,” Cunningham said.

  They had agreed the vote should continue. Fairfax, Suzanna and Pennington had sent a planet wide broadcast informing Haven about the approaching threat. Some of the opponents to the protectorate were claiming the threat was made up. They would soon change their minds. The shift passage leading to Indian space was four light hours from Haven. Whatever COM messages Captain Gupta had sent to Haven upon her arrival into the system would be reaching them imminently.

  “Here we go,” Cunningham said as his analysts sent Discovery’s COM message to his datapad. In turn, he forwarded the visuals to the room’s holo projector.

  “So many ships,” Pennington said.

  “Yes,” Cunningham replied. “These visuals are from the Andaman system where Discovery was on patrol. Captain Gupta stayed in the system just long enough to obtain these visuals before she jumped out and high tailed it back here.”

  “She estimates the Indian fleet could be anything from six to twelve hours behind her,” James said as he skimmed through Gupta’s assessment of the situation.

  “What are those ships?” Brigadier General Heinz asked.

  James looked up at the holo display. “Troop transports,” he said. Having come close enough to engage two of them with his plasma cannons in the past, James knew exactly what they looked like. “I’m counting nine of them. Each one can probably hold five to six thousand troops.”

  “That’s a lot of men,” Heinz responded. “They obviously think they are coming to stay.”

  “Indeed they do,” Cunningham said. “Based on our estimates of the Indian prewar fleet, it looks like the Indians have brought almost every ship they have left. We’re going to be outnumbered, they look to have about half as many more ships than we do.”

  James came to the same conclusion. There were currently two British battlecruisers, four heavy, nine medium and twelve light cruisers along with sixteen destroyers, twenty frigates and twenty three corvettes in the Haven system. It looked like the Indians had three battlecruisers, six heavy, fourteen medium and nineteen light cruisers along with twenty three destroyers, twenty eight frigates and twenty corvettes. On top of that, there was another cruiser and several smaller warships escorting the squadron of troop transports.

  “What do you make of the situation Admiral?” Fairfax asked. “Can you beat them?”

  Silence descended as everyone waited with for Cunningham’s answer. None more so than Pennington, she knew exactly what it would mean if the Indians managed to land a new army on her planet.

  “Possibly,” Cunningham finally answered. “We have been preparing for this eventuality. Discovery’s early warning has already allowed me to put some plans into motion. Even so, it will be a fierce fight. Unless you are prepared to lose the entire fleet, I may be forced to withdraw. If we do have to go down fighting, I guarantee we will leave the Indians in no better state.”

  “No,” Fairfax said. “We cannot afford to lose more ships unless it results in a victory. If you have to withdraw then I know you will return with more ships. If you have to, you can strip ships from our colonies and return to drive off the Indians once and for all.”

  “Hopefully it won’t come to that,” Cunningham said. “But just in case, you should find a safe place to hide. If they capture you Mr. Prime Minister, Parliament may be convinced to sue for peace in exchange for your return.”

  “I’m sure I’ll be in good hands with Heinz, won’t I?” Fairfax asked.

  “That much I can promise you,” Heinz replied. ““If the Indians drive the fleet off and attempt to land they will find it a lot harder than last time. We have had a month to prepare for such an eventuality. Nine troop transports might not be enough.”

  “I’m glad to hear it,” Fairfax responded. “And I’m sure the resistance leaders can prepare the general populace for another invasion?” he asked Pennington.

  “Yes,” Pennington answered. “I have already sent warnings to all the leaders. We are relying on your fleet to protect us, but in the event Admiral Cunningham is unable to hold the orbitals we will be ready to meet the Indians again. What about the vote, will it mean anything if the Indians manage to retake Haven?”

  “It depends on what your people decide,” Fairfax responded. “Even if they chose to reject our offer, we will not be content to leave Haven in Indian hands. However, I suspect Cunningham won’t be rushing back. Parliament will only let him return when he can guarantee victory.”

  “Then the vote must pass,” Pennington said. “I intend to make another planet wide broadcast to warn my people again. Can we release these visuals of the approaching danger?”

  “Yes,” Fairfax answered. “I think that would be appropriate.”

  “Then I will take my leave,” Pennington said as she stood. “Good luck to all of you. I hope we will all see each other again. Preferably when this battle is over rather than in several months. I would rather not have to fight another guerrilla war.”

  “Captain Somerville and I should get to our ships,” Cunningham said. “We want the Indians to think they have caught us unawares. But I’m itching to get back on board Churchill and I’m
sure Somerville is the same.”

  “Indeed,” James said.

  “Fight well,” Fairfax said as he shook Cunningham and James’ hands. “I know you have both given a lot for our nation already.

  “We’ll do our duty,” Cunningham said as he saluted Fairfax, James followed suit.

  As James turned to walk out of the conference room, Suzanna grabbed his hand. She clearly intended to walk him to his shuttle, just as he had expected.

  As they rounded the first corridor after exiting the conference room James wasn’t surprised to see Major Johnston waiting. Johnston had resumed his role as the senior officer in charge of Endeavour’s marines since Haven had been liberated. However, he had also been liaising with Brigadier General Heinz and a number of his colonels and spending a considerable time on Haven’s surface. When Clare Edwards, who was just ahead of James and Suzanna, walked over to him, they whispered quickly to each other. When he and Suzanna approached, they broke apart and Johnston saluted James.