Her cheeks blushed a little. Brigitte grinned at her while Vidia nodded. "I told ya it would be fine."
One of the Sisters approached them. She was an older woman, likely in her fifties, and spoke English with a strong Slavic accent. "Captain, you are not hurt?"
"I'm not," he said. "You are?"
"Sister Clementia," the woman answered. "Sister Innocentia wanted me to let you know we have already made great strides in securing the station. Between your defense of this command center and the forces they sent trying to hold us off the station, we have already defeated the majority of their security troops."
"The rest might still make a fight of it," he warned. "We should secure the cruisers next, to make sure any testing crews don't launch before we can get there."
"We anticipated the need. The Hestians under Captain Nhan are already securing the docks."
"Then we're managing to pull this off." Henry glanced toward Wu's fallen body. "It's cost us enough already."
Clementia breathed a quiet prayer and signed the Cross with her fingers. "God will see to his soul. I will—"
Before she could finish, his link beeped. He brought it out and hit the answer button on the side. "I'm here."
Oskar spoke, and his tone sent a tingle of dread through Henry's spine. "Captain. There's something you need to see, that you all need to see."
Henry swallowed. I need to get to those cruisers as soon as possible… but Oskar might have found something important. "We're on our way."
* * *
Captain Nhan and Sister Innocentia joined Henry and the others on their way to Oskar's location, in the ore storage facilities of the station.
They entered one such storage room through sliding double doors. Inside, Oskar and two more Sisters, acting as his escorts, were waiting. Each was pale, a condition the arriving group soon shared.
Three rows of gurneys each bore a Hestian strapped down upon it, at least fifteen gurneys in each row. They ranged in age from the elderly to children who'd yet to reach adolescence. Each was clad in a simple paper gown. Many had their eyes closed, and none of those with open eyes seemed responsive.
To go with the sight, a mixture of stenches filled the room, ones recognizable to any who had ever been around dead bodies.
Innocentia crossed herself, her face twisted into a rictus of horror. "Holy Mother of God. What is this?"
"Oskar?"
The tears in his eyes were telling. He looked broken, guilty, as he met their eyes with his own. "I've done a few scans," he said. "Some of them are dead, others unconscious or barely reactive. All have the neural control device implanted on their spines and show signs of suffering hemorrhagic strokes and nerve damage. I would have to guess these are the results of stressing the implant's control over the brain." His voice wavered. "Jan must be attempting to reach direct control of the brain's other processes, not just motor control."
Brigitte's fists clenched. "Bloody wanker. I knew I should've killed him when I had the chance."
"Any sign of the scientists?" Henry asked.
"There were no others here, Captain," one of Oskar's escorts said. "Merely these poor souls. And…"
"This way, my friends." Oskar led them to the far door, one meant for connecting one storage room to the next. Henry steeled himself for what was next.
Inside the next room were more Hestians, perhaps two or even three times as many, again of a mix of age group and sex. Most of them were now freed of their straps, with a pair of stern-faced Hestian fighters freeing the others. They were all confused and terrified. A couple were standing stiffly or still lying on their gurneys, reminding Henry of what Tia looked like when they found her in the testing lab on Hestia.
"More experimental subjects," Oskar said. "Almost all have the implant." He turned to face them again. "Captain, with your permission, I would like to stay and begin removing those implants. It will take much time, I know, but you have other medical personnel from Lou and the Sisters, and these people can't be made to suffer a moment longer."
Henry considered the request quietly. He would prefer that Oskar be on his ship, if just to have his skill on hand for the crew, but he could see just how much this meant to the man. This was technology he'd developed, he'd virtually invented, and it'd been used to cause suffering and death. Freeing these people was a way to redeem himself in his own eyes.
So he nodded quietly. "Alright. Brigitte can stay with you."
"I'll keep him out of trouble," she promised.
"Sister Anna, Sister Patience, stay with the good doctor," Innocentia said. "His protection is in your hands."
"Yes, Sister."
"Good luck out there, Captain," Oskar said. "And thank you."
Henry responded with a nod before departing. "Let's get to those cruisers," he said to everyone else.
* * *
From his seat in the VIP gallery, Antoine watched the Hestian Assembly session with quiet impatience. His eyes swept around the room and he tried not to smirk at the pretense here. The Assembly, a chamber of about three hundred, was theoretically representative of the two hundred million or so residents of the planet and their respective districts, and from its ranks, the planet's Prime Minister and Cabinet were derived. The current constitution made the Hestian Business Council an "advisory body" that advised both on policy, but the Assembly held the legal power.
In truth, the relationship was the other way around. The true power was the HBC. The Assembly was a rubber stamp and had been for half a century. It was a mockery to pretend they had any right to the dignity implied by the chamber's grandeur. A mockery I must only tolerate for a little while longer.
The floor was currently held by Felipe Xiu. Antoine detested the jumped-up revolutionary, but the HBC's arrangements with the League meant letting him and his "Social Solidarity Party" stand for election. In return, the SSP carefully moderated its rhetoric, calling on the Hestian people to work "in the name of the eventual revolution," one that could only come with the defeat of the Terran Coalition. The SSP avowed to only make changes if it held the Assembly—and it never did, the HBC saw to that—and otherwise, loyally voted to support current "social defense measures," that is, all of the various laws and regulations that kept order. It also keeps the Hestians in their place.
"This measure is not an offense against workers, but against wreckers," Xiu declared. He spoke his English with only a light accent. "There are many Hestians who have fallen into individualistic thinking, who care nothing for the needs of their community. They undermine our mines, our factories, our farms, they do everything they can to wreck the efforts of honest workers, either through shirking their share of the labor or by active sabotage. Through this effort, we will ensure they do their part and cause no further harm to our hard-working people. Social principles will be upheld, and we will be ready for the day that Sagittarius is liberated from the Coalition's capitalist influences. The Social Solidarity Party is fully in support of the Workplace Security Act, and we call upon all Hestians to unify in support of our workers."
There were some catcalls from the audience. Antoine recognized a few of them. He had files on them all, of course, and already had plans laid for their fates. But he had no worry about their reaction.
Indeed, as Xiu sat, there was silent applause from the Assembly. It wasn't enthusiastic, but it was there, and more than a few heads did nervously glance toward him as if to judge his approval of their behavior. He smiled and nodded. A good king recognizes when his will is upheld by those below, however much they clearly don't like it.
The Speaker of the Assembly stood. His name was Rehman Awang, from the Segamat City Region in the tropics of Hestia. His party called itself the Social Conservative Party, and they were allowed to lead the current government by the HBC since their focus was on protecting "Hestian morals," not trying to win more concessions like some prior parties had. He spoke in English instead of Hestian as well. "If there are no further statements to be made, we will now take the vo
te."
A number of the Assembly clamored for the floor, all those who were clearly opposed to Antoine's new law, but the majority were calling for the vote to be held. Instead of simply refusing to acknowledge the dissidents, however, Awang spoke up. "I will remind the Assembly that the HBC Security Division has insisted on the need for this law to maintain planetary order."
Not very subtle, Antoine thought, and it clearly didn't quite work. One voice cried out "We will not be bullied!" He tried not to laugh. Hestians love to talk tough, but they break easily enough.
While the clamor filled the chamber, a message flashed into his vision, courtesy of the connection between his link and his artificial eye. It was from one of his subordinates in Rigault Security. CONTACT WITH LUNAR STATION LOST. REASONS UNKNOWN. RESPONSE REQUESTED.
I really need men of more initiative. Antoine felt a cold feeling crept down his spine. He turned his attention away from the clamor in the Assembly, which currently defied Awang's gavel slamming on his podium in an attempt to reclaim order. He needed to consider this problem.
It's a malfunction. It has to be. But if it isn't… He considered that possibility. A prisoner uprising, maybe? Could they have overpowered the guards on Breivik's detail? I must account for that possibility.
He pulled out his link and typed a reply. Deploy security tactical teams from orbital station. Investigate immediately.
43
Henry met the rest of his crew at the observation decks for the station's refitted docks. The entire group looked with awe at the ship.
He couldn't blame them. It was an impressive vessel in person. The design seemed more inspired by CDF fleet cruisers than anything else, if a little smaller and wider instead of taller. The three spinal mount neutron cannons each made the Shadow Wolf's old weapon look small. The auto-turrets were also gimbal-mounted and dual-barreled instead of single. Sleek Matrinid muonic cannons mounted on both the dorsal and ventral surfaces gave the ship a sharp look, as did the bow that came to a shark's head shape at the front. The Rigault Heavy Industries logo, a big stylized "R," was painted blue on the dark gunmetal gray hull on the side of the bow.
"Now that looks like a warship," Miri mused.
"It's meant to intimidate, that's for sure." His eyes tracked to further down the side of the ship. Instead of the hull number that he would expect in the CDF, blue block lettering proclaimed the ship's name as Conquérant. "Director Rigault isn't being subtle, is he?"
"I already checked out th' other ships," Cera said. "They're named Terrible, Impériale, an' Le Triomphant."
"How do they look?"
"Well, th' last one's still got some work needed; she's still missin' turrets at th' very least. Can't tell ye about th' others yet."
"I checked the camera logs on the Nimrod," Miri said. "Conquérant is the ship Rigault met Kepper in when he brought Tia back to Hestia."
"So we know she's spaceworthy, and probably the one they were due to launch first." Henry gestured forward. "Let's check it out."
The crew, as a group, walked at a brisk pace toward the boarding tube on the ship's starboard side. Once inside the airlock, they came across Hestians moving through the halls, some of them in prisoner suits. "More prisoners?"
"They were due to be implanted," Miri said. "Ninh's forces freed them, and the adults rushed to volunteer. Right now, they're making sure the ship's cleared of any crew, but they're ready to join us."
Pieter said, "I doubt any of them are spacers. But if they can handle an auto-spanner and a wrench, I can use them for engineering crew work. We'll just have to keep an eye on them."
"Round up whomever you need and coordinate with Linh."
Linh nodded. "We can make this work."
"Good. We're heading for the bridge, if you want to check engineering?"
He was answered by nods. Linh, Pieter, and Samina headed off toward the ship's stern while Henry brought the others with him toward the bow. He recalled the plans recovered by the data raid to lead the way forward.
The bridge was indeed in the ship's forward section, partway between the center of the ship and the bow on Deck 10. The layout put a command chair toward the rear on an elevated level, while various stations spread out from there. The apparatus for a holo-viewer was present, plus the chamber's front wall was clearly made with a liquid crystal surfacing to act as a secondary display. Henry noted the controls were tactile response ones, as in switches, keys, knobs, and the like.
"Impressive," said Vidia. "A shame it was built for such a terrible purpose."
"Antoine Rigault wants to build an empire with these ships," Henry said. "An empire he'll spread that control device with. So it's fitting we're going to stop him with them."
Cera eased herself into the helm. "A sassenach slaver like that bastard doesn't deserve a beaut like this." She ran her hands over the controls.
"We'll need to reset the computer systems," Miri said while walking along the stations. She found what she was looking for and sat there. "Piper and I can get to work on that."
That brought a thought to him. Rigault's ship names were handpicked. It's his message to the galaxy of what these ships are for. Well, two can play at that game, Director. "Reset the identifier systems too. Change the ship's name."
"Okay. What name?"
Henry grinned. "Let's go with… the Liberator."
Cera turned her chair back briefly. "Oh, I like."
"So do I," Piper added.
Vidia took a seat at the communications station. "I agree."
"We'll get it done," Miri said. "'Liberator' it is."
* * *
The three engineers found their way to the engineering section and were just as impressed. Two big reactor vessels dominated the chamber while a smaller one was toward the rear, an arrangement that reminded them of the Shadow Wolf's. The Lawrence drive was built into the deck toward the bow.
They weren't alone. A number of Hestians and two Sisters were already present. One of the Sisters approached them. "Sister Prudence," she introduced herself, speaking with a Tyronian Irish accent. "Pleased t' make yer acquaintance. Sister Innocentia thought ye'd need some engineerin' help. I was assigned t' Engineerin' in the CDF for eight years, an' I'm ready for orders."
"Good, because you're going with me," Linh said. She nodded to Pieter. "Let's get a look at this place together, but then I'm heading over to the next cruiser."
"Right."
By this point, both noticed Samina was gawking at the master control display. It was a holographic projection, listing all of the systems in the ship and its readiness for action. Aside from computer lockdowns, Pieter noticed it was ready to go. "You okay?" he asked her.
"It's… it's so advanced," she said. "I mean, proton fusion. Only the Matrinid have that. How do we…"
"You went over the engine schematics with us." Linh walked over and set a hand on Samina's shoulder. "We can make this work."
"Listen to your mentor." Pieter gave her an understanding nod. "I know it's a lot to take in. But a lot of the principles, well, we know what we've got to do. Checking the coolant levels, watching for overloads or damage to the reaction vessels, making sure all the insides are working and relaying electricity and plasma where it needs to go… it's the same. You've done this on the Wolf, right? And the fusion drives, they're just about the same. Just all helium-3 fusing instead of helium-3 and deuterium."
She swallowed and nodded, sucking in a deep breath afterward. "I… I guess."
"That's the spirit," Linh said. "This is what you were born for, Samina."
"Then let's get some teams set up from the volunteers." Pieter glanced back to the display. "We'll be having a lot of work if we end up in a real fight."
* * *
Henry waited on the bridge quietly, but not easily. Miri and Piper were off at the main computer cores, requiring direct access to finish rebooting the ship's operating systems to give full access. Pieter and Samina were busy getting things going in Engineering as well, while Lin
h was with Captain Ninh getting the Avenger going.
"So what's our status on the Impériale?" he asked over the link.
The responding female voice was another of Lou's people, a captain in his security fleet named Captain Trang. "It could be a while. They were still finishing some of the final systems, and the fusion drives haven't been refueled yet. We're doing that now."
"Make do as best as you can," Henry said. "There's no telling how long—"
"Captain, sorry ta interrupt." Vidia's tone wasn't very apologetic regardless of his words. "But th' station control crew is signalin', it's Sister Innocentia." At Henry's nod, he keyed the system to put them on speaker.
"Captain Henry, we have short-range transports on approach. They're armed vessels. The sensors from the Venture Star are showing multiple life signs on each."
"Reinforcements." So we're almost out of time. The moment we act against those ships, the entire system will know something's up.
"Likely, and we may not have the forces to hold them unless we pull people from the cruisers."
And that means more time to get these things spaceworthy. "We'll buy every moment we can," he said. "Don't fire the station defenses until they're close, but under no circumstances can any of those ships land."
"Acknowledged."
He keyed his link to Pieter. "Pieter, what's our status?"
"Teams are ready for damage control, and we'll bring the reactors to full as soon as the computers work with us."
"Alright." He keyed Miri next. "Miri, status?"
"Not there yet. It will be a while. The Rigault computer systems are more robust than Leaguer computers."
"Well, do what you can. We've got hostiles inbound. We need this ship ready ASAP."
"I understand."
He put the link to the side and leaned back in his seat. Now we wait.
Breach of Trust: Breach of Faith Book Four Page 34
