Counterstrike

by D. J. Holmes

  The third ranking politician Christine introduced was the Speaker of the House of Servants. Doctor Maylee Strobel had been a leading historian who had taught at both Princeton and Cambridge. Christine had chosen him as one of her appointments to the House of Servants and he had managed to get himself elected as the Speaker of the House, essentially becoming the senior member there. He hadn’t aligned himself with either the Loyalists or Constitutionalists though he appreciated the nuances both parties held. After Doctor Strobel, Christine introduced Admiral Nogamoro and Rear Admiral Suarez who together commanded Home Fleet. Then she introduced the other members of her Inner Council who were present, Rear Admiral Andréa Clements, Cynthia Davenport, and the once infamous smuggler John McCarthy. The rest of the council were either out of the system commanding fleets on the frontline or carrying out other tasks James and Christine had assigned them.

  “Well, now that we all know each other,” Christine said to the group of individuals who had begun to mingle with one another. “Let us retire to the Palace. I have a meal prepared in your honor Admiral Ya’sia. There is a brief snowstorm expected in the next half an hour or so, so we best go inside. Please, follow me.”

  James glanced over his shoulder towards Tour Saliére. There were dark clouds rolling over the peak from the direction of Geneva. The occasional snowstorms around the Palace were both a blessing and a curse. Inside they were beautiful to watch. Outside it was not always quite the same. More than a few times he had been caught in one whilst arriving from somewhere else on Earth dressed in just his Admiral’s uniform. The thought made him give a slight shiver. He quickly moved to Christine’s side and joined her in leading the procession into the Palace.

  “This is an impressive structure,” Ya’sia commented as they entered the glass doors that were ten feet high. Two marines in combat armor had opened them and were now standing at attention.

  Before James could say anything, Christine elbowed his arm. She then answered the Crian Admiral. “It is Admiral. Whilst I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the spacious apartments James, Jonathan and I share, the Palace is used for much more than just our residence. Many offices and strategic planning committees are based here. As Emperor and Empress, James and I are the head of our army and navy as well as being responsible for the long-term future of our species. The Palace is the focal point for all of our work. In addition, it is meant to be a symbol. The Karacknids may have nuked many of our major cities, but we can and will rebuild.”

  “The Palace matches your intention well,” Ya’sia commented. “This building could be in Cria or Varanni Prime and it would fit right in. Your species has certainly come a long way in such a short time.”

  “I confess that Superintendent Hallock and his people had some input in the design,” Christine admitted. “They even shipped in some of the more advanced construction materials they suggested we incorporate.”

  Ya’sia smiled, “The Kulreans are an intriguing species, despite their professed pacifism, they keep getting themselves involved in our war with the Karacknids. I presume the expense and construction efforts Hallock saved were diverted to your warship construction program?”

  Christine smiled back. “Of course Admiral. Where else would it go?”

  Ya’sia nodded. “Where is the Superintendent by the way? I am keen to meet him.”

  “Both Hallock and Admiral Jil’lal of Vestar are awaiting us in the banqueting hall. They wanted to leave the official introductions to my people and I, but they are as keen to chat with you as you are them.”

  “Excellent,” Ya’sia replied.

  When they arrived at the banqueting Hall, Christine introduced Hallock and Jil’lal to the Alliance officers and then the stewards showed everyone to their seats. To James’ delight, he had been sat between Vice Admiral Klack and Cynthia. The meal shouldn’t be too boring, he thought, no doubt Klack would have a lot of interesting strategic and tactical ideas to talk about. Superintendent Hallock sat on the other side of Klack however and initially James found that the Kulrean Superintendent held more interest for Klack than James did. James understood, the Varanni and the Kulreans had a long history together, albeit the species hadn’t interacted with each other for nearly a millennia until recently. “So,” James said between mouthfuls as he turned to Cynthia. “How is the building work going?” Though he was eager to talk to Klack, he didn’t mind getting to spend some time with Cynthia. She was his last real link to Suzanna. The Havenite had been his first wife’s closest confidante and unofficial Chief of Staff for several years.

  “It’s progressing,” Cynthia replied as she quickly chewed what she was eating. “The foundations for the House of Commons are complete and the House of Servants is almost there too. We have most of the materials on site to begin construction in the Commons. We plan to begin by the end of the week.”

  “How are the Senators liking their new building?” James asked. “I’m sure they’re happy to get out of the hotel conference rooms they’ve been meeting in.”

  “They certainly are,” Cynthia agreed, “they can actually meet together as one body now rather than remotely. Though they have forwarded a number of suggested tweaks to the Senate building. We are incorporating them into the Commons and Servant buildings. Then we’ll probably go back and make the changes in the Senate, though that won’t be for a few years.”

  James took a sip of his drink. “What’s the estimated completion time for the Commons building?”

  “Six months and we will have all the construction work done, then another two for the refurbishment,” Cynthia answered. “I’m pretty confident about those dates. Now that we’ve completed one building, we have a good idea of how long it will take to finish the next two. By this time next year, work should be complete on both of them.”

  “Impressive,” James commented. “How are things back home?”

  “As well as can be expected,” Cynthia replied as she gave him a small smile. “You know my people. Giving up their independence did not sit comfortably with most of them, but we know the threat the Karacknids pose, and with you as Emperor, they at least know what they’re getting themselves into. A few new political parties have formed that want to revoke our membership of the Empire, but their support is almost non-existent.”

  “I imagine that will grow with time. Especially if the Karacknid threat ever diminishes,” James responded. “I may not know Haven as well as you, but I have seen your people’s fierce independence come to the fore on more than one occasion. Still, I hope that won’t be for some years yet, and by then perhaps we will have convinced your people that remaining in the Empire is in their long term as well as short term good.”

  “Let’s hope so,” Cynthia concurred. “With all the money flowing into the system with the number of warships we are building, our economy is booming, there has actually been a sharp increase of immigrants from Earth and some other colonies.”

  James’ eyebrows rose. “That is going to be interesting. Perhaps if enough immigrants come in, we don’t have to worry about Haven thinking of seceding from the Empire. Though I imagine if too many come in and the ethos of the planet starts to change, it will only get the backs up of those who oppose the Empire.”

  “It will certainly be interesting to see how things play out,” Cynthia replied. “I’m glad I’m not a part of it. I have enough of a headache as it is.”

  “You’re not tempted to go back?” James pressed.

  Cynthia shook her head. “Not at the moment. The new Governor of Haven offered me a position, I want to see things through here first though. I understand why you and Christine wanted me to head up the construction work. I have to deal with suppliers from basically every nation on Earth. They already think I have my favorites, and I’m not even from here!”

  The sudden weight pressed against James’ left arm made him turn away from Cynthia. Klack had leaned over towards him. “Emperor, I have read all the reports I can get on your new Corsair interceptors. I know you
have seen them in action firsthand. I’m keen to hear how you think they have performed so far,” the Varanni Admiral said.

  James glanced back at Cynthia and gave her a wink as he reached out and touched her elbow. He knew she would understand the abrupt end to their conversation. As Emperor he had a duty to see to his guests, and, as an Admiral, talk of fighters and battles was a hard thing to turn down. Cynthia gave him a knowing smile; she understood both of his motives.

  Turning back to Klack, James described the Battle of Alpha-two. Soon the discussion ranged from the battles Klack had been involved in to the new technologies and novel strategies Humanity and the Alliance were coming up with. For James, the meal flew by. Later, as he and Klack were joined by Nogamoro, Suarez and a Varanni Rear Admiral, the discussions continued long into the night.

  Chapter 4

  With the massive growth in the Imperial Navy after the War of Doom and the increase in ship sizes that accompanied it, small local shipyards could no longer keep up with demand. Within one hundred years of the Empire’s formation, entire solar systems began to be devoted to the construction of warships.

  -Excerpt from Empire Rising, 3002 AD.

  Imperial Palace, 12th November 2483 AD (two days later).

  “I think that is about everything Admiral,” James said as he stood to bring the meeting to a close. “Good luck out there,” he added as he held out his hand to Rear Admiral Jackson Yamata. The Japanese naval officer was being given command of the shipyard Regin in the Maximillian system. With the rapid expansion the once secret shipyard was undergoing, it had become necessary to send a flag officer to take over operations. James had spent the last half hour filling the Rear Admiral in on some of the finer points of Haven culture, given he would be mainly dealing with Havenite freighters and politicians.

  “Thank you for your advice Admiral, I won’t let you down. I know it’s not the front line, but I will do my best to get as many warships into your hands as I can,” Yamata replied as he shook James’ hand vigorously and then snapped to attention and saluted.

  “I’m sure you will,” James said after returning the gesture. “Dismissed,” he added as he gave Yamata one final nod. Nogamoro had recommended Yamata for the position, Yamata was a competent commander who excelled in logistics. He was exactly the man Regin needed to ensure the shipyard’s expansion continued smoothly.

  As the office door closed behind Yamata, James pulled out his COM unit. “Where are they now?” he asked Alfaro, his Flag Lieutenant. The Havenite was a new addition to his command staff. Given that he spent so much time off Drake when he was in the Sol system, having an officer who shadowed him and kept charge of his schedule was very helpful. Alfaro had joined the Imperial Navy after Haven had voted to join the Empire. He had been a Third Lieutenant in a Havenite destroyer before that. With a year or two’s experience as James’ flag officer, he would be able to pick up a position of First Lieutenant aboard a much larger warship. Or perhaps even a small command of his own given how the fleet is expanding, James thought as it took Alfaro a few seconds to get an answer to his query. He had been involving the Flag Lieutenant in most of the simulations his command staff carried out and Alfaro was showing decent tactical capabilities alongside everything else he did for James.

  “They’re already in the air,” Alfaro informed James. “They’re scheduled to touch down in four minutes.”

  “Very good,” James replied. Christine, Jonathan, and he had been scheduled to visit one of the new orphanages that had been built in China. With so many Chinese cities having been nuked by the Karacknids there were many orphans that he and Christine were responsible for. The vast majority had been adopted over the last two years, but there was still a need to provide housing, food, and education for those who hadn’t yet found new homes. When Yamata had been chosen to take over at Regin, James had been forced to cancel on Christine in order to meet with Yamata before he left the Sol system. “I’ll go and greet them myself,” James replied. “We may as well take a few minutes of fresh air while we can. Care to join me?”

  “Of course Admiral,” Alfaro responded.

  James turned and left his office. It was just a short walk to the Palace’s massive foyer. Alfaro was already there waiting for him. James nodded to him and together they crossed the foyer and exited the main entrance. The chilly mountain breeze washed over James, making his cheeks redden. As best he could, he ignored the cold and enjoyed the scenery. Taking a deep breath he slowly looked around, taking in the mountains that towered on either side of the valley and the beautiful scenery of the lake and valley itself. “This is one advantage of working here rather than on Drake,” James said to Alfaro. “You don’t get views like this in space.”

  “No Admiral, certainly not,” Alfaro agreed.

  Of course, James thought, on Drake there are far fewer politicians to waylay me. They are why I need some breaks to clear my head. Thoughts of Drake quickly disappeared as he spotted a shuttle coming up the valley. Christine and Jonathan would soon be home.

  *

  From a safehouse in Nice just one hundred and eighty miles away, Agarwal saw the shuttle as well. It brought a feral smile to his face. The live feed from the head mounted camera on his operative was being passed through more than twenty different locations including a station in low Earth orbit. Even so, there was barely a second of delay.

  “Confirmed,” Saria said from where she sat beside him as she looked down at her own terminal. “That is the Imperial shuttle. According to their official schedule, they should be returning to the Palace.”

  “Then that is them,” Agarwal said. “Give the go order.”

  “Sent,” Saria responded instantly.

  Agarwal could picture what happened next. He had trained the operative personally. From the camouflaged foxhole, his man would mount the hyper velocity missile launcher on his shoulder. Manually he would line the weapon up on the moving shuttle, leading his target by no more than a hundred meters. Releasing his breath, the operative would flick on the targeting sensors. If everything went correctly, it would take less than a second for the launcher to lock on. As soon as it beeped his operative’s finger would depress the trigger. Just as Agarwal imagined it, the image on his screen vibrated as the plume of a missile shot towards the shuttle. In less than two seconds it covered the mile or so to its target and a large fireball engulfed the rear of the shuttle. It tumbled towards the lower regions of the mountain his operative had climbed and hidden himself in days before.

  “Confirmed missile hit,” Saria said. “It struck the shuttle’s engines.”

  “A job well done,” Agarwal replied. “Now to tie up our loose end,” he added as he tapped a button on his own console. It sent a message back through the relays to the second missile he had given his operative. At least, the small bomb had been designed to look like a second missile. As soon as it received the message, it detonated taking out the one thing that linked Agarwal to the assassination of the Emperor and Empress. “It’s time to get out of here. Then we can sit back and enjoy the news reports,” Agarwal said as he raised his arms and stretched in his chair. He was still grinning.

  *

  The moment the shuttle deviated from its course, James knew something was wrong. He recognized the pilot’s attempt at throwing off a targeting lock. Then the plume from the hyper velocity missile raced through the sky. James didn’t have time to scream or think or do anything. Christine’s shuttle disappeared in a blinding explosion. Before despair and anger could overwhelm him, the shuttle appeared again as it rapidly lost altitude. Tumbling end over end smoke and flames enfolded it. James recognized the pilot’s vain efforts to get the shuttle under control. Before he could, the shuttle disappeared from James’ view as it crashed into the forests below the Palace.

  For several seconds James stood stunned as his eyes flicked from where the shuttle had been to the smoke rising where it crashed. Within a handful of breaths, he begun to pant heavily and his head was shaking. No, no,
no, he said to himself. By the fourth time he was speaking out loud, though he didn’t know it. “No! It can’t be. No! Not again!”