Lunara: The Original Trilogy

by Wyatt Davenport

  Staring at the datapad, he waited for Sarah’s reaction.

  Sarah steadied her legs, stood more erect, and said: "I don’t have anything to say to the new chancellor."

  "We have to look," Gertie said, her eyes a little wider than usual, no doubt her attempt to beg to see the datapad for herself. "The subject says urgent."

  Sarah shook her head. "She believes anything from her is urgent, and as the Princess, she would expect everyone to stop what they are doing and placate her whims."

  "Minister," Terry said. "Maybe you should wait until we have the entire command staff assembled to open it."

  She shook her head. "No, Gertie is right. I have to open this now. I won’t trouble everyone over something as trivial as threats and bravado from the newly appointed Chancellor Arwell. The Arwells are far too predictable to do anything other than gloat."

  She pressed the activation button, and the screen lit up.

  Gwen’s face appeared. "Minister McCloud, I thank you for your time. I’m glad Parker has found someone he can truly love." Parker’s heart skipped, thinking of how wayward his friend had drifted. "First off, I would like to convey my deepest apologies for what has happened over the last month between the MSA and the Alliance. It was never my intention to start or prolong this war."

  "Your father had the nerve," Sarah muttered.

  "I would like to offer Aethpis and your Alliance a cease-fire in an effort to forge a peace treaty between our two fractured peoples. The MSA are not warmongers or tyrants. I want to prevent further losses at all costs. I have provided a frequency and a time for a meeting between us. I look forward to your reply. The time stamp and verification code will confirm my sincerity."

  The datapad flashed a bright red and then beeped three times before displaying the file. The message was deleted, and only one file remained. Sarah opened it.

  As Gwen had said, the file contained the time stamp, the frequency of the intended meeting, and appended to the end, the verification code. She passed the datapad to Gertie. "Have the encryption team verify the authenticity code and pass the frequency to the communications unit."

  "What will you say to Gwen?" Parker said.

  "I don’t know," she said. "I’m a little out of sorts right now."

  Parker caught her gazing at the barrier cutting across Aethpis. He knew her desire to have Aethpis whole would overwhelm her. At any cost, she would bring Aethpis back to the Cortezes, and where would that leave the rest of Mars and Lunara? He knew he had to help Chloe and Jan find the metalor.

  Chapter 32

  Eamonn curled tighter into his blanket, which reeked of sweat after days of use. He shivered. The dimly lit cell provided little help for him to escape. Of course, he checked every so often in case he had missed something. He never did. A single door leading into the cell was his only chance to escape, and the MSA locked it tighter than an exit port on a space cruiser.

  He cringed as another rattle echoed throughout the detention block. He shook his head. Did it happen every hour or every half hour? Time was becoming unclear to him, but he had counted 450 so far since he had left Zephyria colony and Samantha Burns’s torture. His only contact had been with the guards who had brought him food—a small bowl of algae paste.

  The cold, the hunger, and the stench were becoming familiar to him. He couldn’t remember being anything different. Only the pain of Shannon’s betrayal lingered within him. The thought of seeing her again was too much to bear.

  He didn’t even know if he would get the chance. How could she get into this maximum security prison without causing a scene? She would need an entire platoon and some aerial coverage. He was stuck there forever.

  Light passed through a small window in the top of the cell from a ship passing overhead, and he held out his hand. Was that her? He shook his head and pulled the blanket tighter against his body.

  Parker searched his wife’s face to get any kind of reading from her. She had just told him that Gwen Arwell had offered several concessions to the Alliance, namely the return of Aethpis. It was the one thing that Sarah would have a hard time turning down, and it seemed that Gwen’s ploy to get Mars on her side was moving along perfectly. She had tickled Sarah’s weak spot.

  "We are getting peace and Aethpis back from the MSA," Sarah said. "We also get to remain in control of Lunara."

  "But don’t you see how Gwen is forcing you into peace? It can’t last."

  "It will last. Aethpis is back until control of the Alliance. It is the most powerful colony, and we have Lunara."

  "I don’t like it. The MSA wouldn’t give up Lunara so easily."

  "Gwen Arwell is inexperienced. She doesn’t know how to negotiate like I do."

  "Don’t underestimate Gwen Arwell. There is a play in the treaty, and I wouldn’t stop setting up any of the fortification efforts."

  "I don’t plan to. The Alliance hasn’t had time to breathe since the war began, and this treaty gives us time to reinforce our military position. Castor and Pollux need more time to train our volunteers, and our shipyards can catch up."

  "Why are you leaving Eamonn to rot in an MSA prison?"

  "That can’t be helped. Gwen Arwell caught him, and there is no persuading her to release him…after what he did to her."

  "You ordered him to kill the chancellor. You should be responsible for getting him out."

  "Shut up! I don’t have to explain my actions to you. You might be a hero to the Alliance, but I am the leader. Eamonn was given a choice to kill the chancellor, and he knew the risks. I can’t escalate the war to save him or else thousands more will die."

  "You think you have all the answers, but leaving him to die behind enemy lines is a mistake. How can you ask me to sit in peace with my captain suffering?"

  "Your crew again. Make the choice now. Either you accept the peace, or you risk it by trying to save your crewmate. Eamonn is a great man, but is he worth Mars?"

  Parker bristled and stalked toward the door.

  "Where are you going?" Sarah rasped.

  "I have business to attend to. I’m not about to let the MSA run a sneak attack under this cloud of peace."

  "That better be all you do. Your crew is dead, and it isn’t worth trying to fight for them if they don’t want to be saved."

  "Don’t worry. I won’t try to save Eamonn. You are right in one regard. He made his choice."

  With quick strides, Parker hastened out of the room. He hadn’t lied to Sarah as he had no intention of going after Eamonn. Seth and Shannon were still looking for him. But he had a tool at his disposal that would turn the war in the Alliance’s favor and provide a way to galvanize his crew again: Chloe.

  Chapter 33

  The terminal flashed the icon.

  "Cycle 200, Degrees 32.85," Gwen said, looking at the liquid display of her chronometer above her. "The thirty-second day of MSA rule on the planet of Mars and the fourteenth day since my father, the former supreme chancellor of Mars, was assassinated."

  She didn’t find it easy to say the words, but by using the event logs she wouldn’t let anyone forget the cowardly act that tried to destroy the Arwell family and their legacy.

  Sealed for 150 years, the stories her father and now she told would be the chronicle of the new Mars. She remembered that he often agonized about recording them and his deception of the planet was the main reason for it. He wasn’t being honest with the record.

  She would be.

  "Computer, event log beginning," she said, and then paused for a long moment. "I guess I should start at the beginning of the excitement this week. On the first morning of the week, the Alliance fleet arrived into the space over Aethpis and sent most of our air force into a panic." She paused. "Computer, strike the words ‘into a panic.’ Replace with the words ‘into high alert.’"

  "Yes, my lady," the cordial computer voice replied. "Continue."

  "The state of high alert happened because only hours before they arrived, an intelligence briefing from Tho
mas Cross reported the fleet wouldn’t be arriving for another day or two at the earliest. So you can imagine the air force’s surprise when several cruisers and smaller warships popped on the radar. I’m not bothered nearly as much as Thomas Cross was. His initial reaction was to attack. His embarrassment was clearly clouding his decisions, so I countermanded his order. As anyone who had met Cross can imagine, he wasn’t pleased with my involvement."

  "My analysis of his profile suggests an aggressive temperament toward a loss of control. My imagination would suggest he would be unsatisfied with your orders to halt his attack. If you knew his temperament, why would you upset him, my lady?"

  "Frankly, I found it a relief that the Alliance fleet came back." She paused for a moment as she thought about striking the comment from the record.

  "My lady, you were relieved the Alliance posed a greater threat?" The computer replied with a human-like tone of surprise and curiosity.

  She obliged. "It was inevitable. And since their return, the war has seemed more real to me. Danger existed, but the grit and the grimness of war hadn’t shown its face. The tangible evidence on Mars…Trivium Port, the nonaligned colonies…are so close that we forget we lost Lunara. In the days after the Alliance returned, I could sense a palpable apprehension from my senior staff.

  "In any event, the fleet was little more than bravado. No attack or positioning. Using hindsight, the Alliance fleet should’ve attacked us. We would’ve suffered severe damages to our key locations at Aethpis and in the territory separating Trivium and Zephyria."

  "You harbor sympathy for the Alliance, my lady. Is this wise, considering your position in the MSA?"

  "You mistake sympathy for acknowledgement of the situation. It isn’t wrong for the supreme chancellor of the MSA to speculate whether our choices have been correct or to explore the position of the enemy from their eyes."

  "Should I adjust my replies to the point of view of the Alliance from this point forward?"

  She laughed. "For Pluto’s sake, no. You should allow analysis of all your scenario matrixes to account for the point of view of both Alliance and MSA interests."

  "I will allow my analyst matrixes to deviate into Alliance tactical scenarios."

  "Good. Fortunately for us you may never be needed for tactical scenarios. Each passing day makes the MSA stronger, and by my calculations, our conscription rate is four times as strong as the Alliance. The survey of my father’s personal storage units, spread throughout the planet, has turned up more resources than I had initially projected, especially our metalor supplies.… Computer hold recording."

  "Yes, my lady."

  She scanned the datapad in front of her.

  "Computer, record. As I was saying, including the hidden store of metalor at Argyle Planitia, we will have two years stockpiled in our control. Our strength rises each day."

  "Your offer of peace to the minister does not coincide with your desire for the MSA to stockpile metalor, my lady."

  "You sound just like Samantha. The power of the people over the government is something she doesn’t fully understand, and I don’t know if she’ll ever understand. The method of control we have over the population is directly related to the approval or disapproval of the population toward us."

  "The government controls the people with laws and policing."

  "Computer, that control is rudimentary. I’m talking about sentimental control. If the people approve of the government, they’ll follow and believe anything we say. Doubts will be swallowed by an eagerness to please us. However, a displeased population will rebel the instant the littlest thing goes wrong, no benefit of the doubt given. This will cause the government to use force and policy to persuade them into obedience.

  "The people’s opinion is why I offered the peace treaty. It will show the people of the MSA are sincere about peace. The doubts about the creation of the MSA still linger. But instead of the Alliance reaching out to us, I’ve reached out to them, and this will put the Alliance in a difficult situation."

  "My analysis of the Alliance supports the idea they will be receptive to the peace treaty. Therefore, I do not calculate any indication this decision will be difficult."

  "Computer, you are as shallow-minded as my command staff sometimes. Didn’t I tell you to look from the Alliance’s point of view?"

  "I do not understand."

  She hesitated for a moment; the computer’s curiosity logic routines annoyed her. She wondered if the curiosity matrix was even tested. "Either they accept the treaty and admit the MSA is the rightful majority on Mars, or they reject the treaty, and the people will see it as a sign they want to prolong the war. Prolonging the war will displease the Alliance citizens and ruffle the feathers of more than one of their command staff.

  "Your quagmire will beget a no-win situation for the Alliance, which will beget insurrection toward the minister."

  "Exactly, and aside from Samantha’s goal of controlling the entire planet, prolonging the war isn’t in our best interests. You see, even if we have the planet, what is the point of forced control of a significant minority section of the people who are against us? There isn’t one. Total subjugation of the entire population is inherently flawed. Everyone recognizes that no one system of government is perfect or else peace would have been attained decades ago.

  "In its purest form, the peace treaty is a vehicle for propaganda for the MSA to control more of Mars. It doesn’t solve the friction between the MSA and the Alliance, and it definitely doesn’t solve the Lunara problem."

  She paused, staring at the blinking icon on the screen.

  "Shall I stop the recording, my lady?"

  She groaned. "Nothing disheartens me more than the Lunara problem. I guess I’ll stop the recording on that note. A nice depressing end for the historians."

  "My lady, you could discuss the defense system you have been reading in file number 404-33392."

  "Computer, your artificial interface is being too nosy again. Strike any records and logs pertaining to the 404 subsection and double encrypt the secondary keymatrix on the files."

  "Yes, my lady."

  "And has anyone besides Samantha or me looked in the 404 subsystem since its creation?"

  "Military Commander Thomas Cross and Supreme Chancellor Damon Arwell."

  "When was the last occurrence for Thomas Cross?"

  "Seven days ago."

  "I knew he was into my father’s files," she muttered to herself. She was glad he was dead now. "Computer, create a hidden command to inform me if anyone other than Samantha Burns and myself accesses the 404 subsystem."

  "Yes, my lady. Anything else?"

  "Computer, display the 404 subsystem for me, ordering them into relevance to the topic of orbital range pattern. It is time to start on the second phase of my plan."

  Chapter 34

  Argyle Planitia loomed in the distance as Parker gazed out of the canopy toward the ancient crater. Nereidum Montes, their destination, encompassed the northern rim of the giant planitia.

  Jan steered the skimmer.

  Parker, to her right, held the navigation position. Chloe was stowed in the back seat with her head poking over his shoulder. She was scanning the map, trying to pinpoint the exact location. The feeling from the metalor bins in the underground storage facility on Aethpis still resonated in her mind. The metalor told her where to search, where it was located.

  Closing in on the mountains, the skimmer streaked low along the surface, hiding them from radar and orbital scanners.

  "Are we close?" Parker tilted his head. "The map is zoomed in as far as it will go."

  "Very close, up the ridge toward the top of that mons," she said as she pointed out of the canopy toward a series of mountains. "The second one on the left, that is where it is for sure."

  He moaned, scanning the steep slope. "We can’t land on the mons. We’ll have to land lower and climb up."

  "Don’t be so sure," Jan said, pointing her free hand. "That looks like a la
nding pad. The boulders and rocks are cleared away, and the ground is flattened at the edges, too."

  "I can see some markers down there, warning lights or beacons," he said. "Take her down."

  The wind sweeping from over the mons rattled the ship as Jan cut across the air current. She gripped the steering wheel, trying to fight the swaying skimmer. Finding stability, she swung the ship to face the mons, fired the repulse engines intermittently, and lowered toward the surface.

  On touchdown, as they bore the weight of the skimmer, the landing gears screeched, grinded, and then clunked to a firm stop.

  "Atmospheric landings are a pain," Jan said, unclipping her breathing mask from her belt. "How far away is it, Chloe?"

  "I’m not sure. Let’s get out."

  Jan released the hatch, exposing them to the atmosphere of Mars.

  As he stood outside the skimmer, Parker stretched and jumped around, trying to warm his body. The air blew gently from the west, a crisp breeze with the slight nip of sulfur.

  "Take your weapons," Parker commanded. He slung a large rifle over his shoulder and then secured his pistol on the small of his back. He was ready for the worst.

  Chloe clipped her pistol to her outer thigh and made sure it was loaded. Jan had two pistols, slightly larger than Chloe’s, on her hips.

  "That way." Chloe gestured them up the ridge. "It’s getting stronger."

  "I found a path," Parker said. He bent down and sifted the finely grained basalt through his fingers. "Doesn’t look like windblown paths. You can see a few footprints. Someone has been here in the last few days."

  No one replied. Their eyes darted across the mons. Nothing was of interest.

  They followed the path as far as it would go up to the top of the ridge, where it flattened out into two forks. Parker led Chloe, followed by Jan, to the upper fork. Traveling farther around the mons, they stopped at the apex of the path and knelt.