by Webb, Nick
There was a silence. Essa’s head turned stiffly. “What?” he asked softly.
“They are complex,” Nhean observed. “My employees have been necessary to keep them functioning, did you know that? Or were you unaware that a significant portion of the manpower of your fleet was composed of my workers? It appears you were. I will be clear, therefore: Walker commands the Exile Fleet, whether under your name and with those legacy ships in tow, or under my name and without them. Make your choice.”
Essa was shaking with rage. One hand curled into a meaty fist before the man forced himself to smile. It was not a friendly smile.
“Fine,” he said, through clenched teeth. “I will put her in command. But you say you are a man of logic, so watch carefully. Understand what you are seeing. This is not a numbers game. Every settlement we lose is a piece of ourself that can never be replaced.”
Nhean nodded. He did not trust himself to speak. There would be no meeting of minds here, nothing more would be accomplished by staying. He nodded to Walker, and then to Essa. “I understand all too well, Mr. Secretary. Admiral Walker, I need to speak to you privately. I’ve received word of a potential attack on Earth.”
He left without waiting to see if she would follow him. He could not spend another minute looking at Essa’s face. Could the man not see that by attempting to save everything, he would instead clear the way for it all to be destroyed?
But Nhean also knew how seductive Essa’s logic would be when the settlements started falling. When there were bodies on the news feeds, when reports came of humans killed without a hope of defending themselves and Essa was making speeches about how he would have protected them all … who would listen to Walker and her plans for a larger strategy? Who would stop to acknowledge that letting some settlements fall was the only way to survive?
For the first time, Nhean was truly scared—not of the Telestines, but of his own people.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Mars
Elysium Planitia City
United Nations Headquarters
Walker did not speak as they walked through the corridors to Nhean’s shuttle. It was not for fear of being overheard. She did not know what to say. A distant part of her thought that she should have had the presence of mind to threaten the same thing as Nhean: follow her, or lose the new fleet. Another part of her disliked that he had done so. Open confrontation with Essa was easy. It was when things devolved into threats and quiet grudges that it all went wrong.
The UN compound at Mars was surprisingly sparsely staffed. Whether seeking safety or fleeing Essa, the council of representatives had scattered, and so there were no news cameras, no aides rushing to and fro with documents. Indeed, there was no real purpose to the compound at all without the council in it. It occurred to Walker that this was one of the most shockingly wasteful things she had ever seen. People lived crushed together on the stations, and here there was almost a station’s worth of space, entirely unused, not even growing its own food or producing technology.
The hangar bay was similarly empty, with only Nhean’s shuttle waiting on an expanse of empty floor. They ducked into the surprisingly small interior and buckled themselves into the seats.
“He didn’t call Delaney down?” was all Nhean said. His voice was still mild, the tone she had always known not to trust. Now, however, she had seen why.
She snorted. “Essa likes to look good. He likes to play everyone’s wise old grandpa. Jack would’ve given him a piece of his mind, and there’s no looking good when Jack Delaney is giving you a piece of his mind. He’s everyone’s gruff old grandpa.”
Nhean laughed as the craft shuddered into the air. He settled back in his seat, gaze sliding into the middle distance.
“Thank you,” she said quietly.
He didn’t bother to pretend. His black eyes focused on her, clear and sharp. “I didn’t do it for you.”
“I know that, but even if you only helped because our goals are aligned—”
“Are they?” Nhean murmured.
“—thank you, anyway.” She met his eyes. “They would have destroyed the fleet.”
He only looked at her.
“For no purpose,” she clarified. “Believe me, I know what’s coming.”
He considered that. The shuttle banked and he gave a glance at the receding gleam of the UN headquarters. “Does the rest of the fleet know it, do you think?”
“Yes and no.” She’d thought about this at length. “We shouldn’t have made it at Mercury. They know it’s an accident that we’re alive, and they know the Telestines can make ships faster than we can—better ships, too. They know the odds. But since we haven’t all died yet … they hope.”
“And you don’t worry about that? About them realizing the truth in the middle of a battle?” He was watching her closely. “Don’t you worry about them realizing that they’ll never see Earth?” His voice was far, far too quiet.
“I do. In the end, though, they aren’t fighting for their families or for Earth—that’s the thing you have to realize about battles. About wars. A soldier doesn’t fight for all the things they should fight for, the things they make speeches out. They fight for the buddy next to them. That’s what keeps armies together when the odds are overwhelming. Not ideals. Each other.”
She had surprised him, she could see. He did not speak as the sky outside darkened to black and Mars faded away beneath them. He was lost in thought.
“We need to go to Vesta,” he said finally. The Koh Rong came into view as the shuttle made for the docking bay.
“Beg pardon?” She was sure, for a moment, that she had misheard. He couldn’t possibly know what was at Vesta … could he? She hoped she had kept her expression clear, but panic was beginning to speed her pulse.
“Parees made contact with the … well, a Telestine named Ka’sagra.”
Walker tried to keep herself from sagging with relief. She was so distracted that she missed the rest of what he said. “Hmm?”
Nhean frowned. “I said, she runs the Daughters of Ascension, and she’s on Vesta overseeing their operations there. I think they call her a Head Priestess, if the term translates at all.”
“At least she leads by example.” The thought of giving up the well-ordered, luxurious floating cities of Telestine-occupied Earth for the dank tunnels of Vesta seemed an extreme way to do so, however. “But why should I meet her? If I’m Admiral of the fleet again—”
“Put Delaney in charge while you’re gone.”
“I’m not saying they’ll be lost without me, I’m asking why I’m needed. You’re our spymaster, and she’s … is she important?”
“Not the term I would have chosen for myself, but it will do.” Nhean looked like he wasn’t sure whether to be amused or vaguely annoyed. “And she is important, though I didn’t realize how important until recently.” He looked uncomfortable with this admission of his failure. “Whether Tel’rabim has intimidated the rest of the groups into silence, or whether they joined with her for some other reason, she is now—as far as I can tell—the main dissenting voice against Tel’rabim in Telestine society. Others may not agree with him, but they don’t speak against him, either. She does.”
Walker gave a grudging nod.
“And we need you there to help us work out what Tel’rabim’s plan is. You’ve interacted with his fleet and the old Telestine fleet more than anyone else. You have a tactical mind. Between you, me, and Ka’sagra, we might have a shot at heading off Tel’rabim. Especially if she’s willing to let me into some of their communications networks.”
“You think she would?” Walker raised an eyebrow. “I’d say your chances of that are better if I’m not there. She’ll know who I am.”
“Remember who she is. Groups like the Daughters of Ascension are the main reason we’re still alive. They were the ones who interceded on our behalf so that we had an Exodus rather than a massacre. They haven’t fallen in line with Tel’rabim, and they’re clearly not prepared to be
sidelined. I want to learn where Tel’rabim’s weakest points are … but I’d rather erode his support, make his strong points weak and his weak points weaker. If we can make his soldiers doubt the cause….”
Walker raised her eyebrows. This, she had not considered.
“Ka’sagra would make a valuable asset to our cause. And if that’s not enough to entice you to Vesta … let me also say that it seems a certain military asset of ours might have ended up there.”
“The girl,” Walker said instantly.
Nhean nodded silently.
She let her head fall back. “Good. As long as we can keep Pike out of there until we—”
“I’m given to understand he just left. With her.”
“I should have known.” She rubbed at her forehead.
“No, what you should know is that they left following a ship bound for Earth, potentially with a bomb on board.”
“Pike’s bombing Earth?”
“No, the ship they’re following is. Maybe. It’s what I was talking about earlier, as we left the council chambers. It looks as if a Daughters of Ascension aid ship was hijacked by one of Tel’rabim’s drones … who potentially smuggled a bomb onto Vesta and subsequently onto a shuttle bound for Earth.” He lifted his brows. “Which should give us leverage with Ka’sagra. Could be someone’s framing her, and if she thinks it’s Tel’rabim, I could see her being induced to help us.”
A bomb from Vesta. Walker tried to breathe.
Clarity emerged from the swirl of thoughts: she needed to see her people on Vesta. If there was a bomb missing, then it was missing. Until then, she could do nothing to affect the outcome of this either way.
She was very aware of Nhean watching her.
“He’s bombing Earth to gain support,” Walker murmured. She shook her head fiercely. “False flag attack to whip up fervor for his cause. Why aren’t we following?”
“Because we won’t beat them, and the girl was our best shot at stopping them in any case.” Nhean did not look the least bit troubled. “I meant what I said to Essa. We can’t head off every attack. Plus, this isn’t exactly an attack on us. At least, not directly.”
“That’s one thing, but this is always being one step behind! I don’t want to be reacting for the entirety of this war.”
“We won’t be.” He gave her a look. “If we can get a way into their systems. If Telestines will join with us to take Tel’rabim down. And right now we have a terrorist that might be heading for their food production or their power infrastructure. I say let them go hungry. Let them live with the fallout. Nothing strains a leader’s credibility so fast.”
“While they hate us because they think we did it.”
“Oh? And has their indifference ever done you any good?”
She had nothing to say to that.
The docking clamps came down and screeching sound reverberated through the hull. The shuttle was drawn into the docking bay, stars replaced by the shadowed interior of the Koh Rong, and Walker turned her head to watch the airlock doors close. Red lights flashed while the shuttle made a lock with the door into the ship and the artificial gravity settled over them like a blanket.
“I don’t like leaving,” she said again.
“I know.”
She unhooked her seatbelt and stood, waiting to let him precede her out the door.
“I’ll want you to put automated flags in the system,” she said finally. “Recruitment is ramping up in a big way for the Exile Fleet—I’ll give Essa that, at least. He’s the magnanimous, popular war hero. But he’s not being as careful with background checks as we were. I want your people watching, and I want them to move on their own if the system flags someone suspicious.”
Nhean lifted his brows. She got the sense that he was pleased. “I’ll do it.”
“Thank you. And I want people on the Santa Maria to watch out for Delaney.”
“They already are.”
She swallowed. What she had really wanted was for him to tell her she was crazy, and Delaney wasn’t at risk.
“And for you?” Nhean asked her.
“What about me?”
“Don’t you want bodyguards? Aren’t you worried you’ll end up dead in an airlock somewhere?”
“If I’m on the Koh Rong, I’d better not.” She kept her voice tart. “But, no. You made a good point, as much as Essa will hate you for it. He knows the UN will face scrutiny if there’s a public fight between him and me.”
“He won’t forgive you,” Nhean warned. He strode through the hallway. “If that’s what you’re hoping.”
“Not in the least,” she said crisply. “I am not a child. And I have the good sense to worry about how he’s planning to get the fleet back—because he is. But he got here on a platform of unity and victory, and he won’t endanger that for the sake of quick revenge. There are very few other people who could be suspects if I end up dead. I’m not saying we’re going to be making friendship bracelets anytime soon, but he’s not gone far enough off the deep end yet to have me assassinated.”
“You don’t think so? That’s good, I suppose.”
Walker smiled grimly. “Quick might be better. He’d rather see me publicly humiliated, and my reputation ruined, and if we give him enough time, he’ll find a way to do it, too.” She blew out a long breath and then lifted a shoulder. “So let’s win this before he has a chance.”
Nhean only laughed as he ducked into a small open room lined with couches. “Take a seat. We’ll be accelerating fast.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Between Earth and Vesta
Aggy II
What the rest of Rychenkov’s crew thought about this mission, Pike couldn’t be sure. James and Gabriela were locked in sullen silence, and the three new crew members were still not quite sure where their opinions fit into things.
Did they think it was futile, as he sometimes did while staring at the ceiling of his bunk? Did they tell themselves that the Telestines did what they wanted, and humanity was just a thorn in the aliens’ side?
Because in the darker moments, the quiet midnight watches, it did seem futile to Pike. It seemed like there was nothing left to fight for because there was no chance of winning, and what was happening now was just an instinctive struggle against death, the way a bug would try to right itself when it was flicked onto its back.
Sometimes, Pike had a bitter clarity of purpose: that if the Telestines were going to exterminate humanity, he was going to make damned sure that they didn’t have any excuses to lean on. This “terrorist” attack wasn’t going to serve as the tipping point in Telestine society if he had any say in it.
The rest of the time, he wandered the halls and tried not to think of the possibility that they wouldn’t catch the shuttle, wouldn’t reach Earth in time to do anything except watch the Telestine fleets leave, hellbent on revenge.
It was on the third day that Rychenkov came pounding down the hallway from the bridge. He stuck his blond head into the mess and gestured to Pike.
“Come see this.”
Pike took his food with him, offering a thank you to the new woman with the spiked hair; he’d already forgotten her name. Katie? Katya? Katya. She blushed a fiery red and stammered a thank you, but he was already gone, eating as he walked with Rychenkov.
“Problem?”
“Not sure.” Rychenkov looked over his shoulder as a clank sounded behind them. “Yes, Lapushka. You too.”
She’d hesitated when they turned, and smiled to be asked along. As she passed Pike, she dipped the bread she still carried into his bowl of soup with a grin.
In the cockpit, she clambered up to perch on one of the cabinets that ran along the sides of the room. She chewed, swinging her feet as Rychenkov and Pike took the chairs.
“So?” Pike took a bite of soup. When the girl leaned over his shoulder to dip a piece of bread in it, he gave her a look and she shrugged.
“He’s changing course.” Rychenkov pointed to the heading, now a few small bu
t significant degrees off from their target. He looked at Pike and the girl. “So do we follow? If he’s not going to Earth?”
There was a long silence. Pike realized he’d forgotten to chew. The girl hugged her knees to her chest.
“Maybe he’s breaking orders,” Pike said at last. He gave the girl a questioning look. “Is that possible?”
Her expression was troubled. She hunched her shoulders, unsure.
“Or he wants to see if we’re following him,” Rychenkov suggested. “And he’ll leave us be if we’re just a cargo ship on a supply run, but he’ll shoot if we change course to follow him.”
“Their aid ships have guns?” It ran entirely against regulations.
“Ours do. Rudimentary, at least. What do you want to bet theirs do, too?”
Pike gave up that point with a shrug. “How would he know we’re here? We have the best tech to be able to track him, and we’re only managing because we already knew he was there. If he weren’t expecting to be followed….”
Rychenkov shook his head. “We have the best human technology. Who knows what those bastards have? That big one, Tel Robbie, or whatever his name is, even made himself a whole damned fleet, different from their normal ships. Who knows what he added?”
Pike put down the bowl and sank his chin into one hand. What would Walker say? He closed his eyes. “Either he knows we’re here, or he doesn’t. If he doesn’t, then he’s either breaking orders, or we don’t know all his orders. If he does, he’s either trying to evade us or trap us. What do we do in each of those four scenarios?”
“If it’s a trap, we stay clear,” Rychenkov said flatly. “We assume he can outgun us and we stay on this course until we can detour away from Earth. We’re not exactly cleared to go there, after all. If he’s trying to evade us … same. You don’t back an animal into a corner if it can outfight you, and he’s already on a suicide mission. He’s not afraid to die.”