The Merrimack Event (Shieldclads Book 1)

by David Tatum

  “Their political system has been rather... mixed. Within the past five years, they have gone from an empire, to an absolute monarchy, to a democratic republic, to a socialist republic, and most recently to a constitutional feudal monarchy with a collection of vassal states. Whether this latest change will stabilize the country or result in a civil war, we can’t say, but the kind of planning required for the attack on Earth would have taken more planning than a nation this unstable to have managed. Nevertheless, it is conceivable that they could be the ones responsible. Any questions?” Ildryn asked.

  “If they are not the aggressors,” Commander Daniels began. “What are the chances that they – or at least one of the vassal states being formed inside their, ah, kingdom – could side against Earth?”

  “At least as remote as their being behind the attack,” Ildryn answered without hesitation. “No single faction inside of the Virgin Planets could provide enough firepower to be a threat in such a war effort, and until they have stabilized politically – even if just temporarily – it is unlikely they would be willing to involve themselves in foreign adventures as a collective entity without some provocation.”

  Colonel Beccera stroked his chin and raised his hand for the next question. “Taii Ildryn, I’m a veteran of a small war resulting from a similar situation. You say it is unlikely that they would get involved in our war, but what about the possibility of us being drawn into theirs? If some of the feudal states wish to aide us and ally with us, and others wish to fight against us, and still others wish for a state of ‘armed neutrality,’ how likely is that to cause a civil war? And how likely is it that we will be required to aide them?”

  “A good question,” Ildryn replied, mulling over his words briefly. “A very good question. I have no direct analysis in regards to that, but I do know that they have fought nine civil wars in the past century. All nine have been fought internally, but each time there was such a war private foreign nationals were hired as mercenaries or privateers to fight alongside them. My guess is that they would not call out for aid directly, but would be willing to purchase some... and their history suggests they would not look for any causus belli unless direct military force from a foreign power were to side with any one faction. Any other questions?

  “You say that no single faction could provide enough firepower to be a threat. But what about economic, political, or other non-military aid?” Burkhard asked.

  “Another good question. I would not be surprised if one or two of the vassal states did make deals under the table with, well, anyone, if they believed it would somehow be of benefit to them. They are all looking for advantages against each other, and a secret trade deal or the like would do that. It is something we will certainly keep an eye on. Now, if there are no more questions, I will turn the floor over to Admiral Orpik.”

  The Larkin Admiral did not look nearly as comfortable as Ildryn. Larkin was considered a backwards civilization of backwards people doing backwards things, and even their most noble and powerful people were often treated as if they should be humored rather than respected. Admiral Orpik was not considered one of their most noble and powerful people, but he was being asked to give a presentation to a bunch of foreigners who would undoubtedly think poorly of him. Any other time, Beccera would feel sorry for the man, but things were far too serious for him to care at the moment.

  “Ahem, yes, well,” Orpik began, shifting uncomfortably. “We were charged by the Joint Intelligence Treaty with the unenviable task of keeping an eye on the Pleiades Republic. It’s been a rather difficult task, to be sure, and we have no definitive answers for you. Pleiades has been trying to hide something of great significance over the past few years. Many of our agents’ lives were lost attempting to pierce the wall of secrecy around this undertaking with no success.

  “Their Navy has been involved in some kind of military build-up, though the ships we’re seeing them produce do not match the design of the ships in the assault on Earth. The reasons for the build-up are unclear, and there has been no corresponding build-up in other service branches. In fact, much of the construction appears defensive in nature, mostly involving upgrades of sensor stations, defensive platforms, and so on. But its unusual. Most nations typically start defensive upgrades either with their perimeter worlds, to try and provide early warning, or in the heart of the political center, to protect the government. This build-up focuses on neither. Instead, they seem to be building a number of ships in their outer worlds, but have little or no construction going on in their capital system.

  “Internally their government is tightening controls over local jurisdictions, and appears to be undergoing some sort of internal purge of political opponents. The number of openly armed personnel belonging to either the ‘Pleiades Republican Internal Security Services’ or their ‘Worlds’ Internal Security, Pleiades Republic’ has increased exponentially, and several government officials have gone ‘missing.’ This points to some sort of political strife, possibly a coup attempt, but as of yet we’ve seen no evidence to suggest such a thing has occurred or is being threatened. We have also come to the conclusion that most of the changes are being brought about by a rather unlikely source – their science director, a Dr. Ian Karlsson. His office has been granted unusually high levels of power, and he has been exercising that power throughout the government and not just inside the scientific community.

  “We believe that, like the Virgin Planets, the capacity for the Pleiades Republic to build such a force as attacked Earth may be possible, but their focus is too internal for it to be likely. However, we are less sure of this assessment than Iota Draconis is with the former. Furthermore, there is one thing which seems to point in Pleiades favor as your attacker: During the attack on Earth, an advanced stealth technology was employed that has not been encountered before. Dr. Karlsson’s focus, before he became the science director, was in stealth technology. For this reason, I would say that they are a good candidate for your attacking power. If they were your attacker, however, their motivation is unclear – there has been no indication they had any hostility towards Earth or any other foreign power.”

  Beccera felt a twitch in his gut. His wife’s family was from Pleiades, and she was on her way there, herself. If Pleiades was complicit in the attack on his own home world, than this war could be more personal than most. Which, considering Earth had been so badly hit, seemed to be a horrible thing to say, but he couldn’t deny it was true. “Was the scientific expedition to Pleiades launched before the attack?”

  “It left a few hours beforehand, yes,” Admiral Mumford said from his seat to the left of the podium. “The captain of the expedition left early. It’s a fortunate thing he wanted to rush out and avoid filing some paperwork or they would have been caught up in the attack. We find it unlikely the expedition would be targeted, regardless of Pleiades’ stance with us, as the scientists were invited to appear. They might be asked to surrender upon arrival, and as unarmed ships facing a sizable foreign navy they would certainly do so, but we see little threat to the lives of the scientists unless someone does something exceptionally foolish.”

  That did little to relieve Beccera’s fears, but there was at least some comfort to know that Kimiko had not been caught in the initial attack. “Thank you, sir.”

  “Any more questions?” Admiral Orpik asked.

  Captain Philip Yates of the heavy cruiser Valkyrie, one of the regular Navy warships, raised his hand. “Yes, sir. You’ve said that much of the build-up in Pleiades appears defensive, but that construction has not been taking place in their home system. Does that mean the shipyards we know are located there are quiet?”

  “There is considerable construction going on in the Alcyone system,” Orpik admitted. “It is difficult to ascertain how much of that construction is being done by the military, however. Much of what we do know in the way of military construction in their home system seems to show they are engaged in refitting old ships, not constructing new ones. In their other systems
, we have been able to identify construction work orders belonging to thirty one different warships: Ten battleships, six heavy cruisers, seven light cruisers, and eight frigates. This is about double the pace they usually have for replacing retiring warships.”

  Yates followed up with another question. “Have you been able to verify, then, that they are retiring warships at their usual rate?”

  Orpik nodded. “Our intelligence is based primarily on official sources: Namely, the classified version of their own Navy list. It has been showing the names of older warships removed at their typical rate, and we have no reason to believe that those lists are inaccurate. It is possible, however, if they are attempting some sort of secret build-up, that their Navy list is being manipulated.”

  “Any more questions for Mr. Orpik?” Mumford asked, stepping up after a brief period of silence. “No? Then, I guess we’ve heard what we know so far. Now, on to what to do about all of this mess. Colonel Beccera, please come up here.”

  “Me, sir?” Beccera said.

  “Yes, you. Up here, now.”

  “Yes, sir,” he replied, stepping up to the podium. Commander Burkhard and Captain Morrison joined him.

  Mumford pulled out a jewelry case, opening it to reveal the silver star warn by those of the rank of Commodore. Quietly, so that the rest of the conference room couldn’t hear them, he said, “Burkhard, Morrison, you should witness this. Mr. Beccera, I’m appointing you Acting Commodore. You will take command of one half of the Academy-controlled forces and—”

  “Sir?” Beccera exclaimed, unable to maintain his usual discipline. Even the other Naval personnel present seemed rather disturbed by this news. “But... but I’m an Army officer!”

  “With wartime experience. And you were the highest ranking command-line officer across the entire Academy side of the Wargame, regardless of service. And you’re listed on the Navy List as second in command to Green, who is being assigned to other duties. You may be weak on Naval tactics, but to be honest you’re probably better qualified to be a Commodore then the man we actually put in charge of the Academy forces.” Mumford made a face and looked around, noticing Green sitting at the table. He really hoped that Commodore Green hadn’t heard him say that. “Don’t anyone repeat that last bit, please. And don’t worry, Drew, this is just a temporary position. Your command will be sent to rendezvous with Vice Admiral Marvin Breslau’s squadron outside of 16 Cygni. We’ll give you the co-ordinates at which you should be able to join him. His fleet has three flag officers in it, but enough ships were pulled from it for the Wargame that it current is composed of just one squadron.

  “That will allow Read Admiral Hawkeye Fulton to assume command of your squadron once you make the rendezvous. Their job will then be to ascertain the culpability of Cygni and report back to Earth for further instructions. Your job is mainly that of supervising the other officers during the voyage, which will, for many of them, be their first commands in a wartime situation.” Mumford grinned somewhat wryly. “You’re playing nursemaid on a milk run, in other words. Your Naval experience, or lack thereof, won’t really enter into it. Your fleet’s captains will double as your staff for the duration. Frankly, every officer capable of even temporary fleet command who isn’t already in charge of a comparable force will be sent elsewhere.”

  Burkhard, who had come up with Beccera, frowned. “Sir, are you saying you’re sending the Academy ships into the war? Ships manned by cadet crews who haven’t all completed even their basic coursework? Ships in such poor condition that few, if any, of them would be allowed in a modern navy?”

  “There are sufficient regular and reserve officers on board each ship to give crash course training to whoever needs it,” Mumford replied. Subtly raising his voice so that the rest of the conference room could hear him, he continued. “But let’s face facts: Almost half the Naval officer corps has been wiped out, along with about 40 percent of our ships. We may face another attack on our homeworld at any moment, and we’re at the point of desperate measures. Which brings me to some of my other news: A draft has been instituted, and budgetary limits have been temporarily loosened. Academy and training programs are being shortened across the board, and we’re buying those hulks that the Academy captains managed to get running into the fleet, regardless of their overall condition. We’ll try and get your ships sufficiently outfitted to make assignments something less than suicidal, but for the most part, you’re on your own.”

  “Realize, ladies and gentlemen, that whatever reserve personnel might have been sent to replace the current Academy crews are already spoken for – some to speed training, some to help repair what’s left of home fleet, and some to replace those killed in action. Yet these ships have to be manned, because we need to replace our losses as quickly as possible... and the Academy crews are all that we have. The cadet and trainee rankings each Academy student and enlisted crewman currently holds will be made an ‘acting’ rank as of this date. Captains, it will be up to you whether or not those ranks should be approved as permanent promotions. Until further notice, the internal organization of your ships are entirely in your hands. You may promote people, demote people, make people officers or drop them down to non-coms at your discretion. Your own acting ranks are now yours to keep, but that still may mean some of the cadets ‘outrank’ you until you reorganize, so keep that in mind. No current Academy student should be put in a department head or similar command position if it can be avoided. I suggest you complete any necessary reorganization en route back to your ships.”

  Burkhard was shocked at that news. He knew the scale of the loss Home Fleet suffered was unheard of, but until that moment he had not realized how much it would affect even the personnel and logistical situation. “Yes, sir,” he replied quietly.

  Even Beccera, whose knowledge of the numerical strength of the Navy could fit in a thimble, was unable to argue against his temporary placement after hearing that. He finally reached out and took the rank pins being offered him, staring at them slowly. “Sir... if I am to take command of the Academy ships, what will become of Commodore Green’s command?”

  “It’ll be split up,” the admiral replied dismissively as he turned his attention back to the assembly. “Captain Morrison, come forward.”

  “Yes, sir,” Anne Morrison said, leaping out of her seat and heading up to the Admiral’s side.

  Pulling out another set of rank pins, he said, “I’m officially promoting you to Commodore as of this moment. This is a permanent promotion, unlike Beccera’s.”

  Morrison took only a second to recover her composure. If Mumford was drafting Army officers to command a fleet, he certainly wouldn’t discount her for a simple problem with occasional fainting spells. “Yes, sir!”

  “You will assemble a squadron of five Academy battleships, plus whatever support craft may be spared, to reinforce the defenses at Epsilon Eridani,” Mumford ordered, then pulled out yet another case, this one displaying the gold stars used to denote Admirals of all levels. “Commodore Kosuke Babel is currently in command there. Although he doesn’t know it yet, I have promoted him to Rear Admiral, effective immediately. I hope you will be good enough to give these to him. You will answer to him and be his second in command. With your ships, he should be able to fill out two squadrons, and you are to command one of them.”

  “Yes, sir!” Morrison replied briskly.

  “Commodore Green will be taking the remaining Academy ships to reinforce the new Home Fleet, and Vice Admiral Craig will similarly take those Regular Navy ships involved in the Wargame and do the same. I will take the observer ships to our station on Il Aquarii and organize a defense force there until I can be relieved. Il Aquarii is still our third largest shipyard, and must be protected just as Earth and Epsilon Eridani were.”

  “Sir,” Commander Jonathan Daniels interrupted. “What about other systems, such as the colonies we are currently stationed in? Are they going to be left entirely undefended?”

  Mumford swallowed. “Many planet
s are currently indefensible,” he replied slowly. “Those which do not already have some defensive force around them will be forced to fend for themselves. It is our hope that the enemy – whose motives are still unknown – will ignore the smaller worlds in our region, but if they do not... there is nothing we can do but promise to come back for them when or even if we can.”

  “Have these colonies been warned of this?” Burkhard asked. “So that they may prepare as best they can, if nothing else?”

  Vice Admiral Lee Craig stood up at that. “There are no Navy ships to spare sending out these dispatches, and there are no civilian ships in this sector. Two of the three Orbital Guard ships attached to the Yggdrasil station, however, are capable of interstellar travel, as are some of their other parasite craft. They will be sent to nearby systems to spread the word as much as possible, under the circumstances. I have already spoken to Director Morisato about this, and he agreed to lend them to us for this purpose. It’s our hope that some of the colonies they contact may have ships that can aid in the process, sort of like an old-fashioned comm tree.”

  “Are there any more questions?” Mumford asked from the front of the room. “If not, then you are dismissed. Godspeed, gentlemen, and let us hope that we all survive this war at least long enough to know who it is we’re fighting.”

  CHAPTER XXIV

  EAS Chihuahua

  “I hope you understand, Mr. Orff, just why I’m not promoting you all the way to acting-commander,” Burkhard said, looking at the man who was – officially – his first officer.

  Each of the cadet officers had been given a private meeting with Burkhard, Beccera, Rappaport, and Dr. June Ehrlich – the four regular fleet officers on board and the staff physician – to discuss the news. In most cases, the young men and women were heartbroken by the news about Earth. Letting them all know that their ‘Wargame’ rank was now an acting rank, which Burkhard then confirmed, provided them with something positive from each meeting (cold comfort that it was). Burkhard couldn’t leave Orff as a full commander, however, which must have felt like a further slap to the face.