Uprising (Gateway Series Book 3)

by Brian Dorsey

  “Paladin Martin,” said Malius with a sigh of relief.

  “Just shut up and follow me,” she said as she pulled Malius back to his feet.

  Martin mumbled curses about First Family members to herself for the next few meters until she reached a small door.

  “In here,” she said as she opened the door.

  Malius stopped at the door, looking back toward Martin.

  “Just go, Senator. Nothing in there’s gonna bite you,” she said, giving Malius a gentle shove into the room.

  “Malius?” declared General Darius Vanari as the Senator and Martin entered the dusty, dimly-lit room.

  “General Vanari?” replied Malius. “I had no idea you were—Senator Tyris, you as well.”

  “I don’t think you three need to introduce yourselves,” said Martin. “You all know why you are here.”

  The three First Family members—two Senators and a general—sat in near darkness waiting for Emily Martin to speak.

  “Are we the only ones?” asked General Vanari.

  Even in the dimly lit room, Martin could see the anxiety on his face.

  “No,” she replied, “but you’re not going to know who the others are.”

  “You’re asking us to risk everything, but you’re not even willing to tell us who else is involved?” huffed Malius.

  “Sure, Senator,” replied Martin. “I’ll tell you the names of everyone involved.”

  “Good,” said Malius.

  “And then I’ll tell everyone else your name. How does that sound? That way if any one of you are caught or decide to talk to Astra Varus, she can have everyone’s name.” Martin paused to let her words sink in with the three. “Do you want the names?”

  “That will not be necessary, Paladin,” replied Tyris.

  “Good. This is what you will need to know. Sometime in the next six standard months, a Terillian fleet will attack Alpha Humana.”

  “What?” shouted General Vanari, rising to his feet. “I did not sign up be an ally of the Ters.”

  Martin drew her sidearm and Vanari froze.

  “First, General,” said Martin. “The fleet will be carrying an army led by former Humani soldiers. And their goal won’t be to conquer, but to support our revolution.”

  “Nero’s men?” asked Vanari.

  “Yes.”

  “And how are you sure that is their goal?” asked Tyris. “How can you be sure it isn’t some lie?”

  “Lie?” growled Martin. “Are you fucking kidding me? You are still reaping the benefits of a lie that has made us slaves of the Xen for generations, and you have the audacity to ask if this is a lie?” She stepped toward Tyris. The Senator took a step backwards, bumping against the wall behind him.

  “If it was up to me, I’d put a bullet in each of your brains and be done with it,” she paused, still holding her pistol in her hand. “But Nero and Stone say they need you,” she added, sliding her pistol into its holster. “So I guess I’ll just have to let you live.”

  From the look on the men’s faces, she’d made her point. “When the attack comes, General Vanari, you will order your troops to Vae and wait for further orders. Senator Malius, you will join General Vanari and prepare to act as the senior political representative in the Vae region.”

  “What about my own territory?” asked Vanari.

  Martin let out an audible groan. “We are doing this for the entire planet…and your actions will be vital to the successful revolt. You must do this.”

  Vanari nodded in agreement. “I will do my part.”

  “And my role?” asked Tyris.

  “You will need to stay in the capital and provide intelligence once the attack begins. I will provide you a secure communications device once we are closer to the attack.”

  “And until then we do what? Just sit on our asses?” asked Vanari.

  “I’m pretty sure that’s how you spend most of your time already,” replied Martin. “Just keep your mouths shut and wait for the signal, and do your part.”

  “What happens if this doesn’t work?” asked Malius.

  “We all die…hopefully before we are crucified,” replied Martin. “And some of us will probably die even if this plan works.”

  “You are asking a lot, Paladin,” replied Malius.

  “I’m asking you to do something for your people for once in your fucking lives,” shot back Martin. She paused, wondering if talking to them had been a mistake. “And don’t forget, you’re already in this by showing up,” she added. “So if any of you are thinking about turning on the others, I can promise you that unlike Astra Varus, I will kill you quickly…but not too quickly.”

  “We are with you,” said Tyris.

  “Good,” said Martin as she moved toward the door. “Wait a few minutes, and then leave one at a time.”

  Martin watched as Malius and Vanari exited one at time. After a few minutes, she turned toward Senator Tyris. “It’s your turn.”

  “You will have to forgive us, Paladin,” said the Senator. “This is all very new to us. We are risking everything we know for this,” he added. “And regardless of how little you think of us, we do want to end Astra Varus’s rule.”

  “You do realize the goal is to bring all of it down,” said Martin. “Not just the ProConsul, but the system that holds people down based simply on their last names.”

  “I understand,” replied Tyris. “But you must understand this is not easy for us.”

  “It won’t be easy for any of us, Senator. Revolutions aren’t supposed to be easy.”

  “What do we do if this does work?” he asked.

  “You lead,” said Martin. “And not for yourselves, but for your people.”

  “We will do our best,” replied Tyris. “But we are almost as afraid of our people as we are of Astra Varus and the Xen.”

  “Well, that’s your own fault,” said Martin, opening the door. “You should go.”

  With a nod, Tyris stepped into the alley.

  As Tyris exited, Martin sat on the bench in the dark room. She had no idea how Stone or Nero had any faith in these men. She had met with three other small groups, and every one of these meetings caused her to hate the First Families a little more—even the ones trying to overthrow Astra Varus.

  “Assholes,” she said aloud, rising to her feet and opening the door to the marketplace.

  Entering the main marketplace, she saw flashing sign above a rickety door: FREE DRINKS FOR ALL UNIFORMED PATRIOTS. She looked into the window to see a smoke-filled room with a full stock of alcohol on the far wall.

  “Fuck it,” she said aloud as she opened the door to the bar.

  ***

  Martin slowly opened her eyes. Her scarlet hair fell over the side of her face as she lay on a rough bed, allowing only small rays of light through. She brushed her hair aside, immediately closing her eyes as the early morning light felt like needles. She suddenly noticed her mouth was dry and chalky. Rolling onto her back, she looked up toward the ceiling of the room as her head began to pound with each beating of her heart. Her elbow pumped against something and she turned to see the naked torso of a large, muscled man in his forties lying next to her.

  “Shit,” she mouthed, as her body ached and the memory of the previous night flashed into her conscious. She looked toward the man again, this time lifting the blanket and looking at the rest of his body. “Hmm,” she huffed before the contents of her stomach began to churn.

  Kicking her feet off the side of the bed and leaning forward, she took in three heavy breaths. Tightening her throat to keep from vomiting, she looked to the table on the right and saw three empty bottles. Behind the bottles, she saw the military cap of a Master Sergeant. “Damn it,” she said, slowly forcing air from her body.

  The warmth of a hand on her naked hip told her he was awake.

  “Good morning, sweetheart,” said the man.

  Martin pushed her hair over her head and took another deep breath. She didn’t lose control this way often,
but when she did, she went all out.

  “Good morning,” she replied, forcing a smile to her face and turning toward the man.

  Again she took in his body…there was definitely a reason she must have picked him other than the alcohol. He may have been in his forties, but had the body of a twenty-five year old-guardsman. The only man she knew that looked that good for his age was—“Damn it,” she said aloud.

  “What’s wrong, honey?” asked the man, running his hand up her thigh.

  “Nothing,” she snapped, jumping out of the bed and attempting to cover herself with a pillow.

  “Why so jumpy?” asked man. “You weren’t so shy last night.”

  “Yeah,” she said with a smile. “About that.”

  “You were incredible,” he said. “I mean I’ve never had—”

  “Thanks,” interrupted Martin. “I’d had a lot to drink last night and just…let’s just…I need to go?”

  “So soon,” pouted the man. “Are you sure you don’t need one more for the road?”

  “Thanks. And it was nice, but I really have to go.”

  “Sure, honey. Do you need money for transportation back—”

  “No,” blurted Martin. She paused. Maybe he didn’t know who she was. It would be so much better that way. “But thanks; I just gotta get ready for my shift at the base.”

  “I didn’t realize Paladins moonlighted,” said the man, smiling.

  “Oh…you know…” She wished she could just melt into the floor. “Look, can we just keep this between us, uh…”

  “Taylor’s my name.”

  “Of course it is,” she replied. “But I just really need—”

  “Don’t worry, Ma’am,” replied Taylor, holding his hand up to show a wedding ring. “I’m not gonna tell anyone.”

  “Thanks,” she replied, hating herself even more now. “I’m just gonna grab my things and be on my way.”

  Martin quickly stepped into her pants and threw her undershirt on. I’ll never do this again, she thought to herself, but at the same time knew she probably would.

  “You really were incredible,” said Taylor, still lying naked in the bed.

  “Thanks,” she replied, buttoning her shirt.

  “If you ever need to, uh—”

  “I think I’ll pass, Taylor,” said Martin, sliding on her boots, “I don’t think your wife would approve.”

  “Probably not,” replied Taylor. “But I’m willing to take the chance.”

  Now her stomach churned from Taylor’s words as much as her hangover.

  “I’m good,” she said, quickly making her way to the door of the recreation room.

  Stepping outside, she leaned against the wall and looked up toward the ceiling. Despite her splitting headache, she began to pound her head against the wall. “Stupid, stupid, stupid,” she said aloud. She looked down at her feet before taking another deep breath and scurrying toward the exit of the recreation house.

  Chapter 13

  General Stone and his brigade commanders sat in a large meeting hall with the civilian and military leaders of Kilo 7 as they discussed the transition of power to local authorities. It had taken almost six months, but he was prepared to hand over control of the planet back to its inhabitants. And not a moment too soon; his division needed to prepare for the attack on Alpha Humana, now only three months away.

  “Shall we begin, General?” asked Council Leader Braydon, head of the Kilo 7’s civilian leadership.

  “First we will start with the transition of key cities. General Vae?” asked Stone.

  “Things are going well, Sir,” replied Vae, now elevated to the rank of general. “Local forces have taken control of all cities with the exception of Inotib, where the transition is scheduled to be complete in three standard days.”

  A tall man in a local military uniform stood to speak. “General Vae’s assistance has been very much appreciated. My security forces are currently performing concurrent patrols with General Vae’s troops, and will undergo communications and tactical response evaluations tomorrow that will be the final step in completing the transition."

  “Excellent, General Jollie. General Winterbird, what is your status?”

  “My troops have overseen the beginning of repopulation of villages and have completed basic training of volunteer units to provide security during the transition. Our logistics support has been established to provide equipment requests through Akota command as necessary. We have also completed the basic training of 2500 volunteers for our division in the last three months. They will require more specialized training, but they are prepared to join the command.”

  “Our Council has sent a representative to your Akota leadership to help coordinate this support,” added a graying man in civilian clothing.

  “I have received word from the Shirt-Wearers that Ambassador Page has safely arrived and should be establishing communications through normal and secure methods within the next standard week.”

  Stone turned toward General Scarus. “What is the status of our offensive operations?”

  “The addition of General Vae’s forces have allowed us, with the support of growing local military and civilian support, to defeat the last standing army the Word had in the field. There are still several pockets of resistance, but from a military standpoint, they are well within the means of local forces.”

  Another officer from Kilo 7 rose to speak. “We still expect sporadic violence and will be prepared to provide a measured response if necessary.”

  “But will this be enough?” asked another civilian.

  “It’s not a great answer, Representative Tara, but you won’t know until it happens,” replied Stone. “As I have said many times, your planet has been infected with this religious movement, not unlike a body is infected with a disease. We’ve stopped the symptoms and hopefully prevented it from spreading and causing more damage, but you’ll probably never really be cured of it. You’re going to need to work at it every day.”

  “And you think we are now prepared to do this?” asked Tara. “What if we are not?”

  “If you are not, then we will return.”

  “And don’t forget, Representative Tara,” added General Jollie, “they will be leaving a regiment behind to assist in further training and to provide support if necessary.”

  “Will that be enough?” asked another representative.

  “You must take this next step yourselves, gentlemen,” replied Stone. “If you want this planet to truly belong to your people again, you do not want us to occupy Kilo 7 indefinitely. We will help if needed, but you have to lead the way.”

  “We understand, General,” replied Council Leader Braydon. “But you must understand the concerns of many…we were so very close to losing everything.”

  “Then remember how close you were to the brink and work every day toward preventing that from happening again,” replied Stone.

  “Of course, General,” replied Braydon. “I think if the representatives have no further questions, we should let our subordinates get back to completing the transition.”

  “I concur, Council Leader.”

  “Very well, then,” said Braydon. “If there are no more questions or motions, then this meeting of the Council is concluded.”

  After a few moments of speaking with the Kilo 7 leaders, Stone walked with General Vae as they left the meeting hall.

  “Do you think they will succeed here, General?” asked Vae.

  “Hell, General,” said Stone, “I don’t even know if we were successful. I just know it’s better than it was.”

  “So you think we may be back here someday?”

  “I hope not, but I would never say never, General Vae. But for now we have our next assignment. It’s time to return to Akota territory and prepare for the attack on Alpha Humana.”

  ***

  “That’s the last of the gear, Major,” said First Sergeant Shara.

  “Good,” replied Martin. “Everyone gather up!”


  Sergeant Graves and Captain Desro joined Shara and Martin at the access to their transport.

  “We’ll head out in one hour. Bravo Team will depart in two days for—” She paused. “Where’s Plaxis?”

  “I thought he was with you, Major?” answered Desro. “I—”

  “Plaxis has been assigned to Bravo by order of the ProConsul,” interrupted Lieutenant Oxia as he walked out of the transport.

  “What the hell are you talking about, Praetorian?” demanded Martin.

  Oxia stepped in front of the group. “The ProConsul has taken great interest in your mission and decided she would rather have me assigned to the team you were leading.”

  “I don’t fucking think so, Praetorian. The ProConsul doesn’t choose how I assign my teams.”

  “I believe the ProConsul does as she pleases, Paladin Martin,” replied Oxia.

  “Captain Desro, find Lieutenant Plaxis and tell him to get his ass on this transport in fifteen minutes.”

  “Yes, Maj—”

  “Lieutenant Plaxis has been ordered to General Vispa’s headquarters regarding First Family security risks,” replied Oxia. “In other words, none of your concern.”

  “Everyone take five!” ordered Martin, her gaze locked on Oxia.

  “Roger that,” replied Shara, already walking away.

  With a glance to see the others walking away, Martin quickly looked back toward Oxia. “I don’t know what the fuck you are trying to pull here, Oxia, but it ain’t gonna fly.”

  “I am only doing as I am ordered, Paladin Martin,” answered Oxia with a smile. “The ProConsul ordered me to see her last night and gave me my orders.” He extended a handwritten order with the ProConsul and Varus family crest at the top. “Even though I think you are little more than a low-class assassin, I agreed to follow your orders…as long as they did not contradict the ProConsul’s. And this letter trumps your wishes, Paladin.”

  Martin felt as if her skin would catch fire as she quietly read the order. Was Astra onto her or the plot? Or was she just being cautious? Or just a bitch? “I need to contact the ProConsul.”

  “I am sorry,” replied Oxia, “but she informed me…well, ordered me to tell you she would be on Lord General Zorlar’s flagship most of the day and directed me to — and I am quoting her — ‘tell Paladin Martin she needs to remember her place.’”