by Rod Carstens
"Come."
Lieutenant Taro led the others into General Sand's quarters. They all stood at attention as Taro said.
"Sir, reporting as ordered."
"At ease."
Sand stood and stared at them for a long moment. Nani was beginning to wonder if he would say anything.
"I want to commend all of you on your actions today. But I particularly want to commend you on following my order to eliminate the children."
He paused making eye contact with each one of them individually before going on.
"It was a difficult order to give but it was a much more difficult order to carry out."
Again he paused.
"There is something that you must understand. It was my order you were carrying out. It was what you had commanded to do. A former president of a country on earth once famously said "the buck stops here." He meant that it was his responsibility for the decision and his alone. That none of his subordinates should feel the weight of that decision. If Aijuba were still…"
Nani saw that the General had to stop to compose himself before he could go on.
"If Major Aijuba were still alive she would be standing here next to me saying the same thing. Those of us who chose this profession are sometimes asked to do things that no one should have to do but it is part of our profession. Do you understand?"
Nani and the rest murmured
"Yes sir."
"Any questions?"
When no one had a question Sand said.
"Very well. You are dismissed. Get some rack time you deserve it."
They all came to attention, about faced, and filed out through the hatch into the passageway. Nani glanced at Hu. He still appeared to be in a stupor. She knew exactly what he was thinking about, and she was afraid she couldn’t blame him.
"Hu, remember what I tried to pound into that head of yours. Don't worry about things that haven't happened yet. Only worry about it when you know it’s happened. The Xotoli haven’t invaded your family’s planet. They might never get the chance. Your family is safe. Don't let what happened get into your head. So your cube or mine? I'm out on my feet."
Nani gave him the smile that always got to him. Nani had never felt this way about someone before. Being sold into a brothel at twelve because her parents had died had made her cynical about the universe and the people who populated it. The only way she’d gotten out of that brothel was luck. After years in the brothel, she’d killed a Von Fleet VIP client who had abused one of the younger girls. Von Fleet security managed to drag her out of the Autonomous Zone and back to "justice." Instead of being executed, the judge, who through luck alone happened to be a former client, had sentenced her to life in the legion. The legion had accepted her for the first time in her life, and she learned she could be more than a whore. Then on Rift, Hu had risked his life for her again and again over that long and bloody day. He had been a FNG who shouldn't have lasted through the first firefight. He could’ve left her behind to save himself, not once but a half a dozen times. Instead, he’d stayed by her side and proved that there were people Nani could trust in the universe after all. She had stuck by his side through all of his treatment, re-growth, and rehab over the last year. She cared for him in a way that she didn’t really understand yet.
Now they shared the memory of the children and what they had done. She had no regrets. She knew it was the right thing to do, no matter what others may think. The problem was that it put those images of what the Xotoli had done to those children in Hu’s head, images that could be his own sisters back on Von Fleet 69, images she doubted would go away until he knew they were safe. It was a huge load to carry around while trying to stay alive long enough to find out the fate of his family. Nani cared too much about him to let him carry that load alone.
"Yours," Hu finally said.
"Good. Your bunk is lumpy."
Hu and Nani headed for Nani's berthing compartment.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Landing Ship Dock
Tarawa
1st Marine Raider Battalion
General Dasan Daniel Sand stepped to the podium in front of the remaining Raiders. The flight deck had been arranged for the ceremony. In front of the platform was a long line of armored boots. Between each pair, a rail rifle was positioned with its muzzle pointing downward. An armored helmet had been placed on top of each rifle. There was one for each of the Raiders lost on 703. One of the memorials was placed in front of the others. It looked as if the dead were in formation, facing the living.
“Attention!”
The remaining Raiders came to rigid attention. Sand looked out at the remaining Raiders. So many were missing. So many were gone or left behind. All that could be mustered were standing in front of him. Those that could be transported to the ceremony were in floating chairs or stretchers. He knew so many of the faces by name now. Taro, Hu, Nani, Borges, and all the other Raiders, going all the way back to the beginning of the Armored Infantry. They had fought together through many battles, including Rift and 703. He paused. He had tried to memorize what he would say, but now it all left him. He would speak from his heart.
“Many of you have been with me since the beginning, since the days when we were learning how to become a force that could defend the Confederation. Our fallen brothers and sisters were there beside us, as comrades in arms. I tried to come up with the words to honor all of them, but I am only human and I do not feel I can do them justice. I see from the small personal tokens, that you have said goodbye to them individually. So I will share with you my personal goodbye to the one I knew best. She was there at the beginning. It was Aijuba who taught me the ways of the Wolf and how to fight.”
Dasan paused. Aijuba would be amused at him giving her so much credit. She did what she did because she was a Wolf through and through, and that was all that drove her. Rank or politics never entered her mind. She was a warrior born and bred.
“She taught all of us. She handpicked each and every one of you for the Raiders. Then she proceeded to take veterans and push us even harder. She taught me Wolf hand-to-hand combat techniques. She even put me in the hospital more than once.”
There was scattered laughter as those who had faced Aijuba on the training field remembered their own experiences.
“She didn’t like me in the beginning. I was just another term lieutenant, and she was a career NCO with more red tears than most. She viewed me as just another termer she had to shepherd through learning his job to make sure I didn’t get any of the troops killed.”
Dasan smiled and shook his head.
“I wasn’t very good. She had quite a job on her hands, but as you all know, that didn’t stop her.”
Again, there was some scattered laughter.
“But Sergeant Major Aijuba was patient with me in her own way. My first years went by very uneventfully. Then we encountered the Xotoli at Choem. That was my first combat and my first combat command. We defeated the Xotoli that day. It was her lessons that lead my decisions at Choem. It was her toughness that showed me the way to defeat the Xotoli.”
Dasan paused as he thought of Aijuba.
“She saw something in your general that she thought was worth teaching. From that day forward, she taught me so much that I cannot begin to make you understand. Yet I think that you do understand because she taught you too.”
There were many heads that nodded in agreement. Each had their own story of Aijuba taking them aside to teach them in her own particular way.
“It was her suggestion to form the Raiders. She chose each and every one of you. She was and will always be the heart of the Marine Raiders.”
Dasan paused to compose himself. He felt Aijuba’s presence. It was so strong he almost felt her at his side.
“I should not do this, but you are comrades and capable of understanding. As you know, she and I were committed to one another in the way of Wolfs. In a real way, I think that she was just as committed to each and everyone of you in this unit. You were
a reflection of her and her way of life.”
Dasan looked out at the faces in the formation. More than one was bowed at the thought and power of such a commitment.
“She loved you all as warrior brothers and sisters. There is nothing more powerful.”
If it was possible, the silence grew.
“So when I say that we are as a very ancient writer once said, “a band of brothers,” you will understand. No matter what happens in the future, we stand together when no one else can. We will fight and die together because no one else will. We will stand on the wall and we will fight back the invaders. The fight is not over and many of us will not see the end of this war, but we will always be remembered as the first to fight and the reason the war was won.”
A ten-foot high holo of Aijuba appeared behind Dasan. Her hands were on her hips and she had that hard look on her face that so many of them had seen during training. Behind her, in a ghost formation, stood all of the men and women they had lost. It was classic Aijuba. Dasan drove his fist into the air and said her name. A roar went up from the formation. Fists thrust into the air, and a chant began.
“Aijuba!”
“Aijuba!”
“Aijuba!”
The chant went on for some time before it finally died down. Dasan lowered his fist and said, “We will live up to her example. We will fight for those who stand next to us and those we have sworn to protect. We will make her proud. Raiders!”
Another roar went up. It was the loudest of all. Dasan waited until it finally died down and said, “When you go into battle and are faced with a decision, ask yourself, what would Aijuba do.”
Sand paused.
“When you’re promoted through the ranks and new men and women are under your command, train them the way Aijuba trained you. Lead them the way she led from the front. Honor her and those who died here today by becoming the warrior she forged. Make sure you pass her training on to new Marines who fill our ranks. That is the only way to keep her and our comrades alive, by continuing on the path that she and they have begun for us.”
Sand paused. He wanted to let his words sink in and become part of the men and women in front of him. They were the foundation of the expanding Marine Corps and would have to understand their roles in that expansion. Aijuba was the one to help them remember their roles.
“Centuries ago, a sage said that rough men and women had to be willing to do terrible things so that those they protected could sleep safely at night. We are those rough men and women. We are those men and women because of Aijuba. We will not let her and our comrades down now or ever.”
Dasan came to attention. The Confederation anthem was played and not a man or woman moved until the end. Everyone looked at Dasan, waiting for the sign that would let them know. Dasan stared out at the familiar faces. He turned and left the podium, wiping tears from his face as he walked away.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Sol
Planet Earth
City State of New York
Confederation Hospital
Istas’s Room
Istas slowly opened her eyes. The light in the room was very low. She could see little red and green lights on equipment that seemed to surround her. She wasn’t sure where she was. Then it began to come back to her: the Senate building and the attack. She realized she couldn’t remember if Usiche was alive. Had she saved her? She tried to move, but found she was too tired, too hurt to do so. The lights slowly increased until she could see the room. She was in a hospital. A doctor stepped through the door to her room and came over to her. He was a tall man, a Rift, she thought. He was darkly handsome. He looked familiar, but her mind was so fogged she couldn’t place him. He walked over to her bed and looked down at her with a smile. He was so familiar. How did she know him?
"Istas, how many times am I going to have to put you back together, Sister?"
He addressed her as another Anjin would. Slowly, she smiled. He was Doctor Inta, the doctor to the Anjin. He had been trained to take care of the Anjin when wounded, but how had he gotten here? Where was she? Back on Rift? No, that wasn’t right. She wasn’t home. She was on Earth. She frowned and tried to talk, but her mouth was so dry she couldn’t say anything.
"Here, Sister," Doctor Inta said.
He put a straw to her mouth, and she drank thirstily from the glass. The water felt wonderful as it moistened her mouth and throat.
"What are you doing here?" Istas was finally able to ask.
"Mother sent me, of course."
"But I didn't have time to request."
"Istas, did you think that Mother would ask you to perform a mission such as this without backup? She feared that something like this would happen, so we’ve been in place for months."
"We?" Istas whispered.
Doctor Inta nodded toward the door he’d come through. A man and woman stood on either side of the door. They were dressed as medical orderlies, but Istas immediately recognized them. Both had been mission mates over the years. They were two of the best. She smiled and raised her hand high enough to sign “Hello, thank you.” The two smiled, and the woman signed, “It is our pleasure, Sister.” She was safe with them and the doctor.
Istas just smiled. "Of course she would."
"Mother came last week. She had a feeling something was about to happen. She, too, is on Earth."
"Is she here?"
"No, that would be too risky at this point."
Istas could only marvel at her mother's foresight and wisdom. How did she know? She knew, of course, because she was the Mother of all Anjins. That rank did not come with out wisdom and foresight. She felt a little better knowing she was in the hands of her people.
"There’s someone here to see you. I contacted her when I decided it was time to bring you back," Doctor Inta said.
The door to her room opened and Usiche walked in, a huge smile on her face when she saw that Istas awake. No command presence, no posing, just a woman seeing that her lover was alive.
"Well, well, look who’s awake," Usiche said, sitting down in a chair next to Istas’s bed. She gently took Istas’s hand. Istas tried to say something, but all she could do was smile at her. Istas squeezed Usiche’s hand and stared into her beautiful eyes.
"Nothing to say, little one?"
"You’re alive."
"Of course, silly. That’s why you have two large holes in your body."
"I was afraid I had not..."
"Shhhhh," Usiche said.
"The Marines who were with me?" Istas said, suddenly remembering the attack with much more clarity.
"They were both wounded and are recuperating."
"The secretary general?"
"He’s fine, but it was a close call. Your warning gave us a few minutes. Apparently, their timing was off. If they had attacked at precisely the same time, there’s a good chance they would’ve succeeded."
"More?"
"Yes, there were attacks throughout the Confederation. It was a coordinated attack on many of the heads of state and other leaders. The explosion killed Senator Katte and several other staff members. If the hybrid had been able to throw the two additional explosives he carried, he would’ve killed many more. How did you know about the other attacks?"
"It’s what I would’ve done," Istas said softly.
"I brought someone with me who wants to talk to you," Usiche said.
Senator Kago, the tall old Wolf who had saved Usiche and herself with his rail fire, strode into the room. He walked up to her bed and looked down at her. Slowly, he brought his right hand to his heart in the classic Wolf salute.
"Anjin," Senator Kago said with a solemn nod of his head.
"Wolf," Istas said, returning the nod.
It was a recognition of one warrior to another after a battle. The Wolves considered fighting beside them to be a form of brotherhood.
"Anjin, I know you have just awakened, but it is very important. Can you still speak to your mother?" Senator Kago asked.
Now that she knew Mother was on Earth, she could speak to her. Istas raised a hand to the back of her ear and touched the communicator embedded there.
"Yes, child, I am here. It is good to hear you. Tell the old Wolf he looks good in spite of his age," Istas’s mother said.
Istas looked at Senator Kago and nodded.
"Mother says to tell you that you look good for such an old Wolf." Istas was puzzled at the familiarity of the words.
Senator Kago threw his head back and laughed.
"Tell your mother I would return her compliment, but I would prefer to do it face to face. Tell her it has been too long since we have fought together."
Usiche could only look on with an amused smile on her face.
"Mother says it has been too long for old friends and warriors not to have seen one another."
Istas was astonished that Senator Kago had fought with the Mother. She had never said anything about the relationship, but why would she? It had not been relevant until now.
"As tired as you must be, there is business we must discuss with your mother," Senator Kago said, nodding to Usiche. She had made the pact with the Anjins, and it had to be she who asked for more help.
"It is good to be able to talk to the Mother of Anjins through Istas, even in these circumstances. The attacks have caused a great deal of turmoil throughout the Confederation. Hybrids are now the number one security priority. Fighting the Xotoli has been relegated to second on the list of priorities. Everyone is frightened. The war is now very real to those in power. They feel the need to be protected from this new threat. It is no longer a war light years away. It is now something around every dark corner. Paranoia is rampant. Everyone is looking at everyone else as a suspected hybrid. The Senate and the House have both passed measures increasing the powers of the government and have suspended certain civil rights under the Confederation Constitution until further notice. They have allocated money to dramatically increase the number of security personnel and equipment. A huge contract has been given to the Von Fleet Corporation to provide the manpower and technology for this increase in security, even though it was Von Fleet personnel who attacked the secretary general. These few embedded hybrids have affected the Confederation and the war effort much more than they should have. Now, every citizen is seeing hybrids behind every bush. In addition, Istas saving my life was broadcast live through many worlds. The video has now spread throughout the Confederation. There is a great deal of concern in some quarters about our pact with the Anjin. On the other hand, there has been a sea of change among many who were concerned with our pact. When the media began its usual hand wringing about the pact, we released the tape of her saving my life in the operations center. With it, we explained how the Anjin were assisting us against the Xotoli. The two tapes and your cooperation have changed many minds. The secretary general wishes me to thank you and to request additional help."