“That’s absurd,” said Caden. “How many worlds are outside the Six-K boundary?”
“Hundreds,” Thande said. “Thousands, if you count the smaller settlements.”
“All of our territories on the Sagittarius arm will be undefended,” Caden said.
“And the downstream reaches of Orion and Perseus,” added Thande. “They will be left to their own devices too.”
“Damastion,” said Caden. “Damastion is on Orion’s reach.”
“You’re from there?”
“My whole family.”
“Ah. I see,” said Thande.
Caden shook his head, appeared to regain some focus.
“What about Laeara? That’s on the Perseus arm.”
“It seems that Laeara is to be an exception to the general rule. Many of the fleets with muster points on Perseus will be falling back there instead.”
“But not to Damastion. The only class zero planet we know of other than Earth, and she gets nothing.”
“It’s one of many worlds which will be left to fend for themselves,” Thande said quietly. “Of course you will have a special attachment to it, but try to keep perspective on the scope of the problem.”
“Believe me, Captain,” said Caden, “the scope of the problem is very much on my mind.”
— 14 —
Strange Bedfellows
“Are you sure this isn’t some kind of trick?”
Caden glared at the Chamberlain’s hologram, a hot surge of acid welling up inside him. As if he did not have enough to worry about right now; it was almost as if they thought there were no other Shards working on this arm of the galaxy.
“Oh, indeed we are quite sure. The Viskr envoy appears quite sincere in his plea.”
“Isn’t the defence of the Herses system more of a concern for us right now?”
“It certainly is, however we believe the numbers balance out as far as ships go. We anticipate a heavy assault at Herses, true, but Fleet has diverted almost a tenth of the armada there already. The carrier groups which have already deployed their MAGA assets on the restless worlds have also been recalled, to shore up the lines.”
“But any mission into the far Perseus territories is going to need an entire task force behind it, or it will surely fail.”
“Indeed so, and that task force is already waiting at Laeara. The dreadships holding the fortress hostage left without firing a shot.”
“They just left?” Caden was sure there had to be some mistake. “You mean to tell me that Voice had the opportunity to cripple our Perseus arm operations, and he walked away?”
“Exactly so.”
“Why?”
“Well I’m sure I have no idea,” said the Chamberlain. “Nobody does.”
Caden tried to think of a strategy — any sane strategy — which would benefit from the preservation of an opponent’s military facilities, and came up blank. So far as he could see from his own experiences, the only reason the Shaeld Hratha left anything reasonably undamaged was because they planned to occupy it.
“Then I suspect Fort Laeara might be a future target. If the Shaeld got control of it, they would effectively neutralise our movements on that arm of the galaxy.”
“Oh, indeed they would. That possibility has been taken into account, and steps are being taken to reinforce security.”
“Yes, I can imagine security aboard our stations is a hot topic right now. Do we know yet how many we lost in the bombings?”
“Eyes and Ears lost forty-three invigilators and five monitors. Collateral losses stand at thirty-one dead and about ninety wounded.”
“Worlds. That’s a lot of invigilators.”
“Nowhere near all of them,” said the Chamberlain, “but yes — a significant number. Eyes and Ears has been impacted severely.”
“This can’t go on,” said Caden. “We have to start identifying these people. I’ve still had no word on the blood test; it’s clear we can’t wait much longer for it.”
“Her Majesty has noted the delay, and has assured me She will personally see to it that matters are expedited.”
“That is very reassuring. The more we know the better.”
“On that note, I thought it might be wise to have your specimens from Guathelia picked up by the Lovelace instead of the Vavilov. It seemed foolhardy to place so many eggs in one basket, if you will pardon the pun.”
“A wise move.”
“Hopefully by the time you return the scientists will have some usable data.”
If we return.
“So,” said Caden. “This new mission. I don’t really understand how the Viskr could have got themselves into a situation so dire that we are the only hope they have.”
“As it was explained by the Proctor, the—”
“Proctor?”
“The envoy; Toord Sylk Caecald. His title is ‘Proctor of the Faith’. Don’t ask me what it means.”
“Ah, him. I see.”
“It would appear that the Shaeld Hratha are also active across their territories, and have been for perhaps slightly longer than they have been in ours. The Proctor says the Junta blames Operation Seawall for punching an unmanageable hole right through their key strategy.”
“What are the Shaeld up to on the Perseus arm?”
“Much the same thing as they are here, from what he says. The unusual Viskr fleet movements we monitored along the border were in fact part of an attempt at corralling the Shaeld dreadships.”
“And we tore a huge strip out of them.”
“Precisely. Although from the projections Command worked up, it would appear that the Viskr were only buying time for themselves, and precious little of it. But there’s no telling the Proctor that.”
“So we’re going to send a relatively minor task force to help them to achieve…. what, exactly?”
“Recovery of the entire Junta cabinet from the capital of Riishi itself.”
For a moment, Caden could only stare blankly.
“Why can’t they do that themselves?”
“It’s a numbers game. They have just one advanced warship left capable of downing a dreadship, that is all. There will be more than one dreadship at Riishi; the Falling has already begun there.”
“What do we get out of this?”
“The Viskr have all but lost. There is very little left for them to protect. If we do this, we get every single ship they still have. Fighting alongside us.”
Despite his many years of service, and all the things he had seen, Caden’s mouth dropped open of its own accord.
“Their whole armada?”
“By this point that is certainly not so grand as it sounds,” the Chamberlain cautioned. “And it does come with the proviso that any measures we develop for countering the Shaeld Hrathan invasion are to be shared without restriction. They do expect us to help them retake their own planets.”
“It still sounds as though it’s a win-win for us. We get the additional firepower whether we succeed or not.”
“I’m glad you approve of this exchange, because as far as this mission goes… the Empress commands it.”
“Command very much accepted.”
“Excellent form, Shard Caden. As you no doubt probably guessed already, you must divert immediately to Laeara. There you will rendezvous with the battle group headed by the Atwood. Fleet Command has already despatched six rift platforms to assist you.”
“And getting to Riishi?”
“You will be somewhat privileged. The Viskr moved their last remaining home gate prior to the Shaeld invasion of the system, and for the first time in history the prime gate at Laeara will be allowed to connect to it. You will then have only to make a short jump to the system interior.”
“What about when we actually reach the surface? If we reach the surface. We know virtually nothing of Viskr culture, and we’ll likely be seen as hostile.”
“The Proctor will be joining you at Laeara. It is the best they could do at such short notice, consi
dering the complications at their end.”
“There was a carrier assigned to Operation Keystone which was carrying a Pale Horse. I suspect that might be very useful on Riishi.”
“I’ll have the ship rerouted to Laeara.”
“Excellent. I don’t suppose you have any idea how long we have?”
“Not long. As I said, the Falling has already begun on Riishi. The Proctor has been advised that Shaeld forces on the surface appear to be in no hurry to attack the civilian population, but we all know that is simply a matter of time. There is nowhere for those people to go.”
“Then I had best go and tell the good Captain Thande that once again she will be changing course for me.”
“The hopes of the many worlds will be with you, Shard Caden.”
“I’m sure she’ll get over it.”
The Chamberlain, for once in his life, actually smiled. “I rather meant with regards to your mission. Good luck.”
The channel closed.
Caden watched the holo fade out to black, and gave himself a moment to consider the enormity of what he was being asked to do. Just over four long Solars of bitter war; that was the closest humanity and the Viskr had ever got to each other. Diplomatic relations had never been a priority for either civilisation. And now… now he was being asked to preserve the smallest, most vital part of a doomed way of life.
It almost felt wrong that the Imperial Combine would benefit from the arrangement by bleeding off the last of the Viskr’s defences, but it would give at least one society a chance of survival, perhaps even both. Then again… there was also the fact that nobody yet knew if the process which created Rasas was reversible.
Come the day that the Shaeld Hratha began to retreat it might be that the planets the Viskr had colonised would be liberated. But if it were not possible to release those billions from their grip… well, then there would probably not be anyone left to regret that.
That second possibility was particularly chilling.
He got to his feet and left the guest quarters. The passageway outside thrummed with a contented rhythm; as far as Disputer was concerned, she was headed for High Cerin to put down at a properly equipped starport and get some much-needed attention.
Not so old girl, he thought. Sorry.
The walk to the command deck was much different than it had been on his previous trips aboard the carrier. Word had spread of the operation on Guathelia, and now instead of odd looks and demands for identification he received smiles and respectful nods from Thande’s crew. It certainly made a nice change.
The security hatches at the command deck rumbled aside heavily when he requested access, then closed behind him. Security was still Thande’s top priority: after what she had witnessed at Meccrace it was understandable.
On the bridge he found the atmosphere had improved dramatically since the mission to Guathelia. In fact, now that Caden thought about it, he did not recall ever seeing the flight crew this… yes, there was only the one word for it: happy.
People were smiling as they worked, no longer toiling in silence with stern masks covering their faces. They thought they were on their way to some well-earned rest.
I wish we were, he thought.
“Shard Caden,” Thande called out across the command deck. “I assume your presence can only mean one thing.”
He smiled ruefully at her.
“We’re changing course, aren’t we?”
“Fort Laeara,” he said. “Highest priority.”
“Of course it is,” she sighed. “Best speed?”
“Best speed.”
This time it was he who led the way to the wardroom.
The hatch hissed shut behind Thande, and she walked around Caden and the desk. He waited for her to sit down before he spoke.
“We might not come back from this,” he said.
“Don’t hold back.”
“Sorry to sound grim, I just don’t want to hide the reality from you.”
“Where are we headed?”
“Riishi.”
“Riishi? I thought we had a ceasefire with the Viskr.”
“We do. It’s now gone further than that; we’re going to help evacuate their cabinet.”
Thande looked as though she was fit to burst, then in a way she did. She whooped with laughter.
“Evacuate them? It wasn’t so very long ago that we spent several Solars trying to find a way to bomb them to the Deep.”
“I know, it sounds ridiculous. But the deal really, really works in our favour.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” She wiped away a mirthful tear. “I presume this will be something like your Mibes mission?”
Something nagged and worried and prickled in the shadows of Caden’s mind. He could not quite see what it was.
“Basically. We will take our own task force with us, and rendezvous with a Viskr battle group just outside the system. Then we jump in, and carve up only as many dreadships as we need to while running the ground mission.”
“What could possibly go wrong?”
“I’m willing to bet everything will go wrong,” said Caden. “We don’t even know the strength of the Shaeld fleet at Riishi.”
“That is not what I want to hear,” Thande said. “Jumping in without any idea of what’s laying in wait is a terrible, terrible plan.”
“We can use probes to get the lie of the land. They may give us away, but I doubt it will make that much difference.”
“We have two of those new stealth probes aboard. But I have a horrible feeling it will make no difference. Chances are, a darling little Rasa has already got wind of this plan somewhere along the line.”
“There is that, yes.”
“Is there anything in particular you want me to do before we reach Laeara?”
“Yes,” said Caden. “Prepare your crew for the fight of their lives.”
• • •
Eilentes felt privileged. Few outsiders had ever seen what she was seeing now. She watched in silence, not wanting to disturb the ritual which unfolded in front of her, not wanting to distract the Rodori from his solemn rites.
Her link chirruped — far too loudly in the quiet compartment — and she rejected the call.
Sorry, she thought.
Bruiser did not seem to notice; he carried on regardless.
The link chirruped again. Eilentes knew it was not capable of such things, but it felt as though the device was being insistent and annoyed. She knew it was Caden without even checking her holo.
She clicked the link. “Gym compartment,” she whispered.
She ended the call immediately.
Quietly, making as little commotion as possible, she edged around the space Bruiser was using, hoping to put herself between him and Caden. The Shard would no doubt come blustering into the compartment enquiring loudly as to why nobody was answering their Deep-damned links, and she intended to intercept him before he could do so.
Daxon, Norskine, Bro and Chun watched with her. She gathered from their expressions that this was also a first for them. Could it really be that in the ten Solars which Bruiser had spent with Bullseye, he had never once expected to die?
Others in the gym compartment had paused their sessions to stand and watch, idly pressing towels against their necks and shoulders, or taking the opportunity to stretch off their muscles. The whole place was unusually quiet.
Bruiser sat within a ring of tiles, evenly spaced around him on the deck. Each tile was red, hand-finished and polished to a glossy shine, and bore a single Rodori rune. She recognised ‘courage’, and ‘fealty’. The others were strange to her.
The Rodori’s eyes were closed, and he mumbled something too quiet to hear while touching two of the tiles. He hung his head, went quiet for a few minutes as if meditating on his own words, then touched two new tiles and repeated the process.
The hatch slid open behind her, and she turned quickly and quietly with a single finger pressed to her lips. Caden looked back at her with a surp
rised, quizzical expression, and she beckoned him over, still pressing her lips as if the duration would emphasise the importance.
“What’s going on?” Caden whispered.
“Rite of Preparation for Endings,” said Eilentes.
“Which is…?”
“He’s preparing himself for a contented death.”
“Oh,” said Caden. “Great. That’s what I need on Riishi; a counterpart who expects to be killed.”
“Caden!” She hissed. “It’s a ritual, not a manifesto. This is important to him.”
“He told you?”
“No. I’ve flown around this galaxy just as much as you have, y’know. I happen to know about all sorts of cultures.”
Caden beckoned her away from the ritual, and she followed him down the compartment.
“What exactly is he doing?” The Shard asked. “He’s no good to me if he already thinks he’s doomed.”
“Okay, firstly it’s not just him. Since you told us what our new orders are, pretty much everyone believes this is a suicide mission. So unless you want to get a whole new team together and take them in blind, tough.”
“Yeah, there’s not really enough time for that.”
“As if you even would,” Eilentes hissed. “Secondly, he’s not going to be wandering about on Riishi looking for someone to end his life for him. If anything, he’ll fight harder than he usually does. All he’s doing right now is putting his thoughts in order and reflecting on his life, his loved ones, and his memories. In case this really is the end for him.”
Caden raised his eyebrows. “I like that.”
“Yes, it’s actually quite a good idea. And it’s not that uncommon amongst other cultures.”
Caden looked towards the Rodori and the small group of soldiers watching him, then back to Eilentes. She knew exactly what he was thinking.
“Why not?” She said.
Caden went first, and somehow that felt right. He walked back towards Bruiser, went around the troops from Bullseye, and sat quietly on the floor, cross-legged, at a respectful distance directly opposite Bruiser.
Eilentes went next, and sat next to him. Caden had already closed his eyes and lowered his head.
Books One to Three Omnibus (Armada Wars) Page 84