by Dietmar Wehr
King Trevor threw the data tablet with the report of Task Force Seven’s defeat against his office wall with rage-induced force. The location of the attacked system and the direction from which the attacking ships had entered the system both pointed to the Shogunate. That was bad enough, but the Acting Delisani Ambassador’s pretense that he knew nothing about any deal to supply warheads to the King’s Navy was infuriating! The man even had the gall to claim that his Emperor’s Navy did not have anything like the Type 7 warhead, in spite of the fact that King Trevor had seen the first batch with his own eyes, and his ships had used them to ambush the TCE battlecruiser! If he didn’t already have a war against the Shogunate on his hands, he’d be tempted to start one with the Delisani Empire! But first things first. A courier had to be sent to the Garnett Republic invoking their mutual defense treaty. And while that was going on, his Navy would gear up for a retaliatory raid on the Shogunate. His ships still had a few of the Type 7-armed missiles left. He grinned at the thought of how surprised Tanaka would be when those warheads took a bite out of his vaunted fleet. He turned to look at his senior Admiral who had brought the news of the battle. That reminded the King that his cousin, Stanley, had been in charge of TF7. Putting him in command of that force clearly had been a mistake, one that he was now determined to rectify.
“Admiral? We’re now at war with the Tanaka Shogunate. I want the Fleet put on a full war alert. Dust off your plans for fighting that war and get the fleet ready. Send a courier to Garnett to notify them that they are also now at war with the Shogunate. And one more thing, Admiral. Admiral of the Red Sir Stanley Owens is to be relieved of command and ordered to report back here. I haven’t yet decided if he’ll face a Court of Inquiry, but I just might do that. When you’ve got all that in motion, come back. I’ll have more orders for you by then. You’re dismissed.”
Chapter Five
Tau Ceti Empire Capital (Corona):
Delacor’s neural net signaled an emergency incoming call just as she was about to climax. The combined sensations gave the word dissonance a whole new meaning. Without telling him why, she quickly told the young Lieutenant to get off her. His shocked and hurt look did not perturb her at all. She had made it very clear from the beginning that their relationship was, and would remain, strictly physical. If he had developed romantic feelings for her, then he only had himself to blame. A mental command told the neural net to shift the call to her nearest speakerphone.
“This had better be damned important!” she said as she sat up. She gave the Lieutenant a dismissive wave of her hand when it looked as though he thought she was talking to him.
“Sorry to wake you, Admiral, but we’ve just received information from Atlantia that I though you should hear right away. The Shogunate carried out a raid with six battlecruisers on one of the King’s task forces in the Sheffield system. The King has ordered his Navy to go on war alert and has sent a courier to Garnett invoking their mutual defense treaty.”
Delacor thought fast. “What confirmation do we have that this info is accurate?”
“Our agent was able to confirm that the Navy had been put on alert status. Apparently, word of the raid arrived at the Capital late evening, and after that, there was lots of activity at their Admiralty building. On that basis alone, it seems clear that something is going on there.”
“Hm. I’d still like more confirmation, but I suppose we’ll get that in subsequent reports, and if Garnett is going to war, we’ll hear about that too. Check with the Palace if the Empress is still awake…no, never mind. I’ll do that myself. Anything else?”
“Nothing else, Admiral.”
“Thank God for that,” she muttered. “Okay, let me know if any new information arrives. Out.” Delacor rose from the bed and stood in front of the Lieutenant, who straightened the jacket of the uniform he’d just finished putting on. To his credit, he made eye contact and held it even though she was still completely naked.
“Same time tomorrow?” he asked. She would normally consider his hopeful expression and eager-to-please tone cute, but in her present mood it was annoying.
“No. I’ll let you know when I want you again. And by the way, I better not find out you’ve told anyone what you shouldn’t have overheard just now. If I do, I promise you, you’ll regret it. Are we clear on that?”
“Absolutely clear, Admiral.”
“Good. Then you’re dismissed, Lieutenant.”
After making certain that he was gone, she treated herself to a long, hot shower, and as she was getting dressed, she ordered her electronic majordomo to query the Palace to see if the Empress would see her right away. She was surprised how quickly the reply came back. The Empress would see her. This was going to be an interesting conversation.
Delacor thought Brandenburg took the news quite well, considering the implications and potentials.
The Empress pretended to stare at a computer-generated piece of art on the wall for a few seconds while she pondered how to respond, then turned to look at Delacor.
“First priority is to confirm who, if anyone, really is at war. I’m sure you’re already working on that. While I’m not prepared to take any drastic actions right now, I am willing to consider taking some precautionary measures. What do you recommend, Admiral?”
Delacor had already given that question a lot of thought on her way to the Palace. “I recommend we pull our fleets in from the periphery. Leave behind one ship, maybe just a courier that can sound the alarm if the border systems are penetrated. Bringing the rest in closer will reduce our response time and allow us to shift assets around much faster if needed. It also reduces the chances of an accidental engagement with foreign ships. Some of our border systems are still contested territory, so pulling back will have the side effect of reducing tensions.”
“Well that seems reasonable enough, so let’s do it. Now tell me what you think is really going on here. Is it as simple as Tanaka assassinating the Delisani Ambassador and then, when he’s accused of doing it, going over the deep end and starting a war with not only King Trevor but also the Republic of Garnett?”
“No, Empress. I don’t think it’s that simple. My intel people have been looking at every possible scenario that can explain what’s been happening, and one of them has come up with an interesting theory. From our reports on what the Delisani Ambassador and King Trevor supposedly talked about, we’ve assumed that the Ambassador was conveying the Proconsul’s messages. But what if the Ambassador was actually working for Tanaka and was trying to provoke a war between the DE and us? His boss finds out he’s been betrayed and orders the Ambassador killed, making it look like Tanaka ordered the hit. And if this raid was made by Delisani ships attacking from the Shogunate side of the Kingdom’s borders, then everyone would assume that it was the Shogunate that attacked. Then Tanaka’s machinations would have blown up in his face with a war that he wasn’t expecting, and Delisani could sit back, watch both sides take heavy losses and then pick up the pieces when the fighting’s over.”
Brandenburg stared off into infinity as she turned the theory over in her mind. It sounded far fetched, but it did neatly explain everything, including the raid. Both Tanaka and Delisani were devious enough to act that way, and if Tanaka ended up getting his head handed to him, she wouldn’t be shedding any tears for him. Not that it was very likely to happen that way. Even with the element of surprise operating against it, the Shogunate was not in any danger of being conquered by the Garnett/Atlantia alliance, but it could be wounded and maybe wounded enough to entice Delisani to try to finish it off, or at least to conquer Garnett and the Kingdom.
“Let’s assume for the moment that this theory is the right one, just to see where it leads us. What should we do about it?”
Delacor sighed. “That’s a tough question, Empress. If Tanaka was trying to engineer a war between us and the Proconsul, then he doesn’t deserve our aid. On the other hand, Delisani won’t be satisfied with expanding his borders into Garnett and Atlantian space. He’s already m
ade his long-term ambitions clear, and if he’s given time to consolidate and exploit those conquests, he’ll be unstoppable, even if we ally with Tanaka at that point. I’m sorry I don’t have anything actionable to suggest right now. My strategists haven’t had a chance to incorporate this raid and war alert into their thinking yet. I’ll try to have something concrete to give you within a day or two.”
Brandenburg nodded. “Yes, I know I’m being demanding, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. When your people have something specific for me to consider, bring it to me right away. But here’s a thought that has occurred to me. If we make it clear that the TCE is neutral, then if Garnett and/or Atlantia look like they’re ready to fall, they might be amenable—if we make the offer tempting enough—to being incorporated into the TCE as an alternative to being conquered by the Shogunate. Tanaka will then be faced with the choice of calling a halt to military operations or pursuing an expanded war with the Tau Ceti Empire. What do you think he would do given those options?”
“I think that depends on how bad his losses have been. If his fleets have dominated the battlefield, then he just might decide to take us on, although in that case I strongly suspect he’d try to get Delisani to join him. On the other hand, if his navy has suffered significant losses, then I’d expect him to back off.”
Brandenburg sighed. “Too many ifs, but that can’t be helped. We just have to stay on our toes and be ready to jump when an opportunity presents itself. Anything else you want to tell me?”
“Only that I would recommend also keeping in mind the option of declaring certain valuable systems, either Garnett or Atlantian but especially Atlantian, as TCE Protectorate systems, in order to keep them out of Tanaka’s hands, even if they don’t want to join our empire voluntarily.”
Brandenburg smiled for the first time during this meeting. “Yes, I know which Atlantian systems you mean, and yes, all other things being equal, I’d prefer us to have those systems instead of Tanaka or Delisani. I’ll keep that option in mind, Admiral. Is that it?”
“For now, yes, Empress.”
“Then I won’t keep you any longer. Thank you for bringing this news to me so quickly, Elona.”
As she watched Delacor leave, Brandenburg continued to think about those Atlantian star systems that were oh so attractive. In the chaos that followed the collapse of the Commonwealth, King Trevor had sent his fledgling navy to ‘liberate’ the three systems commonly referred to as ‘the Three Sisters’. They were planets so rich in both mineral and biological resources that even non-experts like herself could appreciate their potential value. The King’s Navy kept a permanent presence at all three of them, but if the Kingdom was going to war, that garrison force might very well be redeployed elsewhere. What the Three Sisters needed in order to be exploited were people and capital, and her empire had plenty of the former and far more of the later than King Trevor did. So those systems would be at the top of her acquisition list, but strategically speaking, the Atlantia system was also a desirable piece of real estate. If only this whole incident had waited six months for the full deployment of the new Mark 10 missile warhead technology, she’d be far more willing to be pro-active instead of reactive. Even three more months would have made a difference. Mass production of the Mark 10 warheads had begun, but the first six units were earmarked for field tests to make sure the production process was working correctly. It would take another week to get enough additional warheads to arm just one battlecruiser! Therefore, until her fleet was ready to use the new weapon system in significant quantities, she’d have to walk on eggshells when it came to dealing with her rivals. At least she could count on Elona’s loyalty and common sense to keep the Navy in line. Marcus Terranova could be counted on too, but there were a couple of other flag officers who considered themselves to be far more capable than they really were, and that kind of egotism was fertile ground for dangerous ambitions.
TCE Navy Task Force 2.4 flagship:
Division Admiral Trev Xavier read his new orders with incredulity. His task force, TF2.4, was being pulled away from the frontier bordering on the Shogunate ‘in order to ease tensions’. It was precisely the opposite of the orders Xavier was waiting for. He was a firm believer in the principle stating that the fastest way to higher rank is war, and he was perfectly willing to provoke one if he thought he could get away with it. Now this order would make that task far more difficult, and not only due to the distance it would take his ships from Shogunate forces. It would make co-ordination with TF2.3 and its commanding officer, Division Admiral Sonia Neilson, more difficult too. Xavier smiled at the thought of Sonia. She was just as ambitious as he was, at least as intelligent as he was—maybe even more so—and her sexual appetites were…impressive to say the least. Rumor had it that her personal staff were all young, tall, and blonde male officers. He didn’t know if that was true, but he did know that Sonia didn’t restrict herself to young men. He had spent a wild weekend with her about a year ago, and he hadn’t gotten tired of reliving those memorable moments. That was when the two of them had talked remarkably candidly about their ambitions and their willingness to help each other if the opportunity presented itself. The recent events at Avalon had seemed like the beginning of an opportunity that the two of them could exploit, but with this redeployment, he’d have to find a new way to get covert messages to her and vice versa. The tramp freighter he’d been using so far had a comfortable trade route that did not include the star system that TF2.4 would be moving to. By prior mutual agreement, he and Sonia had agreed not to use official Navy channels even for encrypted messages. The risk of detection and exposure was just too high. That wouldn’t stop him from hinting in official messages that she should look for alternative ways to communicate, but co-ordinating any kind of complicated strategic operation between the two task forces was not something that could be conveyed accurately and properly via hints. And in any case, if the Empress or Her Nibs Delacor became suspicious of either of them, those kinds of hints could be just enough to convince a Court-martial to convict the two of them of conspiracy to commit treason. He didn’t know the Empress that well, but he knew Delacor very well, and he respected both her competence and her ruthlessness. In the meantime, orders were orders.
“Xavier to Flag Bridge Com.”
“Flag Com here, Admiral.”
“Notify all ships that the Task Force will be redeploying to the Hesline system as soon as possible. Notify me when all ships report ready. Out.”
Chapter Six
Tanaka Shogunate Capital (New Mount Fuji):
Tanaka scowled at the latest diplomatic report from Atlantia. That fool, King Trevor, had declared war on his Shogunate, and for a bogus Shogunate attack on one of his patrolling squadrons no less! That was absurd! His military officers were disciplined enough not to even consider engaging in such a provocative action without his expressed direction and approval. And since he hadn’t ordered or approved anything even remotely like that, it couldn’t possibly have been Shogunate ships that conducted that raid. The real culprit was obvious. His Intelligence people had informed him that Emperor Delisani had discovered his own ambassador’s betrayal. The ambassador’s assassination was clearly Delisani’s act of retribution. He must have then ordered his ships to sour any possible co-operation between Atlantia and the Shogunate by conducting a false flag operation. That not only made sense but was, in fact, the only possible explanation. But what King Trevor didn’t know, and Delisani probably didn’t know, was that it was his Shogunate that had the more powerful Type 7 warheads, not the Delisani Empire. King Trevor was in for a big surprise when his ships launched their first attack on Shogunate space. He called for his senior admiral. Delisani and his empire might be off the hook as far as a war with the TCE was concerned, but once Atlantia had been taken care of, Tanaka would turn his attention to the Delisani Empire and teach the Emperor a lesson he’d never forget as long as he lived, which might not be very long at all.
Republic of Garnett Capital:
“The attack on our forces in the Sheffield system was clearly the Shogunate at work, and under the terms of our mutual defense pact—"
“Not so fast, Ambassador Torres. Your King’s ships may have been attacked by somebody, but you have not presented any proof that those ships belonged to Shogun Tanaka, and I’m assuming you don’t have any such proof, because if you did, you’d have presented it. You expect this Republic to declare war on a much larger and more powerful star nation simply on your King’s say so? First of all, in case your King has forgotten, the President of the Republic of Garnett does not have the authority to declare war on his own initiative. That declaration has to be authorized by the Grand Senate, and if I presented your King’s demand to them, they’d laugh me right out of Office! So, I’m officially rejecting this invocation of the mutual defense pact. Garnett will NOT go to war with the Shogunate! Is that clear, Ambassador Torres?”
“Yes, Mister President, that’s clear. I’ll report your refusal to even present my King’s request to the Grand Senate back to His Majesty. I’m sure he’ll take this into consideration when he reviews his Kingdom’s relationship with the Republic of Garnett in due course. Good day, Mister President.”