Tales of the Spinward March Book 2: The Red Queen

by David Winnie

  Annika removed her helmet and set it on the cowl of the forward panel. She heard Rita’s seat slide and her hatch cycle. She peered over the rail of the cockpit window, trying to see what Sweetie was up to.

  Then Annika saw the squad of armed soldiers surrounding her ship.

  What is going on? She drew her sidearm and patted the knife strapped to her left arm.

  The hatch at her feet thumped. She slid her seat back, armed and cautious, and opened the hatch. Rita appeared and smiled. “We’re all set, Mouse. Let’s go.”

  Annika dropped through her hatch. The troops were there all right, their weapons drawn.

  A familiar soldier walked up. “Major Campion!” Annika was pleased to see her old bodyguard. “Wonderful to see you again, Sir.” She gave him a sharp salute.

  “It’s Lieutenant Colonel now, Captain,” he replied, returning her salute. “The Admiral is waiting.”

  Annika had learned protocol. As her senior officer, she allowed Colonel Campion to lead her through the colossus.

  “Well done getting her here, Lieutenant Rivas,” Campion said.

  “Thank you, Sir. It was a challenge,” Rita answered.

  “I can imagine. I had my turn trying to get her to comply.” His tone was wry.

  “Comply, who?” Annika asked. “What are you two talking about?”

  Rita and Campion chuckled. “Sounds like you did better than I intended,” Campion said. “Captain, Lieutenant Rivas is assigned to me. She has been your bodyguard since you two were assigned together.”

  “Surprise, Mousey!” Rita smiled a toothy grin.

  The doors to the Azanhti’s conference roof slid open. The brightly lit room boasted tall windows dominating the forward wall and half the ceiling. Various monitors and images were efficiently spread across the walls. A curved table of black stone was positioned in the middle of the room, surrounded by a dozen chairs. At the head of the table was a dark, upswept throne. From the entryway, the combination of the onyx table, the throne and the atrium of stars took Annika’s breath away.

  Defense Minister Howland and Admiral Thiessen were by the windows. “Did you know, from this angle, you can see into the whole of the Spinward?” asked Gavin Howland. “Imagine, all you see, standing right here, could be within your grasp.”

  “Annika,” the admiral said in a low tone, “have you ever heard the testimony, ’Everything said under the stars is heard. And remembered.’?”

  “Yes Uncle,” she replied. “Long ago, a Proctor told me.”

  “Then listen carefully, my Khan. Very soon, this room will be filled with officers, beings whom I trust implicitly with both your life and my own. The disease that has infected our Empire has now reached the military and the highest levels of the government. We cannot wait any longer.

  “Today, either you become the Khan or the entire Terran Empire will stumble and fall. So, I am asking you…”

  “Wait,” Annika said, “before you ask, I must tell you that I am pregnant.”

  Both men’s faces lit up. “My Khan, this is marvelous news!” exclaimed Howland. “When did you find out?”

  “J-just this afternoon.” Annika told them. “I would have thought my being pregnant would be a detriment to this war.”

  Oh, quite the opposite!” exclaimed her Uncle. “In ancient times, our ancestors would mate with their partners before going to war to ensure the future prosperity of the tribe. Should they die in the war, the future of the tribe was assured, for the sons or daughters of the tribe would be the children of a warrior. This will rally many to your cause.”

  “You won’t be leading any charges,” Gavin told her. “We wouldn’t have let you do that, anyway.”

  Annika turned once more to the stars. There were so many, right there, calling to her. She set her jaw. “Gentlemen. Let us make ready for my war.”

  Chapter 27

  He sat in her stateroom, ruminating at the star field. The darkness matched his mood. He would prefer an additional year to complete his investigations. But the enemy within was making his first real play for power. They couldn’t wait any longer.

  She was ready. He knew she was ready. Another year would temper her edge just a bit sharper.

  She had Become. It was time.

  He sensed her coming and raised his defenses. She snapped, “Lights,” as she crossed the threshold.

  “Good Evening, my Khan.”

  “Noire!”

  “Yes, my Khan.”

  “That’s a neat trick. Have you just developed it?”

  “It was suggested by my mentor, Kermit Blount. I have found it effective with those who can see and hear us this way.”

  “Interesting. Well, don’t use it with me.”

  “Yes, my Khan. Do you wish to scan me now?”

  “No. You are my oldest and most trusted servant. I am going to take a shower. Please order dinner for us.”

  “I have a surprise for you, Sister. You will find it in your stateroom when you finish.”

  She returned to the parlor brushing her hair, sniffing appreciatively at the odors rising from the covered dishes on the table’s red linen cloth. She had donned the uniform he brought from Giza.

  “Thank you Noire. It still fits!”

  “I thought you’d like to have it. Especially now.”

  “Is that your report?”

  He handed his pad to her as they sat. She read it as they ate.

  “Interesting. The fourth and third names, I expected. The first…disappointing. As the second is for you, I am sure.”

  “Yes, my Khan. Unacceptable.”

  “I will personally handle one, three and four. Number two is Intelligence, so he is yours. My War Council will conduct court martials on the rest.

  She stood, smoothed her jacket and strode from the room.

  “We will start with number thirty-seven immediately.”

  The War Council of Annika Raudona Russolov Khan met in the Azahnti council chamber. Admiral Thiessen and Gavin Howland were joined by Noire, fourteen Generals, Three Admirals, seven Naval Captains and Three Army Colonels. Annika knew the colonels, having met with them hours earlier.

  The holo above the onyx table showed a shuttle bearing Vengeance’s markings leaving him. It headed directly toward Azahnti. “The transfer is scheduled for a fifteen-minute flight,” Noire said.

  Five minutes into the flight, as the shuttle was arcing over Mykonos’s polar cap, it exploded.

  Admiral Thiessen stood. “I believe this confirms the evidence Agent Noire presented. The verdict?” He looked around the table. Each officer, in turn, slashed their right hand across their throat. Howland repeated the gesture. Admiral slashed his hand across his throat, then addressed Annika. “My Khan. The verdict is unanimous. Your orders?”

  “Order him to land aboard Azahnti immediately. Once he is aboard, the Victor is to be boarded. Any officer or crewman who resists is to be detained. I do not want anyone killed or injured; they are still my soldiers and I will not allow them to be punished for the actions of traitors,” Annika stated.

  “As you order, my Khan.” Admiral Thiessen pressed his comm button and gave the short, terse order.

  Twenty short minutes later, the doors of the chamber opened. A furious Colonel Scott Hopkins was escorted in by two burly guards. He shook off their grips and demanded, “Admiral Thiessen! What is the meaning of this? I am the senior on-scene commander of the accident involving the Khan’s shuttle. I should be out there leading the search rather than here answering questions.”

  “An interesting choice of words, Colonel. Answering questions. I have a few questions of my own I would like answered.” Annika rotated her throne from the star field outside the window. “What did it take for you to decide to betray me and my Empire?”

  Colonel Hopkins was wide eyed. “M-m-my Khan,” he stammered. “You’re alive!” His hand snaked toward his sidearm.

  And froze. She held him rigidly for three long minutes, then said, “You may breathe now
. Admiral?”

  Admiral Thiessen stood. “Colonel Scott Adam Hopkins, you have been tried and found guilty by the War Council of the Khan. The charges are treason, attempted murder of your Khan, conspiracy to commit mutiny and revolt against the Empire, murder of two Imperial officers piloting the shuttle and destruction of Imperial property. Have you anything to say for yourself before the Khan pronounces sentence?”

  “You may speak,” Annika granted.

  “I do not recognize the authority of this council,” Scott wheezed. “You cannot call for a War Council, Crown Princess. That is power reserved for the leader of the Empire.”

  “The Regent. Yes,” Annika drawled. “I will be soon paying my Uncle a visit. As for my authority, I have the law of Angkor Khan giving me the all the authority I need as the fifteenth reincarnation of the Great Khan. These officers are honoring their oaths to the Law and the Empire, therefore honoring their oaths to me. That is all the authority my War Council needs.

  Are you prepared to hear sentencing for your treachery?”

  Colonel Scott’s face writhed in fury. “Bitch!” was his reply.

  Annika froze him again.

  She settled back in her throne and crossed her legs. “I sentence you to spacing. It will occur on the Victor so any of your crew who is under your influence will be given the benefit of observing the consequence of standing against their Khan. Your body will be secured so that the ship may get some use out of recycling your otherwise worthless atoms. I claim your estate as mine. Your wife and children are now my property and will be sent to the mines.” She leaned forward. “You are stripped of your rank. I take your name from you. You are nameless and honorless.”

  “Noire? I revoke this…thing’s Right of Privacy. Empty it, then we will dispose of it.”

  “Now, normally I would have you settle onto a couch for a deep scan,” Noire said in a pleasant voice. “It makes a deep scan a little easier if I have time and you are comfortable. But, time is of the essence. So, I’ll just have to improvise.

  “To start, you’ll have no need for the uniform. As the Khan has stripped you of that honor, you should remove it.” The former officer moved woodenly, removing his flight boots, then stripping the flight suit off.

  “Waste not, want not,” Noire raised a finger. “Dispose of that in the recycling slot.”

  “Watch, sister, I have been practicing this, just for you.”

  The nameless, rankless shell of a man bent and picked up his boots and flight suit. His feet slapped on the deck as he goose-stepped to the recycling slot and dumped his clothing into it.

  “Hilarious, Brother! Thank you!”

  “You’re welcome, my Khan!”

  His feet slapped again as he returned to Noire and stood, wooden, at attention.

  “All righty, then, let’s get started, shall we?” Noire removed a pad from his pocket. “You may feel just a little pressure.” His eyes glazed over to black. The former officer’s eyes went wide and his mouth gaped open, the cords in his neck stretched tight. He began to quiver. Noire’s fingers tapped a staccato on his pad. The tortured man screeched for five long minutes.

  Then Noire was finished. His eyes returned to the Imperial green. His pad went into his pocket. “Interesting,” he stated to the room. “A few new names for your list, my Khan. I’ll update it immediately.”

  “You will follow this guard to the shuttle bay,” he instructed the former officer. “He will take you to Victor for your execution.”

  “Now, back to business.” Admiral Thiessen said as he stood and signaled an aide. “We have the First of the Mykonos Three’s government for you, my Khan.”

  A holo formed over the table of an elderly, canine being. A brown, peaked cap sat on its head between erect ears. Grey fur surrounded its muzzle. Its eyes were sharp as they darted back and forth. “I am Philemon, First of the Mykonos Elders,” it stated. “And, very likely Philemon, the only of the Mykonos Elders. To whom am I speaking?” The voice was old, tired.

  “I am Annika Raudona Russolov, Khan of the Terran Empire,” she stated. “I am here to discuss your future, Philemon.”

  “My future?” His laugh was a dry rasping. “I think your invasion has pretty well secured my future, Miss Russolov.”

  “No. Your future is not yet determined,” she told him. “I have two options for you, First of the Elders. One, you surrender immediately. My troops will occupy your cities and villages, such as they are. Order will be restored and maintained. Your local laws and customs remain in effect, save where they contradict the Laws of the Empire.

  “The aliens on your world who supplied you with the advanced weapons are to be detained and turned over to my troops. Should they resist your detaining them, my troops will assist yours.

  “I will order my Medical Corps to come to Mykonos Three immediately and care for your ill and wounded. My Corps of Engineers will meet with you and your selected leaders to rebuild your planet. I predict your society will soon recover from this unpleasantness. You have much you can add to my Empire. I would not be surprised to see Mykonos Three a client world within five years and a member of the Empire within the next fifty.

  “You would go down in Mykonos Three’s history as perhaps its finest leader.”

  “An attractive offer,” Philemon stated. “And if I refuse?”

  “Then my troops will withdraw from the planet’s surface,” Annika replied. “My main battle line will enter a low orbit and destroy anything larger than a privy. Your planet will burn, First Elder. Your people will scatter and become feral. My Empire will monitor and when all possibility of resistance, all possible sign of civilization is gone, we shall take your world and do with it as we see fit. You are an attractive species, First Elder. Perhaps my generals would come and hunt your kind in your forests. For sport.

  What is your decision, First Elder of the Mykonos people?”

  Its jaw snapped open and closed several times. Then it asked, “What title do your people bestow upon you, Miss Russolov?”

  “I am Khan.”

  “Then we are your people, my Khan,” Philemon declared.

  That afternoon, the Terran fleet reformed. The decision was to strike quickly. Admiral Thiessen would lead the bulk of the fleet from Azahnti. He would strike for Argulea and the Regent. His orders were to capture the Regent and the Empress alive and return them to Terra for trial. Many of the traitors on Noire’s list were located on Argulea; he was to capture them.

  Annika would take five dreadnaughts with their escorts and strike for Terra. It was imperative she get there and claim her crown before the enemy could respond.

  She selected the Dreadnaught Lord Klerrks Revenge as her flagship.

  The ship was named for the greatest hero of the Democracy Revolution. Lord Stanly Klerrk had been the first noble to oppose the Eighth’s bloody decision to violate the Laws of Angkor Khan. He was arrested, his family murdered in front of him. He was condemned to toil in the mines until he died. It took Lord Klerrk fifteen grueling years to build a following and revolt, joining the resistance which defeated the obscenity on the throne.

  Lord Klerrk, on the balcony of Giza Palace, personally strangled the despot. The rebels were prepared to declare him the new Khan on the spot. There was a howl of disbelief as Lord Klerrk drew his knife and cried out, “As a loyal follower of the Law of Angkor Khan, I now declare myself a traitor, for I have stood against the seventh reincarnation of Angkor Khan and murdered him. For this crime, the only punishment is death.”

  There, on the balcony, Lord Klerrk became a legend by opening his own throat.

  The ship was three quarters of a mile long and slightly over a quarter mile wide and tall. Four of the largest star drives ever built were attached to its stern. The blocky hull supported two heavy turrets on the upper and lower spines of the ship, each turret holding two massive mason rifles.

  The forward third of the ship flared out wide, then tapered to a point carrying two more meson rifles. Launch and reco
very bays mounted to the lower, forward hull allowed the Lord Klerrks Revenge to operate two hundred fighters and bombers. Missile launchers, smaller weapons turrets dotted the rest of the black, silver and grey hull.

  Lord Klerrks Revenge was the largest dreadnaughts in the Terran fleet.

  It was now her flagship, and awaited her alongside Azahnti. Annika and Admiral Thiessen admired the menacing vessel. “An excellent choice, my Khan,” commented Thiessen. “It sends exactly the right message.”

  “Thank you, Uncle.” Annika was pleased with his approval. “He is a handsome ship. I expect we shall gather much glory and honor together.”

  A young officer signaled to them. “My Khan, Admiral, the signal from Victor you have been waiting for.” A holographic image floated above the dark table. A middle-aged officer, his dark hair greying at the temples, spoke. “My Khan, Admiral. I am Major Francis Alberts, Engineering officer and temporary commanding officer of the carrier Victor. The operation to secure this vessel is complete. The X.O. and weapons officers were both involved with Colonel Hopkins’ mutiny and have been detained by your boarding party. Only three of the rest of the crew are sympathetic with the Regent. They have been likewise detained. Victor stands with the Khan and is prepared to do her bidding.”

  “Are you prepared for the execution?”” Annika asked.

  “Yes, my Khan,” Major Alberts responded. “Understandably, he was quite angry when he came aboard. He offered bribes and issued threats. Even in the airlock, he is still trying to plead his case.”

  “What did he offer you, Major?” she asked.

  “Half a million credits if I let him escape. Now it’s a knife in my belly when he does escape. I fear he hasn’t accepted his impending death.”

  “I’ll do him one better,” Annika declared. “You are now Colonel Alberts and I award you command of the Victor. Serve me well.”

  The new Colonel saluted. “It shall be as you order, my Khan. Shall we proceed with the execution?”

  The hologram changed to the view inside the airlock. There room was bright, a red beacon rotated over the airlock’s exterior door. The nameless traitor was secured by the waist to a steel chair that had been welded to the deck in the airlock for the occasion.