Lee looked out to the audience to see his father being locked into position by the human officer. He had thought his father dead for six years. Discovering the old man hidden deep inside a bombed out base after the defeat of the Ch’Tauk had been like a dream come true. After the losses of the war, gaining back a family had become the most important thing in his life. As the chancellor droned on, he made out his father’s head sagging in the chair. The officer nudged him awake just as the politician introduced Admiral Chang to the podium. Lee felt Alice tighten her hand in his as their friend stepped to the microphone. Chang was not known for long speeches and he wanted to be ready when they were called up.
Chang spoke briefly before calling up the Demon squadron. Jackal led her team, now known galaxy-wide by their call signs, to the dais to accept the medals from their commander. After Jackal, and her new husband Baron, stepped up and received the award, Merlin and Aztec followed. The medal had been named for the squadron and they would be the first recipients. The medal joined several others recently given to the pilots to honor their contributions and bravery during the war. After their names had been announced, the squadron basked in the adulation of the crowd before being shown back to their seats. Chang then called Lee, Alice and Farthing to the stand.
The applause was deafening, even with the noise-cancelling speakers surrounding the podium working on full. Lee winced as the sound threatened to overwhelm his senses. The moment of joy stretched into nearly a minute as the crowd refused to calm. The chancellor waved his long arms to try to quiet the mass of creatures, without success. The ovation lasted nearly three minutes before finally quieting down enough to allow Chang to speak. He stepped back to the podium and tapped the small microphone, calling the room to near silence again.
“Ladies, gentlemen and assorted gendered species…” Chang began. “It is truly an honor to be here today to pay tribute to these three officers.”
The crowd again roared their appreciation of the celebrity trio. Lee felt his face growing red from embarrassment. As he looked to Alice, the smile which had been on her face began to fade and a new expression spread. He could feel her anxiety building. She had been held in isolation for so long he had been afraid of bringing her to such a large gathering. Her hand in his was squeezing hard, trying to reassure herself. She looked up at him and he smiled back. The crowd saw their look and grew louder. To distract them, Lee nodded towards his father. As he looked back to Everett, he saw the widest smile he had ever seen on the old man’s face. He was too far away to see, but he expected that Ev had tears in his eyes. He had lost his other children in the invasion, and to see Lee honored before the entire galaxy must have been the proudest moment in his life.
The crowd finally died down and Chang took the microphone again. He shook his head and let a small laugh escape, eliciting giggles from the audience. He turned back to the two standing hand in hand and shrugged.
“I guess I don’t need to say anything more.”
Chang took the small boxes from the podium and approached Lee and Alice. Again, the medals had been created in their honor. The admiral opened the first box and took the red, sun-shaped award from its lined case. Farthing stood tall and straight as the admiral pinned the medal to his uniformed chest. A round of applause from the Vadne scattered around the theater greeted the commander’s medal. As Chang moved aside, more applause greeted the felinoid. Farthing twitched his whiskers in appreciation and stepped back behind the true celebrities of the event.
Chang took another medal from the first box and held it up to let Alice see. He took Alice’s hand in his and gave it a firm shake, placing the medal on her left chest over her heart. The red shape had come to be the mission patch of the battleship they had served on for so long, and the medals had been crafted from a rare gem which glowed from within. Alice smiled as Chang stepped aside to let the crowd see. After another bout of applause, he opened the second box and took up an identical medal. This one had a gold band around the central orb of the sun. The Resolute Medal was meant to become the highest symbol of bravery and service in the Alliance, and Lee was the only man who would ever receive the banded version. Chang smiled as he pinned the medal to Lee’s chest. He stepped aside to allow the crowd to see their newest heroes. Lee looked out to see his father. He could clearly see the tears running down the lined face of Everett Pearce ….
The explosion which followed tore the raised stand in half and tossed Lee, Alice and Chang into the rear wall of the hall. Fire and smoke obscured everything in the chaos. Lee’s hearing was no more than a high-pitched whine, but he could still make out the screams of the dying aliens around him. He shook his head, trying to clear his senses, and discovered he was still holding Alice’s hand. She looked back at him, nodding to show she was okay despite the torn uniform and blood on her arm. She mouthed something to him, trying to push him away.
“Go find your father.”
Lee nodded, not wanting to leave her, but trusting in her that she would be okay. He stood, feeling his hip nearly give way, and tried to move through the fire and smoke. Somewhere, he thought he could hear the voice of Jackal calling out orders. The table they had been seated at was a burning mass he needed to move around. Pushing aside a thick beam, Lee moved through the rubble and towards the audience seating area. He moved by memory, an image of where his father had been to guide where he was going. When he reached the first bank of seats, he started down the row.
The first thing he saw was the floating chair. Miraculously, it was still hovering a meter from the ground, seemingly untouched by the flames which had swept away the seats around it. Everett was not in the chair and Lee cried out in desperation. A Tonal, the skin on the left side of its snouted face burned completely away, squealed as it ran past, shoving Lee back in its panic to get away. Lee nearly fell as his hip gave way, but he grasped the edge of his father’s chair for support. The chair moved as he pushed off and staggered away. Behind it, he finally made out the form of the human guard who had been sitting with his father. The man’s uniform was burned completely away, the back of his spine showing through. He was lying across another form. Lee grabbed the body and moved it aside, revealing his father, eyes closed and covered in the guard’s blood.
“Dad?” Lee shouted, trying to hear his own voice above the ringing in his ears. Dad, it’s me.”
Everett took a gasping breath and then coughed out smoke and blood. Without opening his eyes, he reached up, trying to find whoever was holding him. Lee grasped the hand in his own, willing his father to survive. The old man coughed again and tried to speak. Lee leaned in close, tears beginning to roll down his face.
“Dad … Dad, please…”
“I’m proud of…” Everett Pearce whispered through blood-flecked lips. “I love you, son…”
Lee felt his father’s body go limp as he held the old man’s hand. He did not care about the flames or the chaos around him. He cried not for the dead around him, but for the frail body in his arms. He was still there when the rescue teams arrived and pulled him away from his father’s body.
2
Lee struggled to make his way through the rows of injured at the Alliance triage center. The station had taken too much damage and had been evacuated to the surface of the planet. His hip had been fractured in the explosion and had been hastily regrown on the shuttle to Vadne. It made him feel weak and unsure of himself to use the cane the felinoid doctors had provided, so he limped along without it. On all sides he was surrounded by those in far worse shape; he felt it would be disrespectful to show them any weakness when they were unable to even move. He continued on, moving towards one of the larger portable buildings to the east.
“Captain!” a voice called from his left.
Lee turned to see Jackal moving among the beds. Her head was bandaged and her long black hair had been shaved where a blast had burnt her scalp, but she was smiling and moving quickly towards him. For a moment he feared she might distract him from his objective. She had also
suffered during the blast and needed his reassurance as much as he needed to complete his mission.
“Jacqueline,” Lee said, using the woman’s real name. “It’s good to see you up. How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine, Captain, but … I heard about your father,” the woman said, her almond eyes growing a crystal tear. “I am so sorry for your loss, Lee. I know how much he meant to you and to all of us. He was like a grandfather to all of us.”
“Thank you,” Lee replied, reaching for her hand to hold. “He liked you too. How’s Baron?”
Lieutenant Commander Richter had been hurt badly in the explosion. Without knowing it, Lee had heard Jackal ordering people to move the rubble off her husband. The two had only been married for a short time and Lee was concerned for her emotional health as much as her physical. The two pilots had not always had a cordial relationship, but had cemented their bond during the waning months of the war, and married soon after. Commander Richter had long ago given himself the name “Baron” to honor a rumored connection to an ancient pilot ace from Earth’s past.
“He lost the arm, Lee. I don’t think he will ever be able to fly again.”
“Oh God, Jackal,” Lee said, squeezing her hand. “I know how much flying meant to him. At least he’s still alive. You two have that.”
“Yeah, we do. Thanks, Lee,” Jackal replied, again looking as though she were about to tear up. “How is Alice?”
“She’s a little banged up, but okay. She and Farthing took a shuttle back up to the ship this morning.”
“I’m surprised you aren’t with them,” she said. “What are you doing down here, anyway?”
“I need to talk to Chang,” Lee replied. “I need to know what’s happening here.”
“Be careful, Lee. He came out yesterday to see Baron and the others. He didn’t look good. He had so much riding on the peace treaty…”
“I couldn’t care less about the damn treaty,” Lee said angrily. “I just want to know who killed my father.”
“Well, be careful anyway. I need to get back,” Jackal replied, sliding her hand away from Lee’s. “I’ll see you back on Resolute.”
Lee stepped away from the woman, trying to shake the feeling he had missed a signal she was trying to send. The warning about Chang had been well deserved. Lee had been trying to get in to see the man for the last few hours with no success. The closest he had come was a testy exchange with the man’s personal aide-de-camp about an hour ago, who’d told him if he wanted to see the admiral he had to come to him now. Lee had staggered away from his bed and into the open triage area towards the admiral’s private quarters.
Chang had been injured as well in the explosion, tearing ligaments and opening a gash along his right side. He had managed, however, to save the chancellor from a falling beam which would have killed him. It was one of the things he had always admired about the man, his ability to focus through the pain and do what he needed.
Lee moved quickly through the triage center and into the private building. Aides were moving quickly from one area to another, tapping controls on consoles and relaying messages. Lee stepped past the secretaries and into the inner office. Chang’s aide-de-camp was an officious little man who spoke too fast but had an encyclopedic knowledge of politics. Ron had once confided that he hated the little man but needed him to do his job. Lee approached the little man and waited. After standing still for many seconds, Lee coughed slightly to get the aide’s attention. The man looked up and sniffed behind a pince-nez.
“You?” the aide said. “You’re a bit later than I expected. You’d better go in. He’s expecting you.”
Lee stared for a moment at the man. He was wearing a crisp suit at odds with the triage building and frenetic activity going on around him. Shaking his head, he stepped past the aide and into Chang’s personal quarters.
Admiral Chang was wearing a long gown patterned with some kind of white flower, and dragging an I.V. pole around behind him. He had a wrist comm up in front of him and an image of a Tonal dignitary faded from view. The admiral snorted his disgust with the conversation before turning to Lee. He looked pale but alert as he dragged himself and the pole towards Lee.
“Good, you’re here. I was just talking about you,” the admiral said. “Sit down.”
“Admiral, I wanted to ask you about the—”
“I said sit down, Captain.”
The man’s tone and use of his rank told Lee this was no time to argue. He pushed aside a stack of data pads from the small cot and sat. Chang stepped to a terminal and tapped commands. Lee sat in silence, watching his friend and worrying. The disruption of the peace conference had upset meticulously laid plans on all sides of the government. The explosion, so close to the chancellor and other members of parliament, had become a military matter very quickly. Chang, as the ranking member of the Joint Chiefs, had been tasked with the burden of the investigation. It was the reason Lee had come to see him.
“I need you to pack up your people and get the hell out of here, Lee,” Chang spoke abruptly. “This matter is being turned over to Alliance Security. They want you out of here and back at Earth where we can keep an eye on you.”
“Admiral!” Lee said, standing up to look the man in the eye. “You can’t do this. I—”
“The hell I can’t, Lee,” Chang roared back. “I am your commanding officer and you will follow orders. Now get your people and get off this planet.”
“Ron, why me? Do they think this attack had something to do with me or Resolute?” Lee asked.
“They don’t know yet and that’s why they want to move you back to Earth,” Chang replied, softening his tone and sitting down on a stool with a puff of blown air. “They just don’t know. Lee, look, I’m sorry about Ev. You know how much we all liked the guy.”
“Admiral, what the hell is going on?” Lee asked, dodging the mention of his father. “Who were you just talking to about me?”
“Lee,” Chang said, shaking his head and looking at the floor. “It’s more complicated than I can explain right now. Please, just leave.”
“I can’t, Ron. I need to find out who killed my father.”
“It’s out of your hands, Lee. Let it go and let these people do their jobs.”
“If you won’t tell me what’s going on, I’ll find out myself,” Lee said, stepping towards the door. “I have a few friends—”
“Lee, sit down!” Chang ordered, his voice more commanding than before. “You won’t do anything, do you understand? That’s an order.”
“I don’t understand. You haven’t given me anything to understand. I am not leaving until—”
“I’ll have you thrown in the brig on Trinity and taken back to Earth in chains if I have to, but one way or the other you are not staying here!”
Lee looked at his friend. Chang had always been an honest man and an able commander. For the first few years after the invasion he had been in command of Resolute before Lee. The two men had grown to respect each other, but in the last year or so Chang had seemed to become more of a schemer than Lee had ever known. He had layers of plans which he kept hidden until the last moment. In all things, however, Lee had never known him to pull rank and hide the real reasons from him. The war had changed everyone, and some for the worse.
“I didn’t want to have to tell you this way, Lee,” Chang said as Lee sat back down. “I was going to announce this at the ceremony. I thought it might make it easier to take.”
“Tell me what, Ron?”
“You’re being promoted, Lee. The Joint Chiefs agreed to create a new post for you,” Chang said, as if delivering a eulogy. “Congratulations, Fleet Captain Pearce.”
“I don’t understand, Admiral,” Lee said. “What the hell is a fleet captain?”
“It’s a desk and a parade, Lee,” Chang said. “They’re pulling you out of space.”
Lee was struck. Of all the things he had expected, this was the last. For a moment, he felt the world spin around his head. The thought
of not sitting in the command seat of his ship was inconceivable. He thought of his crew and who would be next to command them after all they had endured together.
“Why?” was all Lee could say.
“You are too important, Lee,” Chang replied, reaching into his desk and pulling a small vial from a drawer. He set the vial on the table and pulled the stopper. “I think you may need this. The Vadne make weird whiskey, but I brought this down for after the ceremony.”
Lee reached out and took the vial from his friend. The sweet amber liquid burned as it moved down his throat, waking him back up even as it began to blur his senses. Lee looked to his friend for a moment before taking another gulp. He gave the vial back and the admiral took a long swig. Both men sat in silence for a moment before Lee thought to ask the question.
“Who is getting Resolute?”
“That’s the nail in the coffin, Lee,” Chang said, his voice taking on the slight slur of someone who had mixed painkillers and alcohol too quickly. “She’s being decommissioned into a museum of the war. She’ll be on display in orbit.”
Again the world took a spin around Lee Pearce’s head. His command taken and his ship mothballed. He felt, for the first time … old. He had seen officers removed from the field for many reasons over the years, but never for success. It didn’t make sense for them to remove a good commander from service when the Alliance was still rebuilding.
Resolute Alliance (The War for Terra Book 6) Page 2