by Ryk Brown
“Sure,” Luis finally answered. “I mean… Yes, sir?”
* * *
Eli Scott stood in front of the big, picture window that looked out from his office across the sea of lights in the city below. He had looked out this window many times, staring at the city of Geneva that served as his seat of power as the Jung-appointed Governor of Earth. All his adult life, he had dreamed of such power, and now he had it.
The massive double doors at the far end of his lavish office split in two, opening just enough to allow one man, his chief of intelligence, to enter. The chief’s boots clicked on the marble floors as he approached, each tap echoing through the room.
“Have you captured the Celestia?” Eli asked as he turned from the window to address his subordinate.
“Not exactly,” the man answered. His English was perfect, although some of his Jung accent had begun to creep back in since the invasion. “There has been a complication.”
“General,” Eli said, disappointment in his voice, “don’t tell me the admiral led us on another wild goose chase.”
“I’m afraid it’s worse than that, sir,” the general answered. “This time, he led us into a trap.”
Eli sat down and put his elbows on his desk, covering his face with his hands in exasperation. “How bad?”
“I’m afraid one of our cruisers has been badly damaged.”
“And how did this occur?” Eli asked.
“When the cruiser approached the asteroid named by Admiral Galiardi as the hiding place for the Celestia, the asteroid exploded. Several hundred men were killed. The ship is now limping her way back to Earth orbit and will require extensive repairs.”
“That leaves us with what?”
“One battleship, three cruisers, four frigates, and two gunboats, sir.”
“That doesn’t seem like enough to me,” Eli said, his eyes narrowing with anger, “not after seeing how easily the Aurora destroyed two of our cruisers with… whatever that weapon was.” Eli looked up at the general. “I don’t suppose you’ve determined where the Aurora got such weaponry.”
“No, sir, we have not.”
“So the good admiral has tricked us again, has he?” Eli exclaimed, almost delighting in his subordinate’s string of failures.
“It appears that this has been his intent all along,” the general said, “feed us false information mixed in with legitimate, yet low value, targets in order to keep us believing the information he provides. I suspect that there are more traps waiting for us and that it is the admiral’s job to lead us to them.”
“Most clever, that man. Always has been.”
“He has been seriously punished for his deception. Unfortunately, we assess an eighty-seven percent chance of his continued survival, and only a twelve percent chance he will provide us with any more useful information. May I suggest we stop wasting our time interrogating Admiral Galiardi and proceed with reconditioning?”
“Very, well. If he survives, you may proceed with reconditioning.” Eli took a deep breath, looking at the general. “Have you any other bad news to report?”
“No, sir,” the general answered. “Actually, I have some rather good news to report as well.”
“Do tell, General,” Eli said, his face becoming more optimistic.
“Various other intelligence sources have yielded an interesting prize: a man with a surprising amount of information, especially considering his lack of training in interrogation resistance.”
“Really? Who is this man?” Eli wondered.
The general smiled. “Your father.”
Thank you for reading this story.
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COMING SOON
“LIBERATION”
Episode 10
of
The Frontiers Saga
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