“That is why Primus Pilus Martin Faust was put in charge of the merger initiative,” Senator Perez said serenely, his smile taking any bite out of his statement of the facts. “For us to gain a better understanding and create a system for people to gain this new ability, train and use it most effectively.”
“There’s no one to test them to see if they’re ready.”
“But we do, Damus—the two maniples of trained Elves being trained by Centurion Martin Faust.” A smile spread across Senator Rimateus’s face.
“Yes, Senator.”
“Martin Faust and his officers will assess this unit for their abilities,” Senator Rimateus said matter-of-factly.
Shortly, the meeting was finished, with Damus leaving quickly and finding Charles outside it.
“Shut up. Follow me,” he commed.
A stunned Charles followed Damus all the way through the senate, to the Ninth’s base and into a private drop-ship that was fifteen kilometers tall and had a fifty-kilometer-wide super tower. They went five kilometers down into the heart of the tower buried underneath Roma’s crust, into his private office.
Damus locked the doors. “So, it looks like Mark and his Phantom Lords are coming to Roma,” Damus said once the room was secured.
“What happened?”
Damus paced in front of the view screens which made the room seem as though it overlooked a Roma greenhouse complex. “Senator Rimateus wants Primus Pilus Faust and his maniple to test Victor and his century.”
“I didn’t see that. I must check the feed again.”
“You watched it through the secure sensors?” Damus paused his pacing. “You could get executed for that.”
“I hate being uninformed.”
“Charles.” Damus growled in a warning tone.
“Mark is not going to like this at all.” Charles rolled over Damus’s complaint. “Neither are his people.”
“You know him better than I do. What do you think he’ll do?”
“He’ll follow his orders as you give them to the letter. He’ll be loyal to his people too. Anything that is unnecessary he won’t do. He won’t stand for idiots and you better keep the senators away from him. I got a sense he doesn’t like politicians one bit.”
“Do you think he’ll fight Faust?”
“No. He’ll know the man’s doing his job and let him get on with it. Might even lend a hand if so asked.”
“What are you hinting at?”
“Maybe we could get more than a half century of Elves ready.”
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t quite hear you. Could you say that again?” Damus said with a glint in his eye.
“Nothing, Commander of Roma’s Legions. I must return to my work.”
“Of course. And I have much work to do.”
Chapter 34
Senate House
Roma, Hellenic system
9/3352
Senator Rimateus, in the center of the Senate House, stood at the podium to address all in attendance.
Most were looking to Admiral Nessa, waiting for the confirmation that the Maraukians had truly created an A-drive and any more information she might have.
Attendance was high, with tension and fear running through the air.
All eyes were on him. It was daunting for many. Here were the most powerful men and women in known existence. They controlled industry, were linked to the largest of corporations, had led entire legions into battle and represented the people of the empire.
Rimateus felt alive as he looked at them all. The building was a mirror image of what their ancestors had been in. To his right and left, benches ran the length of the great hall, making everyone turn sideways to see Rimateus.
Here, their seats randomized by the AI consul that ran the Senate House and kept order.
“Senators, since we were just a single planet, we have been the guides of the legions. We have come together despite our issues and we have put our legions in danger time and time again, to serve the purpose of saving people from the Maraukian threat. As we were saved by the legion, we have gone on to use our legion as a liberating force.
“In this hall, there are many who can attest to the legion’s great feats, how they have been a symbol of Roma. They have defended planets that they were not born to, but we share a heritage with. We are not the EHC. We do not wish to fight our brothers and sisters.” Rimateus shook his head. His face clouded at speaking of the barbaric EHC, much like a frustrated father.
“We work together to strengthen one another. We are humans and together we have shown how strong we truly are. Division leads to weakness and failure.” Rimateus stabbed his finger into the podium.
“We have trained anyone who wishes to become a legionnaire and a citizen of Roma at the legionnaire tower for nearly seven hundred years. People from all walks of life, all creeds and planets fighting together, building a greater empire.” Rimateus looked out over them all.
“We have learned grave news, something I know we all wish had not come to pass. The Maraukians have somehow gained the ability to create an A-drive. Our own Captain Chen, a man of great honor, has confirmed this.” Rimateus waved to the captain, who stood off to the side with Admiral Nessa, ready to give their report to the senate.
“The legions that have defended us will continue to do so. We will deal with this threat. Indeed, we are already creating a force which is capable of fighting Maraukians hand-to-hand,” Rimateus said.
Mutters went through the senators. Even more were probably being passed by NIAIs.
Rimateus didn’t look to Damus, who sat among the senators.
“They have been called Elves due to their similarities with the creatures of lore.” Rimateus distributed images of the Elves to the senate, especially ones of them in the cafeteria, showing their mass and height.
“I am told they are most impressive in the field. It is thought that they might finally be a force to attack the Maraukians beyond a city’s walls. Think about that! The ability to take the fight to the Maraukians. We could attack their planets, destroy their infrastructure and turn it over to our own people. We have identified several Maraukian home worlds but we can do nothing but watch as their defenses are too strong and their planets covered in hordes. We have made it illegal to destroy worlds and with good reason.” Rimateus didn’t agree with it, but the people didn’t want to see planets blown up—and he didn’t want to lose voters, after all.
“These Elves can give us that capability. They are small in number and they do not have the resources they need to reach their full potential stuck on a planet that is only just recovering from a Maraukian emergence. I put forward a vote to return the Phantom Lord century to Legionnaire Tower. Let us work to strengthen our legions and take the fight to the Maraukians. With our resources, our legionnaires, and the senate’s wisdom, we can not only defend the empire, but sound the war drum. The legion’s days of defending are coming to an end. As our forefathers did, we will not just stand by. We will march! Roma’s legions will move forward, not to defend and hold, but to attack and take. We will no longer let the Maraukians advance. We will go to war!” Rimateus’s voice grew in volume as he held the podium, leaning forward and looking to his fellow senators.
Cheers and applause rang out from the senators. Many of them rose.
Rimateus saw Damus Versanti staying seated, his face impassive. Try and stop me now.
The senate had been scared and afraid. For so long, the Maraukians had been a known quantity. They knew how to deal with them and they could get along with their lives. Now it was all threatened. The Maraukian hadn’t landed on a planet in three hundred years.
It was okay when it was systems away, but if it happened to their planet—it changed perspectives.
There was no known option to go to, no way to do anything but what they’d always done: hunker behind walls and hope they could defeat the Maraukians before they overran their defenses. With the Elves, a new possibility had risen.
It gave th
em an option; it gave them hope and it gave them something to point to when their people asked what the hell they were doing.
The Elves would be heavily supported and built into something Rimateus couldn’t fathom. They were the face of hope. People would do anything to see they succeeded.
Rimateus had seen the videos from his sources. Even if they failed, they looked impressive. He would need to make sure he got his own officers into the group. Mark Victor was too much of a wild card—a man from the EMF and more advanced than any of the others.
Rimateus was already looking at ways to bring the man over to his party but if he couldn’t, he would need an alternate plan.
No matter what, the success would be given to Rimateus. They might be called Elves and be commanded by Mark, but because he had been the one to announce that they even existed, he would take the credit.
“We will now have a vote,” the consul said as the cheering died down.
It came back a few moments later. Ninety percent agreed to the measures and it passed. Orders would be cut the next day to transfer the Elves back to Roma.
Unseen by Rimateus, Legate Nerva, acting in his role as a senator of Roma, might have smiled, ever so slightly. Much like a snake might smile at a mouse.
Chapter 35
Emperor’s Palace
Roma, Hellenic system
9/3352
Emperor Felix Cassius sat at a large, ornate desk. It had been used by his forefathers since they had first come to Roma’s inhospitable planet surface.
Some of the biggest decisions of his life had been made around this table. A touch surface augmented the real wood top.
He controlled the most powerful empire in known space. Most times it just feels like I’m playing mediator for a bunch of idiots.
His latest issues were the reports of Maraukians getting an A-drive and the senate pushing for the study of a man who had fought Maraukians face-to-face.
Cassius gazed at the windows of his palace. It looked out on the massive fields that created a clear line of vision around his ancestral home. More than one party had tried to cross those fields and covered it in their blood.
Mark’s abilities were strange, and Nerva believed they could give the legions the ability to attack the Maraukians, not simply sit behind their walls.
It was the kind of advantage that Damus and Nerva had dreamed about for years. Hell, Felix wanted it as well.
Nerva had trained Felix when he was a little boy. He was one of the few people who could take an impudent prince and hit him upside the head and wouldn’t bat an eyelid. No matter someone’s standing, their actions under his command were the only proof he knew.
Felix’s centurion had been a smuggler until he was caught, given the option of hard labor or joining the legion. He’d joined the legion and commanded the emperor himself.
In high society, it had caused outrage. Nerva had bulldozed through it, not caring.
Emperor Gnaeus, Felix’s father, did nothing to help his son, and Felix was happy for it. His two years of service taught him more lessons than he thought possible. He’d signed on for five more years.
Nerva might be a hard man, but he was fair. He would do everything in his power to tilt the odds in his people’s favor and see they were cared for.
He was one of the few people who Felix knew would give him an honest opinion. Nerva’s suggestions were bold, but they solved many of his issues.
“Livia, send a message to Nerva. Mark Victor and the other Elves will be recalled to Roma. See he sets up a meeting with all three of us. I want to talk to this Mark Victor myself.”
“Yes, sir,” Livia said.
Cassius looked at the recordings and information from the Senate House.
Senator Rimateus had been kind enough to give Damus and Nerva the support they’d wanted. The problem was putting the Elves under the control of the senate.
Many of them meant well, but others were snakes and vipers. They had all been elected to their positions, but there were multiple ways to hide and lie about aspects.
His father had always said how it was an emperor’s job to encourage his people to grow, but to not overgrow their boundaries. Everything had a place and everything had a purpose. If it started to do things that it wasn’t supposed to, then it was liable to throw the whole thing into chaos.
Right now, Cassius and the senate needed to show a united front. As much as the senate was good, they were only just people. Cassius knew they would do everything to use the Elves to promote themselves; they would fight and barter over who would get their support.
They were fighting for their people and Cassius understood it. They were focused on a planet or a region. Cassius was looking at an empire. What was good for the empire might not be good for a few regions or planets. He would save all he could, but sometimes there was nothing he could do but sacrifice a few for the greater whole.
Felix looked out over his fields and the Roma cities in the distance, the mega-scrapers which rose from the underground caves to above the planet’s surface.
These were his people and it was his duty to defend them with everything in his power. Even if he had to defend them from themselves.
Chapter 36
Camp Epsilon
Tricticus, Emarl system
9/3352
“It seems they’ve found out about your group here and the senate is recalling all of the merging capable personnel to Roma. So far, I haven’t been told what you’ll be doing in Roma. You will probably be put under the purview of Primus Pilus Martin Faust. The man follows his orders like a bloodhound on the scent—help him, he’ll be fine; don’t and he’ll be a major thorn in your ass.”
“Understood, sir. I won’t get in his way. I actually want him to find out more about the suits. It’ll make my life easier and the faster he can get it done, the faster we can train more people to use the skills and equipment we have available. When will we be getting transport?”
“Should be in a week and a half. Captain Chen’s coming. He’s now captain of the battleship Moby. It’s his warm-up run.”
“Also, could I use the mag lift to throw some satellites up?”
“What for? The Maraukians bombard them every time they arrive so why put them up?”
“I’m working on a new idea to make a grid of them so as soon as the sensors find a Maraukian ship jumping in, they turn off and change direction, appearing random.”
Pullo’s eyes glazed over.
“I can do all of the labor myself, of course, and it’ll only take a few days. It may give us GPS and long-range imagery.”
“All right, I’ll okay it if you do something for me.”
“What?”
“Go see your goddaughter and my wife when you’re in Roma.”
“What??”
“Go and see your goddaughter and my wife. I’m not going to say it for a third time.” Pullo grinned.
“You got married?”
“Yup, fourth time’s the charm. Got a three-year-old too. Her name’s Taylor. I think she’d be overjoyed to meet her godfather.”
“Why make me her godfather? There’s got to be millions of better choices!”
“How many of those choices have saved my life more times than I can count and are as much my brother as any blood? Not many, I think. What’s mine is yours, Mark. Whether you like it or not, you’re part of my family.”
Mark looked away for a second. He studied a picture intently, a small smile on his face. He turned back to Pullo, his eyes a little wet. “Thank you, Pullo.”
“Oh shush. Go launch your damned satellites and make something for my daughter while you’re at it—probably something pink.”
“I will.” They clasped arms over Pullo’s desk and slapped each other’s backs.
“Now git. I have a mile-tall stack of paperwork to do!”
They smiled at each other.
“All right then, Pullo. I’ll get back to work. Also, the Phantom Lords might need to pay a visit to
Crisidium and Gtrul for some leave.”
“Oh, what for?” Pullo asked, confused.
“New clothes,” Mark said as they grinned conspiratorially.
***
“Queue the subsidiary forges for the satellites.”
“Done.”
“See if there’s transport going to Gtrul or Crisidium.” Mark picked two out of the lists, sending the departure times to his people Sarah had broken in half by those who wanted to go to Crisidium and those to Gtrul.
“Update on safe haven?”
“Insertion complete. Primary facilities complete. More energy supplementation will be required if we are to meet established timetable. Will reach primary power core in a month without increased supplies. Parts two to five will take three years to complete. Defensive systems will take a further five years. Production will begin in a year and a half. Excavation will be completed in a projected eighty years.”
“Good. Until then, where are we going to?”
“We’re off to Crisidium. The high king and his family have an open invitation to you for dinner. Plus, they want to talk about plans and I thought you might want to go.”
“Sure thing.”
Mark heard a rumbling behind him as he walked toward the hangar and his assigned drop-ship. He was used to the stares by now as he entered the hangar.
“Jump.”
Mark jumped a few feet in the air as the rumbling was right behind him. His armor opened, wrapping itself around him and sealing as he touched the ground. Diagnostics scrolled across his HUD as he met up with the other Phantoms on his drop-ship.
They sent their greetings by emotion, not wasting the time on thinking. Mark understood; to the men and women in front of him, everything was a conservation of energy. The idea of why use more when you could use less to do the same thing was their mantra. Fighting continuous battles had showed them when to conserve their energy and when to expend it.
As Mark got on the drop-ship, it sealed up. He found his seat quickly and pulled the harness down as the accelerator rail kicked the drop-ship into the air. It banked, turning toward Crisidium. The Elves went to sleep as they waited, for once on a relaxed flight.
The Tenth Awakens (Maraukian War Book 1) Page 21