Diana had the next question. “How do you protect all of that space?”
Lorenzo flashed a big smile. “We have an ingenious way of building our military, since there is no central corporation to fund it. Each system is required to supply one Dreadnought class starship. From the inhabitants of Nova Romae, we staff the dreadnoughts with a full crew of five hundred and a cohort of infantry, which numbers six hundred. For large-scale operations, we combine ten dreadnoughts into a Legion. However, you will learn all of this in time. The central government only uses dreadnoughts. The systems use cruisers and destroyers for local defense and these are staffed by auxiliary troops from each system and any of its dependent mining operations. We have manuals for new arrivals that will give you the full background of how things work around here.”
None of the remaining Andromeda 7 had anything to ask. They were as overwhelmed as Slone. They might as well have been dropped into an alien civilization. There was nothing for them to do now but await their turn to meet the Consul. As the crew passed time talking with Captain Lorenzo, Slone wondered what was happening, inside the room, between Alaya and her father. He kept looking at the closed doors and admiring the discipline of the guards as they stood at attention, holding their Fasces, as he later learned the bundle of rods was called, and never moving a muscle.
When Alaya entered the room, the grandest sight she had ever seen met her eyes. As the doors closed behind her, she could only stand in awe at the size of the room. It could easily hold a thousand people and there was a vaulted ceiling covered with a mosaic of labeled star systems. She assumed these were systems controlled by the Matsua Rim pirates; however, there appeared to be hundreds of them. The floor was covered with a red wall to wall carpet in the middle of which was woven a golden eagle with its head facing right and its wings outstretched. Below it was a golden wreath in which was embroidered the letters “S.P.Q.N.R.” Later she would find out they stood for “The Senate and People of Nova Romae.” What little she could remember of her earth history, the pirates appeared to be organized based on ancient earth Rome. On the other side of the room, opposite the door, there was a large desk. On the wall behind the desk was a golden sculpture of the same eagle symbol on the carpet. The walls were all draped in Golden curtains. Standing in front of the desk was a tall, clean-shaven man in red pants with gold stripes down the outside of the pant legs, and a purple jacket buttoned at the neck with gold markings on the collar that could not be made out from where Alaya stood. As she was taking in all of this visual impact, the man walked in her direction. She watched him, almost as if she was detached from the scene and soon the entire vignette became a bit uncomfortable. How is one supposed to react when meeting one’s father for the first time, especially as an adult? Alaya watched as Strabo came closer and she could see some of her features in him, certainly his carriage as a leader. He came to a halt about five feet from her and was the first to speak.
“You look just like your mother when I first met her,” Strabo said and Alaya could see tears forming in his eyes. Here was the leader of a powerful civilization and he was not afraid to show his emotions. Alaya could see what attracted her mother to him. Horatio Sinclair was a cold fish and she had never seen him tear up for anything. Certainly, he had no compunction about massacring large numbers of his own people. She liked this pirate leader right from the start, even if he were not her father.
“Thank you for welcoming us into your space. We are homeless and refugees from the Sinclair Corporation. I would ask that you treat my crew as part of my family.”
Alaya could swear he had a twinkle in his eye. “So how long did you rehearse that speech in your mind?” Strabo suddenly burst out laughing. His laugh was so genuine that Alaya could not help but to join in.
“For about the last six months,” Alaya said between chuckles. “Do you have any idea how hard it is to imagine what to say to a father I never met?”
“Can’t be harder than what to say to a long lost daughter.”
With that, the ice was broken and they embraced for the first time as father and daughter. Strabo led her to a chair across from his desk and he sat in the other visitor’s chair next to her, to make sure there was no desk between them. Strabo asked Alaya about her life as a Sinclair. She told him it had been just what she wanted until her stepfather’s betrayal in the Hayden incident. Now she wanted nothing but the destruction of the Sinclair family and for all it stood. For his part, Strabo filled her in on his love for her mother. He wanted her to follow him to the Matsua Rim, as soon as he learned she was pregnant. For some reason she wanted to stay with Horatio Sinclair. Alaya’s mother lived until Alaya was seven and then died suddenly.
“Did you ever wonder what happened to your mother?”
“She died of a rare fever when I was seven. That’s about all I know.”
“When you were seven, your stepfather discovered you were not his natural daughter. He kept his feelings from you but he had your mother killed. Obviously he waited for the right time to make you pay for your mother’s sin.”
Alaya was shocked. Until now, it would never have occurred to her that her stepfather had her mother killed, but after what she had been through the last seven months, she accepted it with no evidence or proof. She had yet another reason to want her stepfather dead.
After they had chatted a bit more, Strabo pushed a button on his desk and a guard came in. “Show the rest of our guests in and ask Captain Lorenzo to join us. Also have a table, chairs and some refreshments brought in for our guests.”
The guard acknowledged the order immediately and indicated Slone and the rest of the Andromeda 7 should enter. Alaya could see the others were as impressed with the room as she had been. As the others entered the room, servants brought in a table and chairs for all present and then covered the table with fresh food, rather than the dehydrated stuff they were used to in space and mining colonies. Fresh food was extremely rare in corporate space since few worlds were earth-like. Here everything was fresh and as they ate, all agreed they had never eaten anything as delicious. Strabo asked that all conversation be suspended until after the meal and Slone had the impression that business was not discussed during meals. After the meal was over, Strabo again welcomed the Andromeda seven into his space and told them he reserved his villa by one of the lakes of Nova Romae for some much needed R&R. Strabo now became more serious and leveled his gaze on Alaya and Slone.
“I read over your transmission about the Hayden incident and also the recorded messages of Horatio Sinclair to his accomplice, Dane. I also agree that he was in contact with the aliens. That any corporate CEO would be in collusion with such a despicable alien race, is shocking in itself. That it is the CEO of the largest corporation, even more so. What did he hope to achieve. He already has more money and power than any of his rival corporations, yet he is willing to sacrifice his own people to supply the aliens with human brains to control their ships.” Strabo now turned to his daughter, “Alaya, I know you loved Horatio Sinclair, since he was the man who raised you as his daughter, but he cannot go unpunished.”
“I was one of those people he was willing to sacrifice. Any love I had for him died in that other galaxy. I will do what I have to, to see him punished. We can do that if we can take away the one thing he loves more than life itself, his company.”
Strabo stroked his chin with his right hand in a contemplative gesture. “We are not a corporation; we are a federation of free planets settled by those banished by the corporations. Overall, there are 385 systems in our federation and all govern themselves. Their only obligation is to make laws for the federation by each sending a senator of their choosing to sit in our senate and govern how we will protect the federation. We have been here for five centuries and I was elected by the senate to fill the role of first Consul, and to mediate and unify the members of the federation. I am in essence the political leader of the Nova Romae Federation. Juan is the elected second Consul and the military leader of the Federation.
We do not go to war unless provoked, though every person in our space has an axe to grind with the corporation that made them or their ancestors, refugees and fugitives. We are powerful enough to defend our space against any corporation, but we are not powerful enough to take the battle to them. If we are to defeat Sinclair Corp., we must do it through cunning as well as force. For now let’s table this and you all go and enjoy some months of rest while we upgrade your scout vessel with better technology.”
Alaya was taken aback with that last statement. As far as she was aware, her ship had the most advanced technology available. Strabo could see the confused look on her face. “Alaya, you will find that our technology is more advanced than that of the corporations. It is our numbers that keep us from taking the war to them; not our technology. Even the best technology in the universe cannot overcome mass attacks from overwhelming numbers of the enemy. We use stealth to achieve our aims, as you and your friends will learn.”
That was all Strabo was going to tell them for now. Soon the meal ended and Captain Lorenzo, who they now knew was the military leader of the entire Nova Romae, shuttled the Andromeda 7 half way across the planet to a beautiful house on the shore of a large lake. Here they spent the next three months relaxing. It was a time of reflection and they had a little ceremony on the beach to mourn the loss of their friends and the crew of the Hayden. They had all died because of the treachery of Horatio Sinclair and Alaya no longer wanted to have that last name. Since she and Christopher had fallen in love, she asked her real father, the Consul Strabo, to do them the honor of performing their wedding. As a result, Alaya Sinclair became Alaya Slone.
By the beginning of the fourth month on the beach, the group became restless. They had never been so long on one planet and they were beginning to miss the vastness of space. It is hard to imagine that one could feel confined on a planet, but the Andromeda 7 were children of the void and space was their true home. They were relieved when five days into the fourth month; a shuttle arrived from the capital. They were to report to the Consular offices for further orders.
Soon the seven friends found themselves back in the Consular chamber but this time there were more people present. From the grave looks on some of their faces, Chris and Alaya realized something was up. The Consul, who remained official in his demeanor, briefly introduced them to the group. “Ladies and gentlemen of the Consular cabinet, our friends from the allied Border Worlds bring grave news. Their space has been encroached upon by the Balin Corporation. Several vessels registered to that corporation have entered one of their border systems and have asked for asylum. The system they entered in uninhabited but a gateway deeper into the Border Worlds. We will be going before the Senate tomorrow with a request for aid to the Border Worlds, should that be necessary. They have been our allies for centuries and have formed a buffer between the coreward corporations and us. It is my recommendation that we help them investigate this and see why they want asylum. If you all agree, I can take that vote of confidence to the Senate and ask for a formal stance in case this is a ruse to invade.”
The vote of the cabinet was unanimous and the representatives of the Border Worlds were dismissed along with the cabinet to discuss how it would be presented to the Senate. The Andromeda 7 were asked to stay. When the room was cleared, Strabo bade the Seven to sit down. Strabo remained standing as he addressed them, “I called you here because I need your scouting expertise. I need you to go to the system the Balin Corp ships occupied and let me know what we are dealing with. The representatives reported one destroyer and two civilian transports. The Border Worlds do not have a presence in that system but do maintain an early warning station. I need you to find out what is really going on. Are you willing to do this for us? I have to ask since you never formally signed up with our military.”
The Seven looked at each other and each nodded assent. “Looks like we’re all in,” Alaya responded to her father.
“Good, let me show you what we are dealing with.” Strabo walked over to his desk and pushed a few buttons. A holographic projection appeared over the desk and Slone immediately recognized part of it showing the boundaries of corporate space with the seven major and ten minor corporate spaces marked. Next to the outer reaches of the Sinclair Corp was an area marked Nova Romae and the territory was vast. It was big as some of the largest corporations; however, it was smaller than Sinclair Corp. On the coreward side of Nova Romae space, there was a small area between the Nova Romae border and Balin Corp. This area was labeled ‘Border Worlds’ and encompassed about twelve systems. This is where the trouble was and the system marked 257C was highlighted. What also caught Slone’s eye was an area beyond Nova Romae space on the side away from corporate space. This area was marked ‘There be Serpents here’. Slone had a friend during training who collected very old maps from earth. He knew some of them thought serpents lived in unexplored parts of the planet, and used that expression. He wondered what it meant to the Romani. Strabo continued, “As you can see, system 257C is the one invaded. This happened about a week ago but it took this long for the delegation to arrive. The Border Worlds are a protectorate of ours and they will do nothing without our permission. They told the asylum seekers that they would get back to them in about a month, so this is time sensitive. It takes a week to the system one way, so you will have to leave immediately. Strabo pushed another button and the map zoomed to a system view of 257C. “As you can see, it is a double star system. One is a main sequence white class “F” star and the companion is a class “C” carbon dwarf. There are twelve planets and two asteroid belts. The Balin Corp ships are orbiting the ninth planet, where the early warning station is. So far, there has been no hostile action. The system does have strategic importance. It is one of three systems that form a conduit into our space and it is possible that Balin Corp wants to get closer to us, since we have from time to time snatched a few of their more valuable cargoes. To keep up the pirate ruse, of course.” With this last, Alaya thought she detected a slight smile. “What I need you to do is enter the system as representatives of the Border Worlds and find out what they want. If you feel their asylum request is valid, send us a message pod, if not do a military evaluation and come back.”
The navigator, Paul McMann was the first to speak, “Our on board star charts don’t have any of these systems.”
“My techs have updated all of your charts.”
No further questions were asked, since this was just the type of covert mission they had done many times for Sinclair Corp. Strabo continued his instructions. “We have modified your scout ship.” Alaya and her crew looked at each other. No one ever touched her ship before. “I can see you are concerned. Don’t worry. We only improved her. She is now the best scout ship in any fleet. She is rechristened the Draco. We’ve also outfitted her with new sails and a device that will make her invisible, both electronically and visibly.” At this last statement, the crew all looked at each other. “Yes, our ships can be made to seem invisible. It is a technology we gained from our allies, one of whom will be assigned to your ship. They give us the technology but they have to work the controls. Apparently there is a bit of ‘magic’ involved.”
This time it was Slone’s turn to ask the questions, “Who could your allies be. If a corporation had this technology, we would see its effects. Certainly the Border Worlds don’t have it, or they wouldn’t need us.”
Strabo looked very smug. He zoomed out the holographic map. It again showed all of the known galaxy borders. He then turned very serious. “What I am about to tell you is known only to our citizens. I have kept you away from the capital for this reason. To reveal this secret to anyone outside our federation is a capital offence, not by our choice but by our allies. However, let me first tell you a story. About three centuries ago, a Nova Romae vessel was exploring the outer edges of the galaxy away from corporate space. They entered a system where they found a derelict vessel that did not look like any of ours. They explored the vessel and found some of the crew w
as still alive. The only problem was the crew was aliens.” Strabo saw the looks on the crew’s faces. “No, they are not the aliens you encountered in Andromeda. They are a reptilian life form that lives in the part of the galaxy labeled Serpents. That is what we call them. They are a reptilian race that takes some getting used to. They are very literal but they have mastered our language. Their surviving crew was taken to one of our bases and we did the best we could to help them, not knowing anything about their anatomy. I am sure it was because of their strength and not our medicine that they survived. We towed their ship and repaired it as best we could. When they were well enough we gave them supplies, fuel and best wishes, never expecting to see them again.” Strabo paused for effect and took a sip from his drink. “Imagine our surprise when an unarmed ship arrived in our space with an ambassador. To make a long story short, we have been allied and helping each other for the past three centuries. All parts of the planet are now open to you, since you know our secret. You will see the aliens in our streets and on our vessels as techs for their devices. Be kind to them at all costs. They have been good to us and us to them. Our friendship is more valued than the lives of any individuals.”
After the Andromeda 7 digested this last bit of news, they asked the obvious question. “What do we call them?”
Strabo burst out laughing. “I forgot you have dealt with alien life before. Most people are more shocked to learn we’re not alone. We call them Serpents because of the way they speak our language. We can’t pronounce what they call themselves. I’m also sending a squad of legionaries along with you. You have already met them. It will be Decanus William Marshal and his troops. Well if there is nothing else, you need to leave tomorrow morning, before the senate meets. Military traffic is not allowed during meetings of the senate unless it is a federation wide emergency. Your ship is fully outfitted for the mission and all weapons are loaded aboard, since they cannot be carried in the Nova Romae system proper. All ships weapons are sealed until you leave the system.” Strabo now reached into a drawer pulled out rank symbols for all of the crew. “Since you are going on a military mission for us, you should have the ranks you need for it. Alaya and Christopher, since you are both captains by rank, you will both carry that rank when on a ship. On the ground, your ranks will be Decurio and you will be secondary in command to any ground commander, including the Decanus. Your crewmembers function as section chiefs so they will have the rank of Immunes both on land and on the vessel. They control only those in their departments and no one else.” Strabo solemnly swore them in and gave them their ranks. “By the way, before you ask, I took that ton of gold you had in your vessel and sent it to the mint for conversion into the coins we use. You are all very wealthy by our standards. When this mission is over, I suggest you buy houses to live in when on Nova Romae.” They walked out of the Consular chamber filled with new life and new belonging. Whatever the future held, the Andromeda 7 will meet it together.
Nova Romae (The Adventures of Christopher Slone Book 2) Page 2