Hawk Genesis: War (Flight of the Hawk)

by Robert Little

  John said, “I managed to forget your request that I not speak of this meeting, and in fact spoke to a Mr. Padilla, who owns this building. I also checked your company, and obtained a photo of your likeness. I am satisfied that you are who you say you are.”

  She cocked her head, “And, did you attempt to ascertain the reason for a visit from a high profile New York attorney?” John said, “No.” He lied.

  She flicked a glance at her associate, who moved his head one millimeter to the side. John suddenly realized that they must be able to determine whether or not he was lying. Crap, the thing he held in his hand. He grinned, not trying to hide it: he was once again invading indian country.

  She smiled, this one different from any of the others, turning her into a sensual woman. John’s estimate of her rose another notch. Sex can be a highly useful tool in negotiations. It hit him: this was a negotiation, with something to to be offered something to be given.

  He took another sip of coffee, a bite of the roll, another swallow, and put the cup down, knowing that he was seriously out of his element, “So, now that the niceties are behind us, how may I serve you?” She seemed in no hurry to get to the point, the one he’d just asked for, and asked, “You may use my first name if you wish – it is Aimee. May I call you John?” John asked, “How often do you allow a man you have just met to call you by your first name; and, how often does a man turn you down?” She laughed with delight, “John, are you flirting with me?” He grinned, “I never commit my forces until I know what I face.” She asked, “Never?” He said, “There is a state, a condition where I would, and to answer your question, it is referred to by Sun Tzu as death ground. The full saying is, “In difficult ground, press on; On hemmed-in ground, use subterfuge; In death ground, fight."

  She asked, “Have you ever been in…death ground?” John said, “Yes Aimee, I have.” As soon as he said her name, he realized it was a mistake, for it turned her into a friend, and she had yet to demonstrate that she was anything other than a grave danger.

  She took a breath, the first sign he’d seen that revealed in the slightest that she might have emotions, “John, Grigori Grigorivich was married for many years to Aleksandra. They were a devoted and loving couple, very close. As you must already know, an accident left him a widower, and brought his own life to a premature end. He had no next of kin, and therefore arranged that his estate would be administered by Kasdan and Kasdan. He provided our firm with strict guidelines concerning how to make the best use of the monies, which brings me to the subject of Captain John Chamberlin.”

  She took a sip of her coffee, and flicked her eyes once again at her associate. He silently rose to his feet and quickly yet without hurrying replaced her now cold coffee with a fresh cup. It was a simple thing, yet in it John saw displayed an enormous amount of power. He had no idea if he was meant to see anything, and for a brief moment he was frightened. He was a provincial, from a backward planet, had been insulated from even the middle level of men and women who caused the war to be, and who ended it. Here, now, he could see a great deal of power, and he had no knowledge of the terrain, no weapons.

  She was watching him, seemingly casually, yet it struck him that for every single nugget of information he learned in this room, the woman sitting across the table from him learned far more. He concentrated on relaxing his body while focusing his mind.

  She resumed her tale, “As the war progressed toward its inevitable conclusion, the admiral began to think about the peace that would follow, and he became convinced that one of two things was being…arranged: either the federation did not want a, shall we say, peaceful peace; or, the federation was too blind and inept to create that condition. May I ask, John, what is your opinion?”

  Oops.

  John answered, “The Federation behaved ineptly from start to finish. It may be that this was by design. I hope not.”

  She seemed intent on probing his thoughts, and asked, “John, your statement seems to indicate that you have thought about it, but have not reached a conclusion. Is that correct, or do you believe that venality and corruption, and yes, worse, inhabit the federation, rule it?” John said, flatly, “It may be that I am in Hemmed-in ground.” She smiled, “John, I can see why the admiral, and may I say, my dear friend, admired you so. Shall we continue?”

  He tried and failed to hide his feelings – he’d requested just that, seemingly a long time ago.

  She said, “Grigori said you could be patient, but that it was not natural to you. So. John, have you any idea of the size of the estate of Grigori and Aleksandra?” He was now thoroughly frightened. He probably gave her more information just sitting like a lump than he did when he opened his mouth.

  He answered, “I had no thought on the subject, no reason to think of him as having an estate, or wealth, or anything beyond the uniform he wore so...admirably.”

  She said, “Aleksandra was one of three daughters of Aaron S. Lee, and Lisl Kuznetsov. To provide you with a smattering of background, they were both wealthy, even by Earth’s high standards; collectively, they controlled a relatively large amount of wealth. With the death of Aleksandra, Grigori became heir to this wealth, which under her able leadership grew substantially during their marriage. This brings us to my reason for being here.”

  She took a sip of coffee, and it was only by the greatest effort that he did not swear at her. She set the cup down and said, softly, “John, I apologize. I have deliberately drawn this conversation out so that I could learn as much as possible about you. You should know that Grigori greatly admired you. He told me that you forced him to radically change his mind about the war, and its aftermath. You showed him that a genuine peace could develop out of death and destruction, if men of good will would only refuse to stand idly by and allow the peace to become worse than the war. Grigori spent a great deal of his time working on this project, despite the fact that he was dying, as well as leading a war.”

  She took another sip, although this time John thought she really wanted the coffee.

  She resumed, “We have established an investment fund, and we wish to appoint you to head it. You will have sole discretion over how it is disbursed, although we have been authorized to intervene should you establish a pattern of consistent misuse of funds or abuse of power that runs counter to the goals as established by Grigori. We have deliberately inserted the term ‘consistent’, as we believe that from time to time you may find it necessary to disburse funds in ways that do not conform to conventional reasoning. Grigori made one significant change in the final package: he provided for a set annual compensation. He explained that he had earlier left the question of your compensation to your own discretion; however, he came to conclude that you would not be sufficiently objective. It is my understanding that he meant that you would not pay yourself a salary commensurate with your needs or worth. I submit that of all the things he told me, that last caused me the most difficulty; however, now that I have spent some time with you, I feel that he may have been correct. Time will tell. Questions?”

  John asked, “This fund, how much is involved?” She said, “When this meeting began, seven hundred forty seven million dollars.” John asked, “How long is the appointment to last?” She said, “For life, until you relinquish your post, or until you are no longer able to properly perform your duties.” John asked, “What are the conditions?” she said, “You must strive to ensure that the fund is not squandered. We acknowledge that conditions may arise that causes it to be exhausted; we request that you carefully balance the immediate needs against your long-term goals. Additionally, you may not remain in the military, or be an employee of another company. In order for you to properly perform you duties, you must not be compromised in any way. You may create, merge or close a company or companies, and you may utilize a portion of the available funds for personal needs, as long as your personal needs are the means to achieve the goal, and not the goal itself.”

  John sat in contemplation for nearly a minute before asking
, “The goal?” She smiled, “John, it took you long enough to ask that question. Of all the elements of this program, Grigori spent the most time on that one question. Ultimately, he metaphorically threw up his hands. He correctly assumed that you would ask this question, and his answer was, “Grenoble.” He also said that if you did not understand his answer, we should consider his second choice.”

  John asked, “How many candidates are there for this position?” She said, with a small smile, “There is no second choice.” Everything the woman said was a test.

  John asked, “When would you want me to start?” She smiled, “Remember the instrument we handed you?” He shook his head, “You were pretty confident.” She smiled, “John, I was very confident. Now that you realize that you have chosen to accept, may I hope that you will call me by my name?” John shook his head again, “Aimee, what happens after one or another of those conditions arise that removes me from the position?” She said, “Up to you. I’m betting on Jordan, although Jennifer might surprise. In other words, one of your responsibilities will be to ensure a continuation. To that end, I suggest one of your first actions ought to be to enlist Master Sergeant Mischkovic as your director of security. Obviously, Rachel Schwartz would make an excellent administrative assistant. These are not recommendations or even suggestions, they represent assumptions on our part. However, one of my functions will be to provide you with accurate and timely advice. You did not ask about the funds themselves, suggesting that this is an area you will need to concentrate on. They are to be held by Kasdan and Kasdan. Our firm is charged with investing all funds you are not utilizing. The civil war created some unusually good opportunities for investments; while the coming years will be volatile, we believe they will provide continued strong growth.”

  John asked, “How will I access the funds?” She said, “The means and methods will depend on the circumstances. This will require that you and I establish a good working relationship. The civil war has created a great deal of corruption and mismanagement. We will probably utilize a variety of methods to move the funds where they are wanted. We will always attempt to abide by local laws, but the emphasis is on ‘attempt’. This is one of Kasdan and Kasdans’ strengths, and I believe you will come to rely on our ability to bypass local…obstacles shall we say. You have not asked about operational methods or procedures; hopefully you understand that the less that is known about your work, the better. Assume that the federal government will inhibit, restrict, prevent and destroy at every opportunity. You will find obstruction will be the norm, but not guaranteed. Again, I hope that you will learn to turn to me for assistance in those areas where you are weak, two of which we have discussed.”

  John asked, “What if you…if you leave the firm?” She smiled, “I am the firm. ‘Kasdan and Kasdan’ has a better ring to it than ‘Kasdan’. However, you have raised an important issue, that of commitment. I told you that I was very close to Grigori; That statement was true, but not all the truth. I was his sister-in-law.”

  She stood, “You have much to accomplish. I shall be on Maya for one week. Ostensibly, I am here to negotiate a civilian contract with Producciones Padilla. That is a cover, and an announcement will be made that the negotiations did not lead to the letting of a contract. We will of course be careful to avoid damaging Padilla.”

  She turned to her associate and said, “Mr. Chung, please provide Captain Chamberlin with his warrant.” She turned back to John, “It is live, and there is effectively no limit. Funds are now on deposit with the same bank used by Padilla. You will find that Maya is, or would make a relatively good headquarters for your operations; it is an easy matter to move funds here, and as Maya is a frontier world, it should prove to be less difficult to transfer warrants into and out of former rebel worlds. That said, you may find it convenient to operate elsewhere. Please consider that such a move could require considerable effort and time, and may not be practical or even possible.”

  John stood and she stepped up to him. She took both his hands in hers and said, “John, you were Grigori’s protégé, and he placed a great deal of trust and responsibility on your shoulders. You never once let him down, and I hope that the two of us can establish an equally strong relationship. I pledge to do my utmost to protect your six, as Grigori put it.” Up close, he saw that her eyes were clear, and if anything, she seemed younger than he first estimated.

  He walked home, his thoughts swirling chaotically.

  At home, he discovered that his mother was drinking tea with Jessica. John asked, “Is Karl around?” Jessica said, “He’s not, nor is Rachel. Did you need to speak to him?”

  John got a mug and sat down. His mother poured him some fragrant tea and while he added sugar he said, “Something’s come up.”

  Hawk Genesis, Book 2: Peace

  Chapter 1

  The shuttle gently touched down at Eastport, the common terrestrial shuttle port that served the northeast seaboard of North America. It settled faintly as the drive shut down, and people began to stand up, check their clothes and gather their belongings.

  John remained seated, but Jessica, Jordan and Jennifer almost jumped to their feet. John asked, “So, excited are we?” Jessica grinned, “If I’m not mistaken, this is your first visit to Earth, so I expect at the minimum a small amount of enthusiasm.” John grinned back, “I have only a certain amount of enthusiasm to go around, if you get my drift?” She giggled, “You are such a liar. If memory serves, you can be, um, wildly enthusiastic.”

  John sighed modestly, “Perhaps.” She tugged him to his feet and within moments they eased out of their narrow row and began edging up the aisle toward the forward hatch. John spied Karl and his bride ahead of them. Rachel turned and flashed a smile, probably at Jessica, who just two weeks earlier had acted as her maid of honor. She liked John, and in fact was his administrative assistant, but Jessica had become her friend, her supporter and confidante during many late evenings of tears and confessions that had slowly eased her heart, allowing Karl to enter.

  They stepped into a well-lit conveyer that gently moved them upward, and within a pair of minutes they stepped off the slideway into a huge oval hall with a soaring dome. At regularly spaced intervals huge stained glass windows flooded the room with light, despite the fact that it was late evening. The space was jammed with people, and interspersed with kiosks. John figured that space held in excess of two thousand people, yet it was quiet, almost hushed. Karl and Rachel were still ahead of them, and were heading to a stand that featured a legend that read ‘Traveler Information’, something John felt might be highly useful to a first-time visitor.

  By the time he’d herded his two teenaged ‘sleep-stealers’, as he had come to think of Jordan and Jennifer, up to join his two brand-new employees, who were probably a little sleep deprived themselves, Rachel was turning back to John with an attractive blue packet, hopefully containing hotel tickets, as well as transportation to their hotel.

  Karl said, “So, ready for New York?” John took a deep breath, “The air smells like…” Jordan interrupted, and laughed, “New York smells like wonderful!” John grinned, “We’re in New Jersey, not New York. Now, if, when we actually arrive at the actual New York City, you notice that the city seems oddly…depopulated, it will be because I arranged for all men under the age of thirty to be deported.” Jennifer grinned, “That seems to indicate that somewhere there is a large concentration of young men.” Jennifer giggled, “We can work with that.”

  John laughed in mostly delight, “Jennifer, I have no doubt that you can, but I ask that you take pity on the young men of Earth, the planet that is worth more than the other thirty seven combined, and the one we unlettered, uncivilized visitors have just stepped foot on for the first time. We have foreign accents, we don’t dress the same and we are probably culturally fifty years out of date. I would not be surprised to learn that many of the young men you meet have never heard of Maya.”

  Jordan said, “We know John, we know. Aren’t you a hero tho
ugh? I mean, you commanded one of only two active combat fleets; we thought you would be welcomed, be interviewed, given a key to the city. You found those nuclear weapons!”

  John said, “Some of Admiral Khans people found those weapons, Admiral Grigorivich commanded the victorious Federal Navy to victory. That’s what Earth thinks. Frankly, it’s true. Admiral Khan never fought one single battle, but he did keep Earth safe, and Admiral Grigorivich commanded the fleets that ended the rebellion. I hope that the men I served with remember me, but I would greatly prefer to be left alone by the rest of humanity.” He added, although not out loud, ‘…especially now.’

  She grinned, “Well, you married our dim sister, so you are a hero with us.” John laughed, “I hope you never tell your older sister she’s dim, she might stop cooking and stuff.” Jennifer blushed, hopefully over the reference to ‘cooking’, and not ‘stuff’. By now John knew that to be a forlorn hope, but one he still clung to, along with the illusion that boys didn’t think she was eighteen instead of barely sixteen.

  Jessica, who was standing next to John and holding his hand, said, “Jennifer, sweetness, I can ensure that your clothes are lost, and get replaced with, say, something more fitting, so to speak, indeed more suitable to a twelve year old.”