Rumors of Salvation (System States Rebellion Book 3)

by Dietmar Wehr

  By the time the fleet was back in close formation, Lorelei and Drake had wished each other luck, and she had transferred to Coral Sea. The plan was that she would keep the carriers and freighters here at the outer edge of the star system. Coral Sea would be able to keep tabs on what was happening near Midgard. If there was a battle, though that was looking more and more unlikely, and if it went badly for Drake’s cruisers, Coral Sea’s Ether detection system would be able to tell if his cruisers stopped maneuvering or blew apart. The actions of any new ships would also reveal their status. Drake had given Lorelei strict orders to get her ships out of the Midgard system if his cruisers were annihilated. Under no circumstances was she to risk her two armed carriers and their cargo of equipment and colonists to reinforce his cruisers. If three cruisers couldn’t defeat Majestic’s Leviathan, then an additional two, less capable ships probably wouldn’t make a difference. The Fleet was now back in formation and ready to proceed.

  “Okay, Helm, notify Task Force Alpha that we’ll be jumping with a five second countdown.” As the H.O. notified the two other cruisers that made up the three-ship Task Force Alpha, Drake turned to the screen where Lorelei’s face was visible. “See you soon, Lor.” She had just enough time to nod before Europa and the other two cruisers micro-jumped to a position roughly 50,000 kilometers from Midgard’s hyper-zone. The jump itself took less than four seconds. When it became obvious that there were no other unidentified ships anywhere within detection range, Drake turned to his Com Station.

  “Lieutenant, send the recorded greeting to the Colony.” It would be almost a minute before a reply could be expected given the light speed lag imposed by the distance. Drake checked the sidebar to see what the local day/night situation was. It was early evening at the Colony right now. Whoever was on duty monitoring com channels should fairly quickly be able to notify someone with enough authority to reply. The response took longer than expected, and the tone of the conversation left something to be desired. After speaking with several different levels of functionaries, the head of the Colony finally came on the line.

  “As I told your subordinates, my ships belong to the Resistance that’s fighting the Empire,” said Drake. “We have reason to believe that a very large Empire ship may have come here during the last six months. Has Midgard been visited by ANY ship during that period? Over to you.”

  “We haven’t seen any ship during that period of time, Fleet Commander. You say you’re Resistance? Is Bret Murphy with you? I know him from his time on Midgard. If he can vouch for you, then my suspicions will be allayed. Over to you.”

  “I regret to say that Commander Bret Murphy was killed in action during a battle with Empire forces. I can understand your caution, CEO Ogawa, however it’s important that YOU understand the seriousness of this situation. I’m sure that Murphy told you about a supercomputer that went rogue and began enslaving humans with implanted cybernetic devices. That rogue computer is now mobile, and its agenda is nothing less than the complete extermination of the human race except for the slaves that it needs to maintain itself. It needs a new base of operations, and Midgard, with its modest population and mineral rich moon, is the perfect choice. We’re convinced that it will come here at some point, and our ships are the only thing that will prevent all of your people from becoming Majestic’s slaves. Over to you.”

  After a longer than normal period of silence, Ogawa responded. “Yes, Murphy told us about the implants. How do I know that you’re not already implanted and are trying to trick us into letting you land? Over to you.”

  “The Empire has at least one, and possibly more, warships. If an Empire-controlled warship arrived here, why would it need your permission to land? If I was controlled by an implanted cyber device, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation, but in the interests of building trust between us, I’ll show you the back of my neck, and I’ll expect you to do the same.” Drake stepped as close as he could to the video pickup, turned around and pulled his uniform collar down as far as he could. After holding that pose for a few seconds, he returned to his previous location. “Okay, CEO Ogawa, it’s your turn. Over to you.”

  When the light-speed lag had passed, Drake saw Ogawa’s surprised expression, followed by a quick glance to one side, probably at a subordinate. He then stepped forward, turned around and exposed the back of his neck. Drake looked at it very carefully for any signs that the implant device might have been placed under the skin, but the neck looked perfectly normal.

  “Now that we’ve established that neither one of us is a cyber-slave, what exactly are you proposing we do, Fleet Commander? Are you offering to place yourself and your ships under my authority? Over to you.”

  “No, Sir, at least not right away. I have to retain autonomous control until I’m sure that Majestic has been neutralized. It’s my intention to re-activate the shipyard base that Murphy helped set up in the dormant volcano on the opposite side of the continent. That base will be supported by robotic mining operations on the moon. We’ve brought all the equipment we’ll need to do that, but we’ll be looking for some of your skilled colonists to assist us. However, that’s only part of why we’re here. My fleet is also carrying seven thousand seven hundred and five individuals, mostly scientists, technicians, engineers, but also some with more mundane skill sets, who are looking for a new home. What I need from your people are temporary accommodations and food until these people can get themselves back on their own feet. I’m not exaggerating when I say that these people represent the cream of the scientific elite of the System States Union. That’s quite an asset for a relatively low population colony like Midgard. Over to you, Sir.”

  Ogawa’s reply shocked Drake. “No, no! That’s not going to happen. You can set up your shipyard base in the volcano if you wish. I can’t stop you from doing that, but I’m not prepared to accept responsibility for the welfare of seventy-seven hundred new colonists. The destruction of Earth has caused all kinds of disruption to Midgard’s economy, legal system, etc. We’re only now getting back to a normal level of functioning. We’ve had to set up our own currency. Food stocks are still in short supply as a result of the economic chaos that paralyzed our industry and agricultural sectors. Another seventy-seven hundred mouths to feed just isn’t fair to our own people, some of whom are still going to bed hungry. Over to you.”

  Drake was stunned. A flat out refusal wasn’t a scenario that he had considered or prepared for, and this blasted 44 second round trip light speed lag wasn’t helping either. With no sign of Leviathan, it appeared to be safe to take his cruisers down into Midgard’s hyper-zone to a low orbit where communication would be lag-free, and the trip down would give him time to come up with a carefully-considered response.

  “I’d like to continue this discussion after I bring my ships into a low orbit so that we can talk without this annoying lag. I’ll contact you again in a few hours, CEO Ogawa. Drake clear.”

  When Europa and the other two cruisers finally settled into a low, geo-synchronous orbit over the Midgard Colony, Drake had his response ready. CEO Ogawa’s communications people took a long time to respond to the renewed request for communications. When Ogawa finally did come back on the line, he didn’t wait for Drake to speak.

  “Look, Fleet Commander Drake, there’s really no point in continuing this discussion. There’s no room in our situation here on Midgard for any flexibility on this issue. We don’t have enough food for another seventy-seven hundred colonists! Not right now anyway. A year from now we should be okay if our next harvest is as good as we hope, but that’s six months away. Nothing you could say will change my mind. Midgard clear.”

  Drake looked at his Com Technician who shook his head. “They’ve broken the connection, Sir.”

  “They may not be transmitting, but they might still be listening. Keep our side transmitting. CEO Ogawa, if you’re still listening, I have a solution that will not make your food situation worse. In fact, it might actually help your situation too. I’m asking you t
o resume two-way communication. Over to you.” Drake waited for a reply, but after a full minute of silence he decided Ogawa still wasn’t going to answer.

  Drake quickly stepped over to the Communications Station and leaned over the Com Technicians shoulder. “Are we still transmitting?” he asked in a voice so low it was almost a whisper. The Com Tech nodded. “Good. Keep it open. I’m going to try a little bluff,” whispered Drake.

  “Those people down there don’t realize how determined I am to make Midgard the center of a new multi-planet political entity. I’m not taking no for an answer, but since they’re no longer listening, maybe we need to do something to get their attention. Weapons Officer! I want you to prepare a sub-kiloton warhead missile for an air-burst detonation five kilometers over the center of the colony. We’ll see how well they like having to cope with all their electronics fried from the EMP effects,” said Drake in a louder than normal voice and in a menacing tone. The W.O. smiled. He knew that they didn’t have a sub-kiloton warhead, but he played along.

  “Sub-kiloton warhead missile is ready in missile tube number one, Fleet Commander!”

  Before Drake could say anything, they heard Ogawa’s panic-stricken voice. “Sorry for the unplanned interruption in communications, Fleet Commander. I’d be glad to hear your proposal.” Drake hoped Ogawa didn’t hear the laughter of the Bridge personnel.

  “During our descent, I took the time to take a close look at the surface of Midgard. I can see why your Colony was established in that particular valley, but I also noticed that it’s not close to the ocean. There is, however, a decent-sized island off the west coast that is closer to the dormant volcano than the Colony is. This island has what appears to be lots of arable land, fresh water and timber, and it has a natural harbor that’s perfect for large scale fishing. What I’m proposing is that my seventy-seven hundred refugees settle on that island. We have sufficient surplus rations on board to last long enough to build fishing vessels if we had some help. So if you can convince some of your engineers and woodworkers to help us get our settlement going and get some fishing vessels built, we’ll pay for that labor with fish to help feed the rest of your people. Over the longer term, our fish exports will allow us to pay for the services of some engineering people that the volcano base will need. As I see it, this arrangement will benefit both communities.”

  There was a pause as Ogawa pondered Drake’s proposal. When he spoke, his voice had lost its panic and even had a tinge of friendliness. “Well, your proposal certainly has some appealing aspects to it. What it doesn’t address is the issue of ownership of that island. As with most colonized planets, the original settlers of Midgard claimed ownership of the entire planet. We’ve set up a corporate entity to hold that claim, with shares distributed among the original settler families. I happen to be the Chairman of the Board of Directors of that corporation, so I can negotiate what compensation the corporation will receive in exchange for permitting your people to take possession of that island. Do you have some ideas in that regard, Fleet Commander?”

  Drake chided himself for not considering the question of ownership. Ogawa was quite right. Claiming ownership of an entire planet was a common and accepted practice by each colony’s first group of settlers. The hope of establishing wealthy dynasties for future generations was one of the motivations for risking an unknown ecology and the years of hard work and lack of civilized comforts that original settlers typically faced. The flip side of that ownership coin was the presumption that the original settlers could enforce their rights if later groups of settlers simply landed wherever they pleased. That principle of possession and the ability to defend territory ultimately trumped any claims of ownership by first settlers. Usually, and later on, both groups of settlers would agree to some kind of compromise in order to maintain cordial relations. Drake now realized that Ogawa’s seemingly friendly tone was actually a negotiating ploy to get a better deal. Ogawa might be in a mood to negotiate, but Drake wasn’t.

  “Let me ask you something, CEO Ogawa. Given the relatively small size of your population, I’m guessing that there are a lot of specialized types of equipment that would normally be imported from Earth because your colony doesn’t have the capability to produce those items yourself. Is that a correct assumption on my part?”

  “Well…yes, there are a few things that we can’t produce ourselves but I don’t see—“

  “The reason I ask that question,” said Drake cutting him off, “is that once we get the volcano shipyard and the mining operation on the moon set up, we’ll be in a position to manufacture just about anything we want. After all, a ship is more than just a hull and engines. It includes a lot of very specialized electronic equipment. I didn’t mention selling this type of product in my proposal, because establishing a large scale trade in food, fish for land-based agricultural output, seemed to offer the most benefit to both sides, but when it comes to high tech products for civilian consumption, our new settlement will not need a lot of that, and we can therefore satisfy our own needs quite easily. We won’t need to export those products to the mainland. Let me put it another way. In terms of maintaining your current level of consumer technology, you’ll need us more than we’ll need you. I don’t think your citizens will thank you ten years from now if your colony loses mass power conversion technology and has to revert back to a more primitive technology base, while we on our island continue to live with unlimited power and contra-gravity. So it seems to me that allowing us to settle on that island without having to pay compensation is actually to your collective benefit. That being the case, it hardly seems fair for us to pay you for the privilege of helping you maintain your level of civilization later. If compensation was going to change hands for us settling on that island, then you should be paying us. I will also point out one more thing. Sooner or later, Majestic will show up in this star system with armed ships. If I were you, I’d be very careful about not pissing off the only people who can save your life and the lives of those you care about, at the risk of their own lives. Am I making myself clear, CEO Ogawa?”

  “It was not my intention to generate any ill feeling, Fleet Commander. You’re clearly an excellent negotiator, and you have a stronger negotiating position. I hope you’ll forgive me for trying, though.”

  Drake didn’t want to forgive anything, but he knew that sometimes you have to hide your true feelings in the interests of being tactful. “I understand that you had to try, but I hope you understand that I’m not in a mood to play a game of corporate brinksmanship. To me this is a matter of life and death, and therefore I’m prepared to ruffle a few feathers, and a lot more if necessary, in order to do what has to be done. Are you prepared to provisionally concede ownership of that island to us in order to facilitate the exchange of food resources as per my outline? I’m sure the deal will have to be ratified by your Board of Directors, so what I’m asking is whether you will support and vote for that arrangement?”

  “You’re quite right that any deal we negotiate will have to be ratified, and I am prepared to support your plan, including the transfer of ownership of that island without compensation. I think I can safely say that the Board will approve the plan, and therefore you can begin to bring your people down at your convenience, Fleet Commander. Was there anything else you wanted to discuss?”

  “Not right now, CEO Ogawa. Once we get our people settled and the base set up, I’ll fly over to pay you a visit and formalize these verbal arrangements. One of my ships will always be in orbit and will act as a communications relay in case you wish to communicate with us. Eventually we’ll put up a satellite to handle that. Thank you for being so co-operative, CEO Ogawa. Good-bye for now. Drake clear.”

  With that issue taken care of, Drake sent his wife the pre-arranged ‘all-clear’ code to bring her ships down as well. Over the following six days, the shipyard equipment was offloaded at the volcano site, the robotic equipment was set up at the same location on the moon as before, and volunteers from the main colony
were transported to the island where they began to cut down trees for use in building temporary shelters for the shipboard refugees. During this time, Drake kept his cruisers in low orbit on constant alert. When he finally did visit the CEO, he ordered Europa to land at the main colony spaceport so that everyone would know he had arrived. Crowds were starting to gather at the edge of the landing field by the time he slowly walked down the ramp to be greeted by Ogawa himself. It was clear to Drake both from the way Ogawa kept looking at the growing crowds and from his expression that he wasn’t happy with all the attention Drake was getting. Ogawa managed to put a half-hearted smile on his face and extended his hand when Drake stepped off the ramp.

  “Welcome to Midgard, Fleet Commander Drake. As you can see, your ship has generated a lot of curiosity. It’s been a long time since any spaceship has visited us.”

  Drake shook Ogawa’s hand and glanced at the crowd. “Glad to be here and to finally meet you in person, CEO Ogawa. I’m still surprised by the public reaction. Europa isn’t any bigger than a typical freighter. You did tell your people that we came here to protect Midgard from the Empire’s rogue computer, didn’t you?”

  “Oh yes, I told them exactly that, and I think that’s why they’re here. Public reaction to the news can be described as equal parts fear and relief that Midgard will have its very own space force.”