by M.A. Harris
Constitutional
An hour later Paul walked up to the chamber they used for meetings, he had seen Julia going up the stairs ahead of him. When he opened the door, Conti, Dr. Fleck and Sunil were also there waiting.
“So, what’s so important, Paul?” Conti looked old and tired, the others just grim.
“Olarik met me out by the monument.”
This caught their attention, “What did he want?” Conti asked sharply.
“He says he wants to hand his problems over to us.”
“What?” All four of them said, practically in unison.
Paul shrugged, “He claims he’s just been following orders, watching how things unfold. Badly apparently, now he’s afraid the Admiral General’s gotten control of the other Moonships and Aristide’s assets below high orbit and he doesn’t want a tyrant like Mindow to get power. Olarik’s never struck me as a thug, I think he’s telling the truth, though he’s also trying to save his own skin. He knows Luna Haven is extremely vulnerable to just about anyone who knows we are here, which is pretty much everyone apparently.”
“Crap.” Conti’s head sank into his hands.
Julia looked at Paul, “Why are you telling the three of us Paul?” she waved at Fleck and Sunil. “Olarik wants to see an independent Luna Haven, that was always the intention of Richard Aristide, and Olarik wants us to go through with it. He can then legitimately be the military arm of a political entity. By and large Luna Haven’s colonists are low profile folk. The five of us have connections and communication skills that are going to be important to our survival.” Paul replied.
“What are you talking about? Declaring independence, from whom?” Fleck sounded disgusted.
“One of the things we have to decide. I’m not advocating pointing fingers, no reason to, no one really claims us yet. We just declare a Luna Republic and move on.”
Sunil snorted, “Then what? He, the Admiral General, is just going to kiss your cheeks and smile? If that filthy bastard’s grabbed control of your precious Moonships he’s got plans and they won’t be small ones. He’s probably nuts, he’s certainly a murderous scum, but he’s also very smart. If you declare independence and you have anything he wants he’ll come and take it or at the least make sure we’re not alive to use it.”
Julia nodded grimly, “You will have painted a big red bull’s eye on your little city,” Paul looked at his hands wondering how to say what he had to say, then Julia continued quietly, “But in the big picture we don’t have an option really, we have to fight.” Saying what he was thinking.
“What? Of course you do, there are always other solutions,” Fleck snapped reflexively.
Sunil spoke up, “If both sides want them, there are. Unfortunately we’re dealing with a murderous empire builder. If he has the high ground of near earth space he will move to take advantage of it immediately, knowing his window of opportunity is a few months at most.”
Fleck opened his mouth, then shut it and hunched his shoulders.
-o-
Sometime later Paul looked around Olarik’s quarters in some surprise. The garrison commander’s suite was large and quite sumptuous. The shape told him it wasn’t concrete prefab.
The broad man smiled faintly at his disapproving exploration, “An experiment Paul. It’s cut into the Luna crust and then sealed with a couple of layers of sealant and a stud and wallboard structure built inside.”
Conti had been looking around as well, “No change over time with the moonquakes? That was what I was most worried about.”
Paul glanced at his friend with another flare irritation, “You knew about his little palace?”
Conti shrugged, “Designed the rock cutter and the construction techniques, this may be the future of building on Luna; much less lift intensive and the space can be tailored to the task much more easily. Glad Arkan had it done actually, wanted to try it out but too many other pressures.”
Arkan chuckled, “Don’t blame Conti, Paul. I had my engineers do it based on a design Conti had developed. And Conti, no there have been no changes due to the moonquakes that we can detect.”
Sunil was looking around silently. Arkan spoke to him, “Major Sukala have a seat please.” He waved at a couple of sofas and several comfortable chairs circled around a big coffee table and display setup on one side of the room.
A side door opened and a slim, dark haired woman, probably about Julia’s own age appeared. She was wearing a skirt and wrap top that left her toned midriff bare, she was also barefoot.
Paul and Conti both stiffened in surprise at seeing Helena so informal, Arkan waved gently, “Captain Julia Chisholm, Major Sunil Sukala, meet Captain Helena Yarina.”
Helena smiled around, “I took the liberty of making coffee and tea, what would you all like?” She moved towards a sideboard with carafes set up.
A few minutes later they found themselves seated in the chairs and sofas obviously moved around for their use, there was a large coffee table in reach and a display on the wall. Arkan had been putting on a cheerful face but now it settled into grim lines though his arm was lying on the back of the sofa behind Helena, who was curled up comfortably next to him.
Paul tried not to look at Julia, and tried to keep his mind off her as well.
The big Colonel spoke, “Let me give you an overview of the situation, I think you have worked it out for yourselves but there are things you cannot know that you need to…” What followed was, as he had said, mostly confirmation of what they had already guessed, with a few news clips to illustrate his points. “...we’re in the still before the real storm. No one outside the Moonship program and Palalo Sadong has a full picture.”
“Arkan, you didn’t answer me before, happened to the people scheduled to come up over the last couple of weeks, and the others?” Paul asked.
“There were some artful edits in your video presentation Colonel Olarik. What aren’t you telling us?” Julia added, her voice sharp.
“They are all at New Port on Palalo Sadong.” Olarik replied calmly.
“All of them?” Conti asked in surprise, “There’s no way they could have done that without giving away what was going on?”
“It was too late to hide it Conti, the evacuation was hurried and people got out with little more than the clothes on their backs. Some did not go willingly,” the big Kazakh grimaced.
“And they abandoned Ship Plateau?” Paul asked, wondering if he was glad or unhappy, there was no way they could have evacuated all the equipment in a few days.
Instead of answering Helena tapped the controller she’d been using.
An image of darkness filled with a red glow and white hot strokes of fire filled the screen. The image was shivering, taken from a long way away, but the glow still showed a cliff falling away into a valley.
“Oh my god!” Paul moaned, “That’s Ship Plateau!”
Conti leapt to his feet, his face haggard, “What! It can’t be!”
“I’m afraid it is...” Helena whispered, another image appeared, except for the blue sky it might have been a moonscape. Ship Plateau was almost unrecognizable, smashed down to half its original height, the valley all around it a lifeless, cratered wasteland.
“Who...who did that?” Conti whispered
“The Admiral General probably ordered it, though Conrad won’t confirm that,” Arkan said flatly.
“How...” Paul asked frowning, there seemed to be thousands of craters.
“Concrete and granite ballistic shapes, mostly from bombardment platforms, though the Moonships might have been used as well.”
Conti looked haggard, not surprised. Paul was furious, “Bombardment platforms?” he ground out.
Helena answered, “You already know your team wasn’t the only one designing around the Stack Mr. Richards. The platforms are simply stealthy drones, stack powered, a comm rack and autopilot. They can carry several tons of weapons. They are mostly armed with concrete or granite impactors, some guided some no
t. Even dropped from orbit the dumb ones are accurate enough for a saturation bombing like this.”
Julia spoke into the silence, “What about my grandfather?”
Arkan shrugged, “I don’t know what’s happened to him. He seems to have vanished.”
She settled back chewing her lip worriedly as silence stretched out. Then Fleck spoke up, “So you’re thinking about declaring independence?”
Arkan shrugged and waved at Conti, “It was always the plan, tell them old friend.”
Conti sighed, “It was always Richard’s intention to declare a Luna Free State, claim an area around our settlements and then offer access to space and the moon to the world, at a price no one else could match.”
The doctor waved that off rather flamboyantly, “Just so. Richards here also said you wanted to get out from under the load of crap coming this way, have some kind of civilian government take it on.”
Arkan’s laugh was a bark, “I’m sure Paul didn’t say it in quite that way, but yes and yes. And while it is not all altruism it’s not from self interest only, I suppose it’s enlightened self interest.”
Paul thought out loud, “To get things off on the right foot, we need to formalize a real government. A duly constituted elected government and civilian controlled military. Then we can come out and declare the existence of the Luna Free State and our opposition to the Admiral General. If we can somehow beat them in the resultant fight we should be able to make our peace with the US and the rest of the world.”
Sunil spoke, “If you do it as a rogue Crimson Staff Garrison - or an outpost of Aristide Industries – you will inevitably end up as someone’s colony or protectorate.”
Helena spoke up, “The problem Major Sukala, is that right now we daren’t do anything... I have six fighters and the Garrison has some weapons, none of which provide us protection against the sort of attack that destroyed Ship Plateau.” She looked at Paul, “I am correct Paul?” for a moment her accent got thicker.
Everyone looked at Paul.
He looked at his hands then around, fixing his eyes on Conti, “I hate to say this but I’m not sure we have the luxury of choice. We have to do something and if we do its possible everyone in this room, everyone currently living on Luna, will die. But if we are the only ones with a shot at stopping Mindow, then we must.”
“You’re willing to get everyone killed to make a statement.” Fleck sneered.
Paul shrugged, “No, to try to keep something I helped create from being used to enslave mankind. If History can be said to have a path it has seemed to be heading for greater ‘happiness,’ as the founding fathers put it, for a long time. Mindow has the opportunity to change that course just like Hitler, Stalin, Tojo came close to doing just less than a century ago, and Napoleon a century before that.”
Conti had been looking like he was agreeing with Fleck but now was looking old and drawn again. Arkan grimaced, “You want me to back up my statement about not wanting to die on the side of tyrants if I have to die?”
Paul looked up with a crooked smile, “Yes Colonel I do, at the head of the Luna Republic’s military.”
Arkan stared back at Paul in silence, then at Conti, “What about you old friend?”
Conti shrugged, “I guess I have to agree with Paul. I don’t like it, in fact I don’t see a way to survive it, but we have to try.”
Fleck looked like he was going to protest then stopped himself and closed his eyes with a sigh, “I won’t convince you to reconsider, especially when all I have to offer is anger without alternatives. How does the son of a bitch always end up forcing people into impossible positions?”
Arkan’s hand slipped down to caress the nape of Helena’s neck, his face losing its fierce intensity, his eyes almost dreamy.
Conti spoke quietly, “We’ve got a proposed charter written,” he smiled faintly, “been written for years, it’s a pretty secular document.” He grinned tiredly, “We’re a bunch of engineers and most engineers with any taste for politics are pretty much radical libertarians.”
Paul smiled, “I’d have thought your church founders would want a faith based government?”
Conti shook his head, “Know too much history, they just don’t work. Not in the long term.”
Paul sighed, “So I think we are agreed here?” He glanced around then shook his head with a guilty look, “Sorry Conti, I should have let you do the talking and let you make that decision.”
Conti shook his head, “No you shouldn’t son, you did right, you’re the leader here not me. I agree with what you say but you’re the one with the clear vision of where we need to go, not me. I get bogged down in the details all the time; forget the goal beyond getting the immediate job done.”
Arkan smiled faintly, “I see, I even agree with my old friend Mr. Richards, or should I say Mr. President extempore? We need to plan.”
Paul swallowed, “Not a good joke Colonel.”
“Who was joking?” The big Kazakh spread his hands.
Conti nodded, “He’s right Paul, I just said it, you’re a leader, have the vision and fire, I’m just an old project manager, I can help but I’m not the leader for this part of the rider.”
“We need to....” Paul stopped in mid sentence.
“We don’t have time for a real vote Paul, and it would be a waste of time, there is no one else.” Conti said firmly.
Paul shook his head, “There are always options.”
Fleck laughed, “That’s rich, Richards! You just said there weren’t any, and maybe there aren’t. But if not, then you’ve none either. Man up and get on with it.” There was a bitter edge to big doctor’s voice.
-o-
“Don’t take Flick too seriously Paul he’s never at his best when with friends.” Julia said from a few feet away.
Paul jerked upright, caught completely off guard; he’d been lying on his back in one of the outer garden domes. “Uh ah, hi um, friends?” he hated sounding so dazed, not least because she had seemingly read his mind.
She took a couple of more steps then folded her long legs to sit cross legged a few feet away, back rigidly upright, “Friends. He’s rarely more abrasive than when with friends, or sweeter than when he knows the host of the party is about to slit our throats.”
“Uh, you’ve been in that situation?”
“Once, he talked us out of it, by the time he was done we were being served tea and having a high ol’time. I cried when I heard all of them were killed a couple of years later by a Russian drone strike.”
“Sorry.”
She shook her head, “Join the Huff see the world, try and help people who hate you, screw people who love you.” She said to the grass, and then glanced at him and away, “That’s what our enemies say. And any of us who are honest know that try as hard as we can, it happens.”
Paul reached out touched her hand, “I’ve had some experience with that sort of thing. Hell we’re living it right now.”
She nodded, looked at him, “Olarik called you Captain Chisholm?”
“Air Force, Air Guard these days,” She smiled at his quirked eyebrow, “Search and rescue helos in service. They retired the type I flew and gave me the option of flying drones from a container in Nevada and my maple leaf or out, I got out. Now I do my two weeks and weekends flying a desk at a bomber base, B2’s, still better than drones in my opinion. The Huff hires a surprising number of ex military pilots and I knew how to fly both choppers and fixed wing.”
“Both?” Paul asked.
“Yeah my dad, step dad, Sam Chisholm,” She swallowed suddenly as they both thought of Cooper, then she went on, “Dad has a big ranch in Wyoming, and has a business flying hunters and skiers, he has a Bell Jet Ranger and a Turbo Otter Floatplane. I learnt how to fly when I was twelve, had a license at sixteen. Still fly them both when I’m home for the holidays or vacation.”
“Wow.”
She dimpled very prettily, “That’s what a lot of people say.
It just was when I was growing up, didn’t realize most people didn’t know how to fly till I left home.”
“Wish I’d known how before all this started. I love the Moonships and being up, enough to think I’d love to fly an airplane. You know the first time I ever flew in daylight was in orbit, the first time in atmosphere when we took off from Palalo Sadong.”
“Now that deserves a wow,” she laughed shaking her head.
He grinned at her and then found himself transfixed by bright blue eyes framed by shining gold hair. She seemed equally mesmerized by him. He rolled to lean on his elbow, she unfolded to stretch out facing him, they leaned closer and their lips met.
-o-
Paul’s phone rang softly from somewhere nearby, he frowned then realized it was in his pocket. There was a soft weight on his chest, Julia’s head and shoulders, she was deeply asleep. He looked up, the dome shutters were deployed and it was ‘night’ or at least evening.
He found and pulled the earbug out of the clip on his belt and slipped it in his ear, “Richards?”
“Conti, sorry to wake you kids up.” There was a universe of amused understanding in the older man’s voice.
Paul felt a blush, though they were both fully dressed, had done nothing more than kiss and hug, and talk. She shifted her chin now on his chest her eyes steady and he lost all focus on what Conti said next, he pulled his eyes away from hers, “Ah, Conti, sorry, I missed that?”
A chuckle, then he started again, “I’ve talked to the mayoral committee and the chairs of the various planning and operations committees Paul. They’ve talked to their people and so on. We go live on the town net at eight this evening, in an hour. I’ll explain the situation, you explain your solution, people are already looking at the draft declaration and charter. I’m going to propose Arkan’s solution, you as the temporary Chief Executive till we can organize a proper vote and all, which will probably take a while.”
Paul frowned at the ceiling, “Damn Arkan, you need to be Chief Executive Conti, you’ve got the experience and the trust of the people. I’m just an engineer and manager.”
“Bullshit boy!” Conti snapped, “You’ve been our leader in most ways for awhile boy, little though you seem to know it. People admire you, follow you without being forced, I’m a manager, organizer and planner…”
“Damn it Conti, I need to be able to do what needs doing, I can’t be bound to Luna Haven by a job like that. We need a Chief Executive tending to the people here…” Paul argued, he glanced up and looked at Julia. Her eyes were wide with thought, trust and something more, his throat about clamped shut.
“Again Bullshit Paul…OK, I’ll be Vice President, in our Charter it’s a stronger position than in the US Constitution. You go do what you need to do, people will understand and be proud of what you, and through you, they, are doing, know you’re putting your life on the line for them and the future. It’s what we need; too many of us feel compromised by how we got to where we are Paul. We need to show ourselves and the world that we are willing to make amends, make sacrifices.” Conti’s voice was harsh at the end.
Paul was shaking all over all of a sudden, Julia shifted to lay against him, her arms around him, her face next to his. His body heated, stilled, and somehow he controlled his voice, kept it calm, flat, “Conti we’ll talk about this in a while. I’ll meet you in the monitor room in...forty minutes.”
“Good, see you then.” The phone toned off.
Julia’s mouth found his and their arms wrapped around each other in the dimness.
-o-
It felt both strange and very, very good to have Julia leaning against him as they once more gathered in Arkan’s big sitting-conference room. Conti was the only one of them who seemed energized now. Conti’s wife Sally was with them now, watching her husband try and pace in Luna’s gravity with an amused expression.
“So now we have to decide when to announce this to the world.” Julia said into the silence, making Paul jump a little, “Hey Mister President, relax,” she stroked his arm.
“That begs several questions, like do they already know, how long can we keep it secret if not, what good does delaying do us?” Sunil replied quietly.
Paul had been thinking about this, “Arkan, spies and bugs?”
“I’ve neutralized the spies in the garrison, and the one in the civilian community is no longer a problem.”
The civilians all stared at the Kazakh. “Should we investigate that ‘industrial accident’ a bit more carefully Colonel?” Paul asked grimly.
“I’d rather you didn’t.” Arkan replied blandly, his eyes flat.
Paul looked away, then back, “I would love to say never again, but I know I cannot say that. But Arkan, in future, it’s not your decision.”
The big head bobbed, “As you say Mr. President.”
Helena stepped into the silence, “The one thing we know is that we’re under observation, some of the bombardment platforms have big telescopes or electronic intercept equipment.”
Arkan nodded, “Major Tien, my sensor and communications group leader says that some of Helena’s fighters have actually tracked them for a few seconds but they’re hard targets. I’ve told Conrad that I’m going to dig in some facilities in case one of the space powers tosses something our way. It was his idea so I don’t think it’s making him any more suspicious of me than he already is.”
Paul, nodded, “At the least it provides us planning time. Though we can’t harden the whole town we can probably create some bunkers. And the far side observatory we set up over the horizon can be a dispersal site.”
“We have a couple of the experimental ‘farms’ set up as well.” Conti pointed out, “but we’ll need that Luna Hopper you’ve been working on as well Paul.”
“It’s unlikely any of those structures have gone unnoticed.” Arkan pointed out.
“But they can’t attack them all at the same time.” Paul said tensely, “And that just makes it more urgent for me to finish working on Cooper’s sensor stack.” Paul said.
“And how is that coming Mr. President? Cooper was rather good at keeping things very vague and his equipment secure,” Arkan said with some irritation.
“It’s coming rather well, well enough to give us the edge we need. How good is your Major Tien?”
“Very good, he’s been wanting to talk to you for months.”
“Good, hopefully we can have something useful quickly enough to matter.”
“How long do we have?” Julia asked.
“Days, a couple of weeks possibly.” Paul said flatly.