The burden of command, p.25
The Burden of Command, page 25
part #14 of Empire Rising Series
“Even the colonists’ freighters are still there,” Lydia commented. “You would think they would have put prize crews on them and taken them away to whatever base they have. Keeping them here just means they could lose them if an Imperial patrol shows up.”
“And why hasn’t it already?” Becca asked. “The pirates must know something we don’t. Why else would they have stuck around so long? Even if a patrol hasn’t shown up over the last three weeks, there’s bound to be one before the month is out. Yet they are still sitting there, seemingly without a care in the world.”
“Are there any transmissions coming from the colony or the ships in orbit?” Jake asked.
Lydia shook her head. “There’s nothing out of the ordinary. A lot of radio signals from the planet’s surface, the computer is analyzing them. So far, we’ve detected nothing to tell us what is going on. The ships are all quiet. If they are communicating, they’re using laser COM links.”
Jake waited ten more minutes to see if anything could be learned from the radio signals. Nothing was, they were all standard information broadcast. Nothing mentioned the pirate’s presence or what they were up to. Jake ground his teeth together. The pirate ships in orbit suggested they had taken over the colony. Yet it appeared as if life was continuing as normal on the surface. It was a mystery. A mystery we’ll have to figure out another time, he told himself. “All right, there’s nothing we can do for Frigila. As the pirate ships are still in orbit, then hopefully, their focus will be on the colony. Lay in a course for the next shift passage. Take us there at twenty percent maximum thrust. Once we get beyond the point where the pirate ships can catch us, we will go to the maximum power our engine can sustain. I doubt the pirates will want to chase us to a more built-up system.”
“Aye Lieutenant,” Lydia responded.
As his bridge officers got to work and Python began to move into the system, Jake along with everyone else, kept glancing at Frigila. He guessed they were all thinking the same as he was. He desperately wanted to know what was going on. Yet no answers were forthcoming. A part of Jake couldn’t help but feel that he was betraying his uniform. He was sworn to protect the Empire’s citizens and all Human colonies. Flying past a colony under siege filled him with shame. Yet his awareness of the wider strategic situation stopped him from altering Python’s heading. His father’s favorite phrase came to him again. ‘The burden of command.’ Does it ever get easier? Or does it just keep getting worse and worse? He asked. It seemed the more responsibility he found himself carrying, the harder the decisions and the more people who got hurt, no matter what he chose.
“We are ready to increase acceleration,” Lydia informed him when Python crossed the point where the pirate ships couldn’t catch them.
“Do it,” Jake ordered. “And jump us out as soon as we cross the system’s mass shadow.”
As Lydia powered up Python’s reactor and engine as much as she safely could, Jake expected the pirate ships to break orbit. The presence of another ship in the system was bound to spook them into fleeing. Yet they did no such thing. Jake shared a look with Lydia and they both shook their heads. The pirates were fearless. Something was most certainly going on. Yet they had no answers. Two hours later, when Python reached the next shift passage, they were still sitting in orbit without concern. Jake’s hands were in fists as he nodded for Python to jump out. He felt horrible abandoning the colony. We’ll be back, he promised the Frigilian colonists. Glancing over to where Becca had taken a seat, he knew they would. The look on her face told Jake she would throw him over her shoulders and drag him back, if that’s what it took.
*
Six days later, and Jake finally got some of the answers he had been yearning for. “It can’t be,” he said moments after Python jumped into the Chennai system. His mouth had fallen open. Shock was written in the face of every one of Python’s bridge officers. The Chennai system was home to a colony over one hundred years old. Hundreds of vessels were moving back and forth across the system. Initially, it had appeared they had made it back to civilization. But then, he had detected two more pirate vessels identical to Python. It took only seconds to realize that the freighter traffic in the system was also strange. All the ships were being carefully shepherded by the two pirate vessels and four others which Jake quickly guessed were armed freighters. The pirates had taken the Chennai system! No, Jake said himself as he shook his head. Something far bigger was going on. They weren’t just pirates, they couldn’t be.
“We’re picking up a systemwide broadcast,” Lydia said. “I think you’re going to want to hear it.”
Jake nodded to her. An unknown woman’s voice suddenly filled Python’s bridge. “All ships entering the Chennai system. You are now under the jurisdiction of the Independent Chennai colony. You will be boarded and inspected by our System Security Force. Then you will be free to go on your way. Resistance will be taken as loyalty to the Empire. Your ship will be seized or destroyed. There will be no warnings.”
Jake turned wide-eyed to Lydia and Becca. He had no idea what was going on. An Independent Chennai. How was that even possible? He had no idea. Yet it had happened. As outrageous as the situation was, that wasn’t even his main concern. He was staring at the pirate vessels. They were scattered across the system. His elation at finally reaching a world where he could bring his warning had evaporated. If the pirates were hostile to Imperial ships, they would not be friendly to him. How on Earth are we going to get through the system undetected? Jake asked himself. He had no answers.
*
IS Oblivion, Aurora System, 25th November 2508 AD.
James’ COM unit buzzed. “Go ahead,” he said after tapping it.
“Admiral Somerville, I think you might want to come to the bridge. We’ve just received a report from the cruiser Resolute. It’s not good news,” Admiral Davenport informed him.
James’ fork froze halfway towards his mouth. Over his shoulder, he sensed Fox stop as well. Davenport doesn’t know, he said to himself. Whatever it is, it can’t be that. His knife and fork clattered onto his plate. Even if she didn’t know, it didn’t stop fear assaulting him. Resolute was meant to be on the far side of the former British colonies. Not one system away from New France.
“Admiral, I’m sorry, did I disturb you?” Davenport asked when he didn’t reply over their COM channel.
Her words shook James into action. “I’m on my way,” he replied. As he stood, he couldn’t help but share a glance with Fox. He saw his concern reflected in his steward’s face. “Don’t worry, we don’t know anything yet,” he said weakly. Fox nodded, but if he had planned to say anything, James didn’t give him the chance. He was already moving out of his quarters and rushing towards the bridge. “What is it? Is Resolute okay?” he asked as soon the bridge’s hatch swished open.
Davenport swung around at the tone in James’ voice. “She’s okay Admiral. She has brought back a report from her patrol though. It is quite concerning. Do you know someone on board?”
“You could say that,” James replied. His fear didn’t leave him until he sat in his command chair and was able to see Resolute on the holo display. Two frigates flanked the cruiser and all three of them were moving to join up with Oblivion. “Just what news have they brought?”
“I’ll let my Chief of Staff update you,” Davenport replied. “He has been going through the report.”
James turned to Commander Hoover and nodded. Though the man was an experienced Commander, he blushed slightly. It annoyed James. He had spent the last two weeks working closely with Davenport’s command staff. It was time they got used to having him around. He kept his irritation to himself, however.
“Resolute was tasked with carrying out an extended patrol along our eastern border. There’s been an increase in pirate activity stretching down from The Wilds over the last several months,” Hoover explained.
“I’m well aware Commander,” James responded.
“Of course Admiral,” Hoover said, his cheek turning a little red again. “Well, Domingo, Resolute’s Captain, has stirred up a hornet’s nest. They came across the wreck of a freighter and managed to hunt down the pirate ship that had attacked it. When they did, it turned out two pirate ships were offloading their cargo to a third pirate freighter. Resolute managed to destroy one of the ships and capture the other two. One was sent back to Britannia, but the other had navigational data on it that led Resolute to a pirate base in the Zika Seven system. Using the captured ship, Domingo and her crew infiltrated the Pirate base, captured another pirate ship, and destroyed the rest that were there. In total, eight pirate ships were taken out.”
James let out a whistle, his fear replaced by relief. “That is quite the feat. Captain Domingo and her crew deserve quite the congratulations.”
“That’s not all Admiral,” Hoover said, his tone not matching James’. It made James sit forward in his command chair. “One of the ships that Domingo captured, it’s identical to the purpose-built warships Teal used to take control of the New France system.” On the holo display in front of James, the image changed to show a destroyer making its way out from the inside of what was clearly a hollowed-out asteroid. It did look identical to the ones that had been spotted in New France.
James’ teeth clamped together. Things suddenly fell into place. The increased pirate activity, the focus of the attacks on freighters carrying military cargo, it hadn’t been down to chance. Nor had it been other alien species trying to capture human technology. It had been Teal and his allies all along. Now he understood how Teal had managed to build up a small fleet of purpose-built warships and arm so many of his freighters. He had been the one launching attacks on Imperial shipping. He had clearly been building pirate bases out beyond the Empire’s borders. Bases capable of building such ships, James thought as his hands clenched into fists. His mind continued to whirl. “When did Resolute encounter the ships?”
“Two months ago Admiral,” Hoover answered.
James nodded. Teal’s attack on New France had come almost immediately after he would have reached the system after fleeing from Earth. He wouldn’t have had time to send word to Zika Seven and call in the pirate ships he had there. Which means he had a force stationed closer by. It also meant he may have even more ships coming in from out beyond the Empire’s borders. He could have been reinforced already, James realized. Another thought made James frown. It shouldn’t have taken Resolute two months to reach the Aurora System. “What delayed Resolute? And where is this pirate destroyer they captured? I’d very much like to get a look at its specs.”
“We have its specs Admiral, but I’m afraid the whereabouts of the pirate destroyer is unknown,” Hoover replied. “That’s why Resolute was delayed. Resolute and the captured destroyer split up during the attack on the pirate asteroid. They pursued different pirate ships that were trying to escape. Captain Domingo gave the prize crew on board the captured destroyer the authority to pursue a pirate ship into the next system. However, it never returned. After dispatching the pirate ships she was after and waiting several days for the captured ship to return, Domingo went searching for it. When she came across the two frigates currently in formation with Resolute, she co-opted them into the search as well. Yet they were unsuccessful. They weren’t able to find any sign of the captured ship or the pirate vessel it was chasing.”
Suddenly, the sinking feeling in James’ stomach returned. His voice cracked as he spoke. “The prize crew, who were they?”
“Hold on Admiral,” Hoover said as he turned back to his console and pulled up the information. “The prize crew was led by a Lieutenant Jake Jackson, Resolute’s Third Lieutenant. Resolute’s Fourth Lieutenant, Lydia Morrison was assisting him. Do you want the names of the other senior officers?” James couldn’t breathe. Yet his heart suddenly began to race. Oblivion’s massive bridge started to make him feel claustrophobic, like the bulkheads were closing in around him. “Admiral, are you all right?” Hoover asked. James didn’t hear him. Davenport tried to speak to him as well. None of their words registered. Even the anger James had been harboring at Teal since before leaving Earth vanished. In his mind, he was recalling the last time he had seen Lieutenant Jake Jackson, just before he had set off to rendezvous with Resolute. James couldn’t shake the image. Closing his eyes only made it sharper. In his mind, Jake was being hugged by his mother. The concern that Christine had been trying to hide from her son hadn’t escaped James at the time. Now, in his mind, it seemed far worse than he remembered. What am I going to tell her? James asked with despair.
Chapter 22
The list of Human colonies that have been obliterated by nuclear weapons is thankfully not a long one. Yet even one name is more than there ever should have been. Every naval cadet would do well to study each incident, and then equip themselves to never let it happen again.
-Excerpt from Empire Ascendant 3015 AD.
Python, Chennai system.
“What do we do?” Lydia asked, her voice full of confusion. “If Chennai really is trying to secede, can we reveal ourselves? They could attack us.”
“Python wouldn’t stand a chance,” Jake said, finishing her thought.
“What if we told them about the Flex-aor, surely they would let us past then?” McKay suggested.
“And what if they don’t?” Jake countered. He shook his head. “It’s too risky. We aren’t strong enough to fight them off, and we can’t allow them to waylay us. For all we know, they’d just think we were bluffing about the Flex-aor and try and capture us. If they really are attempting to secede, they’ll want to get their hands on as many military ships as possible. Even damaged, Python will be a prize. We have no choice; we have to try and sneak through the system. It will be a further delay, but we can’t help that. I think we can assume the shift gate is closed to us as well. So plot us a course to the New Delhi shift passage. Keep us as far away from all the ships in the system as possible.”
“Working on a course now,” Lydia replied. “It’s going to be a complicated one.”
Moments later, Jake saw just what she meant as the holo display updated to project the course Lydia was proposing. He grimaced as he studied it. It was going to take twenty-two hours for Python to pass through the system. For nearly a minute, he studied it closely, hoping he could see one or two changes he could make to cut some corners. Yet there was none. “Very well,” he said with a sigh. “This is as good as it’s going to get. Take us in.”
“Aye Lieutenant,” Lydia responded.
As Python began to move, Jake joined Lydia and Becca as they began to scan through all the COM messages Python’s sensors were picking up. Most were mundane. Over the course of the next four hours however, they began to build up a picture of what was happening within the Chennai system. To Jake’s shock, they learned that Chennai wasn’t the only planet that was attempting to secede. At least a dozen other planets were. For someone who loved the Empire dearly, it hurt Jake to realize so many wanted to leave. Right now though, of more concern was the prospect that not just Chennai was trying to secede, but New Delhi and several other systems that were between Python and Earth. The prospect of having to sneak through all of them and the delays that would inevitably result put Jake in an even worse mood.
“Hey, look at this,” Lydia said as she sent a recording over to Jake’s command chair. “Not everyone on Chennai is on board with this new route their leadership is trying to take.”
Jake watched the recording. It was a mash-up of more than a dozen people laying out short arguments against secession. As it finished, the recording called for a mass protest against the undemocratic attempts to remove Chennai from the Empire. “Well, that’s a little encouraging,” Jake admitted. “Though it could just be a fringe element. And each of those people could already be under arrest.” From the recordings, they knew martial law had been declared on Chennai, and a curfew put in place. That was just the kind of circumstances that allowed those in power to systematically apprehend anyone they thought a threat to the new regime.
“Or it could represent the view of the masses,” Lydia suggested, trying to be more optimistic. “I’m sure the authorities are trying to suppress anything like this. That would make it hard to know just what way public opinion is really leaning.”
“But what does it matter if it’s being suppressed?” McKay countered. “Even if everyone feels like this, if they are kept isolated, they will never know they could band together to fight back.”
“And if New Delhi and the other nearby colonies are all on board with this, what good would protesting or even fighting accomplish?” Becca followed up. “A division of New Delhi’s Colonial Militia could be shipped in to pacify any protests.”
Jake shook his head again. The whole situation was a mess. Right when the Flex-aor were raising their ugly heads again, the very sectors of the Empire they were likely to target were crumbling. And if the Flex-aor do attack, it will draw away a significant proportion of our forces from the border with Karacknid space, Jake realized. “I wish we could do more, but we can’t. We’re just a small cog in all this. All we can do is try our best to get our warning to where it is needed most. Or at least to where it will be listened to.”
“Hold that thought,” Lydia said, her voice taking on a tone of concern. “Contact Sierra-six, it’s altering course towards us.”
Jake swung around towards the holo display. He had to stop himself from swearing. Sierra-six was one of Python’s sister ships. It was now heading right for them! “Our stealth capabilities must be more compromised than we thought,” he groaned. Desperately, he checked the distance to the next shift passage. He groaned again. Even if he pushed Python’s engine as hard as he could, they could not outrun the destroyer. “We have no choice. Bring our reactor and engine up to full. Increase acceleration rate to our maximum. Open a COM channel.” Though he hated doing it, when Lydia nodded to him, Jake didn’t refer to the ship’s crew as pirates. “Chennai destroyer. This is the Imperial destroyer Python. We have been in a battle with a Flex-aor ship beyond the borders of Imperial space. We are bringing vital intelligence about a possible Flex-aor attack on Chennai and the other nearby colonies. We have no wish to become involved in your quest for secession. As far as I am concerned, that is between your people and the Imperial Houses of Parliament. All we ask is for safe passage to New Delhi to deliver our news.”
