The burden of command, p.39
The Burden of Command, page 39
part #14 of Empire Rising Series
Georgia winked at her older brother. “You have no need to worry on our account Dad. We know what we’re doing. Make sure you tell Mom in your next letter that I’m only a couple of kills behind Jonathan.”
Jonathan rolled his eyes. “I doubt either of them care much about that.”
“We certainly don’t,” James said as he eyed his daughter rather more sternly than he had intended. “I don’t want to hear any more competitiveness like that. You were both risking your lives, and New Delhi’s one billion citizens were hanging in the balance. This is no joke or game.”
Georgia’s face stiffened. “I understand Father. I meant nothing by it. Three pilots from our squadron died today. I wasn’t making light of their loss.”
James tried to soften his expression. “I know you weren’t. I understand the jubilation from surviving and winning a battle. I was your age once. This wasn’t why I wanted to speak with you, either. I won’t be writing another letter to your mother. I’ll probably be able to speak to her face to face. I’m heading back to Earth. That’s what I wanted to tell you.”
“But the Flex-aor fleet, we need you here,” Jonathan protested.
James shook his head. “Home Fleet is in capable hands. I fear this may have just been a diversionary attack. A much larger attack may hit us elsewhere. I need to go back to Earth and redirect the reinforcements to the Flex-aor homeworlds.”
“Their homeworlds? You think they’re going to try and retake them?” Jonathan asked. James nodded. Jonathan grimaced. “Is this what the Flex-aor have been planning? If a new warfront is opened up in our southern colonies, we’ll have to split our defenses. Our border with them will be seriously weakened.”
James frowned. His mind hadn’t got that far yet. But of course, it made sense. If the Karacknids were supplying the Flex-aor with weapons, they probably knew something of the Flex-aor’s full strength. That meant they could be preparing their own attack if Imperial ships were pulled back from their border forts. “It is a strong possibility,” James said to his son. “But let’s not forget, they didn’t expect you to intercept their freighters. If the Flex-aor put forward their timetable for their attack, we may yet have time to respond. The Karacknids may not be ready to exploit any shift in our fleets either. Tanaka-lan nor either of the other two contenders, have won a significant advantage yet. Either way, I need to get to Earth and prepare our response as quickly as possible. I’ll be leaving in Magnificent within the hour. I wanted to tell you both and order you to stay safe while I’m away.”
Jonathan and Georgia looked at the holo representations of each other, they nodded and then turned back to James with serious expressions on their faces. “We will not let you down Father,” Jonathan said, speaking for them both. “Neither will Home Fleet. We will make sure this Flex-aor fleet doesn’t cause any more trouble.”
“Then maybe we can join you at the Flex-aor homeworlds,” Georgia said enthusiastically.
“Maybe,” James said slowly, “maybe.” He was unable to hide the small smile Georgia’s tone brought. If he could do anything about it, he would keep them right where they were. But he understood her desire all too well. “Just look after one another. Hopefully I will see you soon enough. Goodbye.”
“Goodbye,” Jonathan and then Georgia said. James smiled at them one more time and then cut the COM channel. He took a second to soak in the joy it brought him to see his children serving the Empire. Then he stood and stepped back into his main quarters. Unsurprisingly, Fox had all of his belongings already packed away. More of Oblivion’s crew had appeared and were carrying trunks out.
“You go on to Magnificent in the first shuttle,” Fox advised. “We’ll follow you in the second. We shouldn’t be more than five minutes behind you.”
“All right old friend, I’ll see you over there,” James said as he took one last glance at his empty quarters and then stepped out onto Oblivion’s corridor. Now was not the time for sentimentality, he needed to go to Magnificent and get underway at once.
*
IS Magnificent, outer Sol system, 29th December 2508 AD.
Though he could have spent these sixteen days from New Delhi to Sol second-guessing himself, instead when Magnificent jumped out of shift space into Humanity’s home system, James was more confident than ever. With plenty of free time during the voyage, he had gone over every piece of sensor data from Chennai and New Delhi. He was now certain. The Flex-aor fleet hadn’t acted like the main thrust of an attack designed to get revenge for twenty-five years of Flex-aor worlds being occupied. No, they had acted exactly like what James would expect a diversionary attack to do. That meant there was a far larger attack about to fall somewhere. James was certain he knew where.
Seconds after jumping into the system, Magnificent’s holo display began to show all the activity going on. For several moments, so many new contacts began to appear that James couldn’t make sense of them. Thousands of civilian and military ships were moving back-and-forth across the system from its many colonies and several shift gates. One blob did quickly capture his attention, however. More than seven hundred ships were in a tight V-shaped formation marking them out as an Imperial Fleet. More importantly, they were heading right towards the shift passage Magnificent had just entered the system from. James was sure they could only be one fleet. Given Magnificent hadn’t bumped into his niece’s fleet on the way to Sol, it had to be Emilie’s ships. “Hail whatever ship has Admiral Alvarez’ flag. Inform them I am ordering their fleet to divert to the Beta shift passage. I want one hundred and fifty ships detached and sent onto New Delhi however. Make sure they get the reports I have prepared transferred to them. That will tell Admiral Alvarez what we are up to. Once they have acknowledged, set course for Earth. Maximum acceleration.”
“Aye Admiral,” Florez, Magnificent’s Captain responded.
James couldn’t help but smile as the Imperial Fleet in front of him split into two, and most of the ships turned towards the Beta shift passage. At the heart of the larger group, Admiral Alvarez’s flagship, a dreadnought identical to Oblivion, was easily identifiable on the holo display. James could imagine his niece having a thousand questions. He had outlined his suspicions in his report that she was doubtless reading even at this moment. Even so, she was sure to want to speak with him. Yet James knew she trusted him implicitly. She hadn’t hesitated in turning her fleet away from New Delhi. And she’ll get answers, James knew, just not yet. With Magnificent rushing towards Earth, and Emilie now heading towards the Beta shift passage, their ships wouldn’t come within two-way communication range. Emilie would just have to wait until James spoke with Christine, and then caught up with her fleet again.
It took three hours for Magnificent to reach two-way communication range with Earth. As soon as she did, James ordered her to turn around. He didn’t have time to actually enter into orbit around Earth. He only intended to speak to Christine and then race off after Emilie’s fleet. As he expected, Magnificent was hailed by the Imperial Palace as soon as they were in range. James stepped into Magnificence’s briefing room to accept the call. As soon as he activated the COM unit, five holographic faces appeared in front of him. James smiled at them. They were all friends. He allowed his lips to widen when he locked eyes with his wife. “It is good to see you,” he said. “I’ve missed you.”
“As have I,” Christine said as she returned his smile. “And I’m very glad to see you too. Your report is worrying. Very worrying. Yet even what has already happened is terrible enough.” Christine shook her head. “I can’t believe Chennai is gone.”
James’ face hardened. “I know. It is despicable. No, worse than despicable. We cannot allow the Flex-aor to do this again. Never again. I failed us all when I last fought them. Some of their species must have escaped. Maybe even a Queen escaped. They must be stopped.”
“And you are sure about the Flex-aor homeworlds?” Alvarez asked.
James turned to the head of Naval Intelligence. “You have seen all the information I have. What does your gut tell you?”
Alvarez nodded. “Something bigger is going on. But it is just a guess.”
“Even if there is just a chance, we have to act decisively,” Admiral Scott said. “If a Queen did escape, she’s had nearly twenty-five years to build up her strength. From everything we know about the Flex-aor, her goal will be to liberate their High Queen. I’m not even sure if she could choose to abandon the High Queen, even if she personally wanted to.”
“Which is why I cannot come and see you all in person. With the reinforcements Emilie is sending to Vice Admiral Davenport, she should be able to contain the Flex-aor fleet that attacked New Delhi. Emilie and I must get to the Flex-aor homeworlds at once. I need you to contact the Varanni Alliance and get them to dispatch all the ships they have available to join us. We also need to pull more ships away from the frontline with the Karacknids. All of our allies need to be alerted. Hopefully the Varanni and Mindus can divert some of their frontline forces to cover the gaps in our defenses.”
“I will send personal messages to each of their leaders requesting help,” Christine assured him. “We will get you the forces you need.”
James smiled at his wife again. “I’m sure you will my dear. Impress upon them that time is of the essence however. If the Karacknids are partially behind this, then it’s possible Jonathan discovering their weapons’ shipment forced the Flex-aor to step up their timetable. If one of the Karacknid factions is planning to hit us, they can’t have been ready to attack so soon. If we can deal with the Flex-aor quickly, then our forces can return to their positions before the Karacknids can strike.”
“We should also dispatch more scout ships and have a close look at all the neighboring Karacknid fleet bases,” Alvarez suggested. “That should give us an idea of who might be planning what.”
James nodded. If any of Humanity’s scout ships were detected, it could provoke a Karacknid response. Yet they needed to know. “Do it.”
“And I will ensure Emilie’s fleet and the reinforcements we sent have all the supplies they need,” Andrea promised him. “Our supply chains are still a mess after the attempted secession. It will take months to sort things out. But we will get you what you need.”
James glanced at the chronometer in the briefing room. “I just have a few more minutes before I’m out of two-way communications range. We can discuss the finer details back-and-forth over recorded message.” James’ eyes turned to his wife. “If you all wouldn’t mind.”
“Of course,” Scott said for everyone else. “Good luck Admiral. We all know you won’t let us down out there.” One by one, their faces disappeared until only Christine remained.
James gave her an apologetic smile. “I am sorry I couldn’t come to the Palace, even for half an hour. How are Edward and Rachel?”
“They’re both doing fine,” Christine answered. “They have been shocked by the news about the Flex-aor attack on Chennai. I don’t think they really grasp just what has happened. But they are scared for their brother and sister. As am I.” Christine closed her eyes. “I can’t believe they have both been in battle. I don’t know how you were able to stand watching it.”
James waited for Christine to look at him again. “I don’t know how I did it myself. I feel I have aged a decade in the last month. But they handled themselves admirably. We should both be proud.”
Christine nodded her head slightly. “I am proud. But I am more scared. They’re both still out there, and now you’re not there with them.”
“They are as safe with Davenport as with me,” James promised. “And the main threat has gone. Davenport won’t act until she has her reinforcements. The Flex-aor fleet has been badly damaged. They won’t have to face the same odds we did at New Delhi.”
“That doesn’t take away my concern. And now you’re going off to face what could be an even greater threat. If you’re right, you’ll be outnumbered once again.”
James shrugged his shoulders. “It seems to be the story of my career.” He grew more serious. “Whatever happens though, I need to stop them. We cannot have another Chennai. Not again.”
“No,” Christine said forcefully. The concern on her face for her children vanished, and she looked like the Empress Humanity was used to seeing. “That cannot happen. And I know you will do whatever it takes to stop it. No matter the cost.” Christine’s last sentence broke her façade, and her concern came rushing back again. “I do wish you could have taken the shuttle down and I could have held you, even for a brief moment.”
James reached a holographic hand out towards his wife. She did the same. “I’ll be back before you know it. You’ll see.”
Christine nodded and smiled at him, both of them knew he could make no such promise. “Just be careful. No more charging enemy fleets unless you hold the advantage,” she commanded.
James smiled. “I’ve been trying to do that my entire career. But if it’s my Empress’s command, then maybe this time that’s the way it will be.” James glanced at the chronometer. “My time is up. Send me as many recordings as you can before we jump out of the system. And make sure Edward and Rachel send some as well. I want to hear everything they’ve been up to.”
Christine smiled. “I’ll see that they do.”
James held up a hand and waved goodbye to his wife. She blew him a kiss and then the COM channel ended. All right, James said to himself as he stood. Let’s get on with this.
*
IS Dreadnought Matilda, Beta system, 1st January 2509 AD, (three days later).
As Magnificent docked with Matilda, James was already in the hangar bay. As soon as the access hatch flashed green to say the docking umbilical had been sealed, he strode forward. Fox followed behind as several of Magnificent’s crew moved with their belongings. As James expected, Emilie was on the other side waiting for him. She gave him a formal salute, but then couldn’t help herself and moved forward, pulling him into a hug.
“I’m glad you’re coming along for the ride,” she said as they broke apart. Her voice carried throughout the hangar bay for all the nearby crew to hear.
“And I look forward to seeing what your ships are capable of,” James replied just as loudly.
“Please,” Emilie said as she gestured towards the hangar’s exit. “Let me show you to your quarters.”
“Of course,” James replied.
“So…” Emilie said more quietly once they left the hangar. “The Flex-aor homeworlds. I’ve never been there. What do you think we’re going to find?”
“I don’t know, but we’ve got three weeks and four days until we get there to prepare. We need to be ready for any eventuality,” James replied gravely. “We can’t let the Flex-aor regain their homeworlds. If they do, we will need a far larger fleet to dislodge them, and we can’t afford to divert so many ships from the frontline with the Karacknids.”
Emilie nodded, the look on her face just as serious as James’. They both understood the strategic situation all too well.
Chapter 33
Sometimes it is as pleasant to meet old enemies as it is to meet old friends.
-Excerpt from Empire Ascendant 3015 AD.
IS Achilles, Phosphorus system, 5th January 2509 AD, (four days later).
Jonathan sat forward in his command chair. Three new contacts had just appeared on the passive sensors. They were rushing from one shift passage towards another. Just the kind of thing three Flex-aor scout ships might do. Eagerly, Jonathan waited for the ships to be identified.
Achilles was currently cruising in stealth through the Phosphorus system looking for any sign of the Flex-aor fleet. Nine days ago, word had come to New Delhi from Commodore Matthews. His small squadron that had been shadowing the Flex-aor fleet had been attacked and forced back by a Flex-aor screening squadron. During the battle, the main Flex-aor fleet had slipped out of Matthews’ sensor range. In response, Davenport had sent out a number of light warships to scour the systems around New Delhi and out beyond Imperial space. Jonathan and his officers had worked around the clock to get Achilles battle ready. To Jonathan’s delight, they had been selected. Yet after the mad rush to finish repairing the damage Achilles had taken in the battle of New Delhi, the actual task of searching for the Flex-aor had proven fruitless. The last Matthews had seen of the Flex-aor fleet, it had been continuing to retreat away from Imperial space. Jonathan had taken Achilles through three systems and found no sign of the Flex-aor. At least until now.
“The computer has analyzed the engine signatures,” Lieutenant Schmidt reported. “They are Human, not Flex-aor.”
Jonathan’s excitement immediately faded. The presence of Human ships suggested the Flex-aor hadn’t been in the Phosphorus system. For if they had, they would have destroyed any eyewitnesses. Jonathan frowned at the three contacts. The Phosphorus system was just outside Imperial space, not far from Chennai. He had no idea why three ships would be out in the middle of nowhere. Not with what was going on. Unless they fled from Chennai, Jonathan concluded. He supposed that made sense. “Keep us in stealth,” Jonathan ordered. There was still a chance some Flex-aor scouts were in the system checking to see if it would be safe for the Flex-aor fleet to traverse through. If Jonathan revealed Achilles, it might spook the Flex-aor.
“Jonathan, you’re going to want to see this,” Lydia said in a tone that changed Jonathan’s mood. She continued when he turned to her. “Those three contacts, we’ve seen them before. Remember Frigila? We got a good look at those three secessionist ships that occupied the colony. Well, I think we’re looking at them now.”
Jonathan’s hands clenched into fists. After the Flex-aor had fled New Delhi, word had come from Frigila. Thankfully, the Flex-aor had attacked Chennai from another direction. Jonathan had feared the smaller colony had been wiped out as well. They had been spared. At least, spared the Flex-aor’s wrath. The secessionist ships, or as Jonathan really thought of them, the pirate ships, once they had learnt that the secessionist movement was all but over, had reverted to their true nature. After raiding the colony for anything valuable they could carry off, they had then filled their holds with prisoners before breaking orbit and fleeing. As he stared at the three contacts with a fresh feeling of anger, Jonathan’s teeth clamped together. He wanted to blow the pirate ships to smithereens. Yet could he blow his cover? A beep in his command chair told him someone was trying to open a COM channel. When Jonathan glanced down at it, he wasn’t surprised to see it was Sergeant Samuels. He swallowed as he remembered his promise to her. I said we would make them pay, he reminded himself. Hesitating for another second, Jonathan then tapped his command chair. “I assume you see who we have just spotted?” He asked Samuels.
