Command Decision (Project Gliese 581g #1) (25 page)

Josh chuckled when he heard Hutu’s mutterings over his comlink. Josh had introduced Hutu to a modern day dog fight. It was not something the General had encountered before.

He carefully turned the craft in the air with the help of the Fighter bot and landed the spacecraft. Almost immediately, work crews swarmed the fighter and were preparing it for its next mission. He waited as the cockpit slid back and released his helmet, pulling it off.

“You are crazy!” Hutu growled, stomping toward him with a good-natured grin on his face. “You are also very good.”

Josh laughed as he climbed out of the cockpit and waited for the lift to lower him to the ground. He stepped off and slapped Hutu on the shoulder. The old Knight wasn’t half-bad himself.

“I liked that one maneuver you did,” Josh commented. “That was pretty tricky coming up out of the canyon that way, especially with those ice shelves hanging down.”

“It didn’t stop you from following me,” Hutu retorted dryly. “You had me locked on the entire time.”

Josh laughed again. “Ash and I used to take bets on who could shoot a BB through a one inch pipe and hit the target at the other end,” he replied. “We didn’t have much choice after my dad banned us from shooting the weather vane with the .22 rifle he had.”

“You were one of those types of children,” Hutu muttered.

Josh slung his arm around Hutu’s shoulders. “You have no idea,” he admitted with a grin. “Of course, having Ash to hang with made it more fun,” he added dropping his arm. “Is there any way to contact the freighter?” He asked.

Hutu shook his head. “Their communication systems must be down. All efforts to reach them have been in vain. I’m afraid they are going to arrive to a less than warm welcome,” he responded in a heavy voice.

“Surely they will know?” Josh murmured with a dark scowl. “There has to be some way of contacting them – warning them – about what is headed this way.”

Hutu shook his head. “Only if they get here first,” he replied, turning when he heard his name.

“General, the other members of the Gallant Order have arrived and are waiting for you,” the man said, glancing curiously at Josh.

“We are on our way,” Hutu responded.

Josh followed Hutu back through the hanger to the staging area. His gaze swept the room, narrowing in on where Cassa was talking to one of the military personnel he had seen shortly before they left Tesla Terra the first time. Pack was also there, talking with several other pilots. He was dressed in a a dark green uniform similar to the one Josh and Hutu were wearing.

Cassa must have felt his gaze on her because she glanced up. For a brief second, Josh felt like they were the only two people in the room. He bowed his head to her when she started at the touch of the person talking to her.

*.*.*

“General,” the group said, coming to attention when Hutu stepped up to the screen.

“General Tailsman,” Hutu acknowledged, stepping up to the front.

Josh stood in the back as General Tailsman began explaining what they knew of the Legion’s movement. Two Battle Cruisers, almost a thousand fighters, and just as many ground troops were estimated to be among the group converging on the planet. Inside information stated that after the Battle Cruiser and the fighters completed the initial assault, the ground troops were to move in and eliminate any survivors.

“We are expecting them to arrive within the next few hours,” Hutu interjected, stepping forward. “Our bases on the planet are ready. Those that agreed to be evacuated have been.”

Josh frowned. “What about those that are supporting the Legion? Have measures been taken to prevent them from warning the Legion that the rebels are expecting them?” He asked, remembering the spy from the bar.

“Yes,” General Tailsman responded. “Additional security has been increased since the attack on General de Rola’s family.”

Josh glanced at where Pack and Cassa were standing. He saw Pack wrap his arm around his sister and give her a hug. He could feel the tension in the room at the reminder of what happened to their father and brother.

“Your presence has been a catalyst for the rebel
forces,” General Tailsman informed him.

Josh stiffened in surprise when he saw heads turning to stare at him. He had noticed the odd looks in the hanger and the quiet greetings as he walked through the corridors earlier. He had not realized what it meant, though.

“Why would my presence be a catalyst?” Josh asked with a puzzled frown.

“You give us hope,” General Tailsman replied in a quiet voice.

“Hope?” Josh repeated, stunned.

He glanced around the room. Everyone in it was staring back at him in silence. His gaze took in the expressions of quiet respect and determination. He finally paused on Hutu, staring back at the old Knight with a frown.

“You are believed to be one of the original Knights of the Gallant Order, returned to help defeat the Legion and restore order to the galaxy, Josh,” Hutu said, stepping through the crowded room toward him. “You strike fear in the Director, something no one has ever seen before. He is desperate to find you and destroy the hope that has been spreading through the star system since your ship was discovered. Word of it and your defeat of the Legion forces at the vineyard offers the hope of freedom to the people. This is not something that should be ignored.”

“Hutu,” Josh spoke in a low voice so only the old Knight could hear him. “You know that I’m not who they think I am.”

“How do you know that you aren’t?” Hutu asked. “You give hope where there was none before, Josh. I would say that is pretty incredible in itself. I am an old man now, my time here is growing short. I am the last of the old Order. You are the first of the new one. Give them hope, Josh. Give them the power to believe that there is a way to defeat the Legion and they will.”

Josh tore his gaze from the old Knight and glanced around the room. He saw the truth behind Hutu’s quietly spoken words. During his time in the military, he had seen missions, thought to be impossible, succeed because those fighting believed they could win. His forefathers had proven that centuries before.

His gaze locked on Cassa’s face. He could see the belief in her gaze. He could also see the fear that she was trying to hide. Acceptance swept through him when he saw her head bow and she smiled back at him. Pulling his gaze away from her, he stared at the images of the Legion Battle Cruisers. A plan began to form in his mind as resolve sunk in.

“I have a plan,” he said as his mind ran through the information that had been shared. “Bantu, Cassa, we are going to need your expertise on the Legion’s programming.”

Chapter 25

Roan Landais stepped into the office of the Director. His lips were pressed together in anger. He had toured the areas of destruction on the planet before making his way to the New Legions, one of the largest and newest cities on Jeslean.

Removing his hat, he tucked it under his arm as he walked into the room. Andri Andronikos stood with his back to it, looking out over the city and citizens that he ruled with the same ruthlessness that he commanded his forces. Roan’s gaze moved around the room, pausing on the other man sitting in one of the plush chairs by a hologram fireplace. He hid his grimace of distaste. This meeting was going to be more difficult than he anticipated.

“Roan,” Andri murmured, not turning around.

“Director,” Roan replied stiffly.

Roan knew his greeting was short and stiff. At the moment, he really didn’t give a damn. He resented being beckoned to Jeslean like an errant cadet. The fact that two of the most influential men in his life were both there didn’t make the situation any better.

Standing at attention just inside the door, he kept his gaze focused on the black coated figure by the window. His mind was not on the man, though. No, his mind was replaying the destruction he had witnessed upon his arrival.

Silence reigned for several long minutes before Andri released a sigh and turned to look at him. Roan kept his attention focused on the expressionless face, trying to gauge the situation. Andri walked over to a bar and poured a drink. Suspicion and dread began to build inside Roan. He knew for a fact that the Director did not drink. His hand automatically reached for the glass when it was held out to him.

“Sit down,” Andri ordered, turning and walking back to the window.

Roan walked over to the second plush chair. He placed the small glass of liquor on the table next to him, along with his hat, before he sat down. His gaze brushed over the older man sitting across from him in silence.

“What happened?” The man asked.

Roan turned to look at him. “There was a traitor on board my ship, a maintenance programmer. He must have helped the rebels gain access and shut down critical systems. I have a team working on correcting the issue and developing security to make sure it does not happen again,” he replied in an emotionless voice.

“Who is the traitor?” The man asked in a deceptively calm tone.

“Bantu de Gaul,” Roan stated.

“See that his family is punished – publicly,” the Director ordered, not turning around.

Roan stiffened before he relaxed. “It has already been done,” he replied.

He didn’t mention that he had discovered that Bantu’s parents had been living in one of the devastated cities. It was unlikely that they had survived. The current number of fatalities was over two hundred thousand and rising.

The Director turned and gazed at Roan with an intense stare for several seconds before he walked over to the table next to Roan and picked up the glass of liquor. He continued back to the bar and poured the liquid down the sink. Roan listened as the water from the sink briefly came on before it shut back off. A moment later, Andri walked by him again.

“What of the rebels? Did you learn anything from the prisoner before he escaped?” Andri asked nonchalantly when he resumed his position by the tinted window.

Roan forced himself to relax and leaned back in his chair. “His name is Packu de Rola. He is Jemar de Rola’s oldest son. He refused to say anything other than his name. I was in the process of using alternative methods to secure information when he escaped. As for the other rebels….” Roan’s voice faded as he remembered the strange male and his cocky salute.

“You were saying,” the man across from him demanded.

Roan’s gaze refocused on the Director’s face. “There was a strange male. He was… Different,” Roan finally said.

“What do you mean by different?” The Director demanded in a harsh tone, turning and stepping closer to Roan. “What made him different?”

“It was more than his features. It was the way he carried himself. He was confident, cocky. He also carried the Staff belonging to a Knight of the Gallant Order,” Roan said in a quiet voice.

“That is impossible! There is only one Knight of the Order left,” the man across from him exclaimed. “A Staff will not work unless it is passed from one Knight to the next, even the two that we managed to retrieve would not work. When we tried to re-engineer one of them, the Staff exploded, killing everyone in the lab.”

Roan’s jaw tightened. “I know what I saw,” he stated in an icy tone.

“It will not matter,” the Director replied with a wave of his hand. “Legion Battle Cruisers will be arriving on Tesla Terra any time now. I’ve ordered the destruction of every city on the planet to set an example of what happens to anyone who dares to stand against the Legion. One old Knight and this stranger will not stand in the way.”

Roan rose from his chair. His hands curled at his side before he forced them to relax. Even so, he could feel the muscle in his jaw twitching with anger.

“Director, the destruction of every man, woman, and child on Tesla Terra could have negative effects to the Legion and to your rule,” Roan cautioned in a stiff voice. “Already, the leveling of the cities here on Jeslean will have long term effects. Surely that is enough to show the strength of the Legion.”

Roan could tell his words were falling on deaf ears. He stiffened when the man across from him rose and stared at him. Glancing down, he bowed his head.

“I only speak to give a different perspective, my Lord,” Roan said, looking down at the gleaming tiled floor.

“You are not growing weak, are you, General?” The Director asked in a deceptively calm voice.

Roan straightened and looked back with cold, hard eyes. “No, my Lord. My only thought was for the future of the Legion,” he stated.

“Your concern is noted. A new report has come in that another signal has been located. I want you to retrieve the capsule and the contents. It is imperative that you do not fail this time,” the Director ordered with a wave of his hand in dismissal.

“Yes, my Lord,” Roan murmured, picking up his hat and bowing again before walking toward the door.

“Roan,” the Director called in a hard voice.

Roan turned at the door and waited. “Yes, my Lord,” he said.

“Do not disappoint me again,” the Director warned in a soft tone. “I will not be so forgiving the next time.”

“Yes, my Lord,” Roan replied, bowing one last time before he opened the door and walked out.

He paused outside the door. For a moment before the door closed, he could hear the conversation between the two men. He pressed his hand against the door so that it didn’t quite close all the way.

“I thought you were going to kill him. Do you question his loyalty?” The older man in the room asked.

“I planned to at first. Do you believe he will turn against the Legion?” Andri asked, studying the other man.

“No, he will not betray you. I have trained him to follow in our footsteps since his birth. If he does betray you, I will kill him myself,” the man stated.

“Like father, like son,” Andri chuckled.

“And like his uncle,” Coleridge Landais stated.

“Yes. He is. It is a good thing he was not thirsty,” Andri replied with a slightly amused tone.

Roan released the door and silently stepped away. Striding down the corridor, he ignored those that he passed. He knew what they were thinking and didn’t care. Lifting the communicator that he had removed when he entered the room, he spoke in a sharp tone.