Eagle (Jacob Hull) (6 page)

As they entered the conference room, Jacob turned to Smithson. “I trust Captain Nivrosky presented my plans to you, High Seat?”

“He has indeed, Admiral Hull.” Smithson smiled. “I suppose I should not have been surprised to see such an idea from you. It is in your nature to take action rather than wait for the other shoe to drop.”

Jacob offered him a thin smile. “I suppose that is true.” He tapped a key to bring up a projection of the border, displaying the Oduran side of the Frontier. “I have an offensive operation planned, something that will hopefully dull the ability of the Odurans to strike at us. It will involve an attack against Oduran territory, however, and the Board feels such actions are unwise.”

Smithson glanced at Leon. “I’m afraid I very much sympathize with them, Admiral Hull. Your plan sounds very much like the mouse sneaking into the lion’s den and hoping to kill the beast.”

“Better to do it in the den while they’re sleeping than to face the lion in the field.” Jacob gestured to the map. “According to our Intelligence estimates, the Odurans are pulling in crews and resources to reactivate a squadron of dreadnaughts. Those ships would then be used in an offensive strike against us.”

When Smithson nodded but kept his peace, Jacob continued. “My plan involves a strike at Kryshaen. Given where the dreadnaughts are positioned, Kryshaen most likely holds the supplies the League would use to send the dreadnaughts across the Frontier if they were going to hit Tiredel. Without the supplies at Kryshaen, they would need to choose another target—or even better, abandon their plans to attack completely.”

“So it might delay them long enough that we could recover a portion of our own forces.” Smithson examined the map, studying Kryshaen. “Yet I believe the Odurans would guard this facility quite heavily, Admiral Hull. Such a concentration of war material would be too valuable a target otherwise to the insurgents within the League, if not us.”

“True.” Jacob smiled. “The operation will also involve a couple of feints at the nearby systems where those dreadnaughts are being refitted. The diversions would take place a short time before the real strike occurred, prompting the Odurans to disperse their forces in the region.” He shrugged. “After all, which will President Sessors wish to save, her few remaining dreadnaughts or a batch of supplies?”

Smithson returned his attention to Jacob, his expression serious. “This operation would involve considerable risk, Admiral. There is a reason High Admiral Nivrosky never considered such a move.”

Jacob did not flinch away from the man's stare. “He never had an opportunity like this one, High Seat—and this time, all our other options are worse. The League isn’t going to go away, and it isn’t going to stop attacking us. Not unless we make them, and that will involve taking away their ability to conduct offensive operations in our territory.” He tapped a key, and the image vanished. “We need to do this, or we risk being annihilated. That is the choice we face.”

Leon cleared his throat. “Sir, we have another problem.” Jacob looked at his chief of staff in surprise, and Leon sighed. “You remember our supply problems? I was able to dig into the problem a bit more on Celostia, and it turns out an awful lot of those munitions were being sold to one group in particular.”

Something about the way Leon said the words set off alarm bells in Jacob’s head. “Should I be worried about which group it is?”

“Definitely.” Smithson snorted. “Have you heard of Representative Wes Carmichael?”

Jacob frowned. “He’s an Indie member of the House, right? I have heard he’s been stirring up and awful lot of trouble in the press.”

“The press, and quite a bit more, I can assure you.” Smithson leaned forward. “You see, Carmichael is at the forefront of more than just a faction of the Independent party. He’s also managed to be right at the head of a kind of cultural movement. They’ve decided to settle San Marcos as a kind of sanctuary for those of similar beliefs.”

Leon spoke up, his voice hard. “They’re already trying to define themselves as a new Seating that doesn’t have to answer to anyone else. I heard a lot of complaints about violated laws and trade agreements, but that isn’t the worst part.” He paused. “They’ve also been building their own fleet.”

“What?” Jacob sat upright. He looked from Leon to Smithson and back. When he spoke, the words were nearly as cold as he felt inside. “Are we looking at another Telosian Sedition?”

Smithson leaned back in his chair as he answered. “It is possible, Admiral. Carmichael has been an incredibly volatile influence on the rest of the House, but he’s had an even worse effect on the people already gathering at Ermine. They are talking about a greater amount of independence from the Union than many of the Federalists are comfortable with, and they have staged several violent protests on Celostia over the issue of the Union’s sovereignty over them.” A smile worked its way across Smithson’s features. “Of course, the irony of the situation is Carmichael has been using you to justify building his own fleet as well.”

“Is that so?” Jacob failed to find the humor in it. “Is he pretending I’ve got aspirations to overthrow the Union? And, let me guess—he and his unregulated militia are the only thing that can stop me.”

Despite the bitterness in Jacob’s words, Smithson still grinned broadly.
“Got it in one! Actually, he doesn’t think you’ll overthrow the Union. He just believes you’ll be the nasty, tyrannical sword the Union will use to crush the reasonable opposition to the central government’s crazed demands.” Smithson gestured to the compartment around them. “In fact, he’s used this ship as a prime example. Why do we need dreadnaughts, he asks, if we are not planning on bombarding any planetary surfaces? Wouldn’t cruisers be more cost effective? What possible plans could an aspiring military leader have for such a machine of war?”

Jacob grunted and turned to Leon. “How big of a problem is this militia force going to be, aside from the supply issue? There haven’t been any reports of military action near San Marcos lately.”

Leon shrugged. “There hasn’t been any need for such action. The ships at San Marcos are still technically under the limit established by the Union Arms Regulation Act—and they’ve at least committed to the defense of the Union on paper. There’s no sign of piracy or other crimes either. The San Marcos fleet is just as legal as the Reefhome Defense Force.”

“Yet you still see a problem.” Jacob did not allow any questioning tone into his words.

The officer sighed. “Yes. Carmichael is a rash person. He’s a bully, one who doesn’t like being told he has limits. Once he has a real armed force behind him, he’s going to act with even less restraint.” He eyed Jacob carefully. “I don’t need to tell you what happened the last time a world in the Union decided to rebel.”

Jacob nodded slowly. The last world had been Rigannin, and that world’s treachery had led both to its own destruction and the act of sabotage which had nearly destroyed the
Wolfhound
on its shakedown cruise. He could still remember clearly the blasts that had nearly crippled the destroyer, the faces of Morris and Schroder as they tried to kill him, Commander Smith’s last words. If there was anyone who remembered the consequences of divisiveness and rebellion, it was Jacob. There was no way he was going to allow such a catastrophe to happen again.

He turned his attention back to Smithson. “Do you want me to hold off on the operation until we deal with San Marcos, sir?”

If the question surprised Smithson, the High Seat concealed it well. “No, Admiral. If we move too directly against Carmichael, there would be no way to avoid a full-fledged civil war, and I fear the number of casualties on both sides would render the effort useless.” A warped sort of grin twisted Smithson’s features. “Besides, that kind of move would justify their fears about your motives, would it not?”

“I honestly don’t care much about what subversives think, High Seat.” Jacob leaned back in his chair. “But I can see your point. I will try to avoid direct confrontations with them if I can manage it.”

Leon was still frowning at the tabletop. “I agree with you, Admiral, but I can’t help but feel we should do something. Millions of civilians died last time; can we really let that happen again? Especially given where they’ve decided to set up shop!” When Jacob gave him a questioning look, Leon reached over to the controls and shifted the projection still hovering above them. “Here is where San Marcos is located, Sir. Tell me what you see.”

An image of the border appeared, this time focused in close to the area around San Marcos and Tiredel. Both systems were close to the edge of Union territory. In fact, as Jacob leaned in to study the picture, San Marcos actually seemed much further beyond even the border systems usually avoided by major settlements due to constant Oduran raids. Then the details clicked and Jacob groaned. “It’s outside our usual defense perimeter. If the Odurans just decide to raid and take it…”

“Then the League will have a nice, secure forward base that could help their fleet strike all along our border.” Leon banished the image with a jab of his thumb. He threw up his hands in frustration. “It’s quite bad enough the enemy already has access to Telos; that’s given them more reach than they ever had before. If they take San Marcos, too…”

Jacob looked from Leon to Smithson. He tried to keep his voice even. “This is a very serious problem, High Seat. If you won’t have me use force, what are we doing to stabilize the situation?”

“Von Clarence and I are attempting to mitigate things on the diplomatic front.” Something of Jacob’s reaction must have showed on his face, for Smithson smiled. “My predecessor is something of a genius when it comes to speaking, Admiral, and I assure you he can be quite tactful when need be.”

“Then perhaps he might consider exercising those talents occasionally.” Jacob caught himself and flushed red.
“My apologies, High Seat. I did not mean any offense.”

Smithson chuckled. “I am aware you and Roderick von Clarence are not on the best of terms; it is not surprising, given how dedicated you both are—or, driven rather—wait maybe…is obstinate the word?” He waved away his indecision. “Suffice it to say, the both of you have strong personalities, and I would not expect a smooth working relationship from you.” Then the High Seat threw Jacob a level look. “I would, however, expect you would support von Clarence in any particular way you can. He is going to have a hard enough task already. If the shooting starts, I will not have him in the middle of things a second time.”

Jacob frowned; he did not quite understand what the High Seat meant by a “second time”, but his orders were clear enough. “Yes, Sir. I understand.”

Smithson studied his expression a moment longer, and then smiled in satisfaction. “Good, then. I hope to hear good news from that front shortly.” Then he slapped his hands together, as if brushing off invisible dust. “Now, aside from these small issues, is there anything else we should discuss, Admiral?”

Jacob was on the edge of a glib response when his communication stub chirped. He looked at Smithson, who gave a small nod of permission. Then he touched the stub. “Admiral Hull. What is it?”

“This is Captain Martino, sir. We have an incoming transmission from the
Kay
. The message header indicated you were the recipient.”

Jacob blinked in surprise, and then a creeping sense of unease swept over him.
Kay
was Isaac’s ship. It was also supposed to be on patrol near the edge of the Union, very near the Frontier. Near, in point of fact, to Tiredel and San Marcos. “Was there anything else in the header, Captain? Any indication of the content?”

“No, Sir.” Martino paused again. “The cruiser is showing damage, Sir. They’ve seen action.”

“Understood, Captain. I’ll take the message in my office.” Jacob looked over at Smithson, who was waiting with an arch expression. “It looks like things are already on the move, High Seat.”

Smithson grew grim. “You think the Odurans are already coming?”

Jacob shrugged, and then stood. “We shall see.”

Chapter Six

The
Eagle
’s main briefing room, like so much of the rest of the flagship, was large and well-equipped. It was designed to facilitate tactical demonstrations and strategic planning between the commanders of a large task force. For that end, the room was built as a large circle with rows of seats rising to the edges of the room. At the center was a gigantic projection unit that reminded Jacob of the simulation room where High Admiral Nivrosky had forced him to practice hopeless situations.

The similarity was not particularly helpful for Jacob’s mood.

“The enemy ships entered the system here, near the edge of Tiredel’s main orbit. By their course, I assume they meant to close with some of the merchantmen traveling through the system and interdict some of the relief supplies for the settlers there.” Isaac’s voice showed very little of his former cheer. He stood, lean and tall, near the projection unit. As the projection continued to display the
Kay
’s recording of the Tiredel system, Isaac continued his recitation in the same hard voice.

“At the moment of their arrival, the Odurans were unaware of our presence. The
Kay
and our escorts had come into the system to make some minor repairs before returning to our patrol assignment, and we had been orbiting behind the habitable planet. Our recon satellites alerted us to the Oduran incursion, and we were careful to stay under cover while they advanced.”

In the projection, Isaac’s cruiser maintained position, along with the quartet of frigates Jacob had assigned to the same patrol area. The Odurans, on the other hand, continued their course without a hint of alarm. It was a substantial force for a scouting mission; there were at least three destroyers, two frigates, and seven corvettes. Jacob watched them swing onto an intercept with a small convoy of bulky merchantmen, closing rapidly despite the civilians’ attempts to evade.

Isaac continued while the projection played out above. “I instructed
Hammond
,
Estrella
,
Garbon
, and
Wirek
to riftjump with us into combat range with the enemy squadron. We performed this jump just as the enemy began to deploy for an intercept with the convoy, who I ordered to remain in close formation to offer the Odurans a clear target.”

That sentence earned Isaac a sharp look from the other officers in the room; the idea of using civilians as bait was not something a responsible Celostian commanding officer would approve. Isaac seemed entirely ignorant of those stares, but Jacob’s discomfort grew acute as his former friend continued in the same impassive voice.

“Our jump was made without problems. We came out of it just in front of the main body of their squadron.”

In the projection,
Kay
and the other Celostian craft popped out of existence around Tiredel and appeared directly in front of the approaching Oduran craft. Jacob’s breath caught; Isaac’s ships were arranged at nearly point blank range. Isaac tapped a control on the projection unit and the image froze.

“At this point, the enemy was caught off guard.” Isaac paused when one of the other officers in the room snorted. Jacob had to restrain a similar reaction; apparently his friend had developed a talent for understatement along the way. Then Isaac gestured to the enemy formation. “They obviously didn't expect our presence in the system. Given the scheduled nature of Captain Kimonov’s withdrawal for resupply, the slight gap between their departure and return, and my squadron’s unexpected need for repairs, I anticipate this operation indicates enemy intelligence has found some source of information on our deployment schedules.”

Jacob’s eyebrows shot up, and a murmur of incredulity swept through the room. Isaac, without any hint of emotion, had just implied the Oduran League had access to high-level security information. Most commanders would have made such accusations with pointed fingers and yells. By comparison, Isaac didn’t even pause before he continued in those same iron-bound tones.

“My ships began the engagement by—”

“Pardon, Captain Bellworth.” The interruption came from an officer sitting on the second row of seats. Jacob recognized him as Captain Sitati, a known partisan of Admiral Yeseti. “You just mentioned a possible security breach in terms of our ship deployments. Do you have any other evidence of that possibility?”

Isaac turned to consider the man. The silence was sharp, though Isaac’s expression remained entirely void of emotion. After the discomfort caused by the pause had grown acute, Isaac responded. “I do not have any evidence I would choose to present at this time, Captain.”

Sitati’s nostrils flared, and he spoke in stiff, angry tones. “You made an entirely unfounded accusation involving my department, and you would choose to do so without evidence?”

“I did not say I did not have evidence, Captain. Simply that I do not choose to reveal any at this time.” Isaac’s tone showed no hint of retreat. “However, the implication of the events here is clear.
Unless, of course, you are willing to accept a rather large number of coincidences.”

The outrage on Sitati’s features was clear, despite the low lighting. “You have secret evidence then? It is your duty as an officer of the Celostian Navy to—”

“I understand clearly my responsibilities, Captain Sitati.” Isaac’s voice took on a dark, lethal tone Jacob had never heard from his friend before. “You will not question my execution of them, nor do you have the authority to reprimand me. I suggest you remember if you take it upon yourself to lecture me, you do so at your own risk.”

For a moment, Sitati’s face grew stricken and pale. Then his rage returned in full force. “I will not be threatened by some thuggish junior captain! You will apologize this—”

“Captains.” Jacob kept his voice even, trying hard not to show any sign of the frustration burning within him. Sitati jumped in surprise and stared at him; Isaac swiveled his head and watched him with a cold expression. “We are not here to debate intelligence issues or exchange insults. The purpose of this briefing was to learn about the engagement that occurred in Tiredel’s proximity. If there are any complaints of impropriety or speculations about intelligence leaks, they can be addressed afterwards. Am I understood?”

Sitati nodded stiffly before settling back in his seat. Isaac simply stared for a moment, and then turned back to the projection unit. He touched the control, and the images began to move again.

“We fired just after leaving jump.
Kay
had left the riftjump within range for our plasma lance, so I ordered the central destroyer targeted while my missile teams engaged the other two destroyers. The frigates elected to strike at their opposite numbers and overwhelm them before the Odurans could organize themselves.”

The events played out in the projection with terrifying speed. A blinding stream of superheated gas speared Isaac’s first target, gutting the Oduran destroyer before the enemy could fire a shot. Both of the remaining ships managed to lash out with one reflexive broadside with their railguns, and then
Kay
’s missile bays belched projectiles into space. Neither of the remaining destroyers managed to make much more than a frantic, swerving course change before the missiles detonated on their hulls, reducing them to shattered wrecks.

Isaac’s fellow Celostian warships made similar, sudden strikes, concentrating their fire on the smaller Oduran craft. One
Hatchet
-class ship spun away, crippled by multiple railgun strikes on its flank. The other tumbled through space in a useless, uncontrolled spin before it exploded in a gush of plasma released by a failing fusion reactor.

The sudden, massive casualties had thrown the Oduran squadron into chaos. Firing frantically, the nine Oduran corvettes swung out and away from the Celostian ships. Any chance of them attacking the merchantmen had now vanished; their maneuvers were now clearly an attempt to escape the trap.

A certain satisfaction crept into Isaac’s voice as he continued. “With their formation disrupted, I gave the order to eliminate the remaining targets.” In the projection, the frigates peeled off on pursuit vectors for the enemy while the
Kay
came about and started to chase after the largest batch of corvettes, a group of three ships that had wheeled around together. “The remainder of the engagement resulted in four of those corvettes being destroyed, while the balance of them fled the system in disarray.”

The three corvettes dove on the
Kay
, firing wildly as they closed. Jacob watched them, knowing those ships must have believed trying to gain distance would only make them targets for the cruiser’s missile armament. For two of the corvettes, the result was the same; the
Kay
’s massive railgun armament pelted one of them with enough fire to breach its hull, while the second fell to a slash from the plasma lance. The third battered the cruiser’s armor, damaging the
Kay
’s communication suite, before escaping with a flash of its dark energy sails.

With the Odurans gone, the projection came to another halt. Then it faded from the air while the room’s main lighting came up to replace the ethereal glow of the hologram. Issac
turned, his face still hard. “Are there any questions about the battle?”

Jacob glanced at Sitati, but the officer remained in his seat. He’d obviously made all the noise he intended to make today, though Jacob suspected the man would have official complaints lodged within minutes of leaving the briefing room.

Others, however, were not so content. A woman with red hair and a normally cheery expression rose from her seat. “Captain Bellworth, were there any transmissions sent to the Oduran squadron before combat began? Did you make any attempt to ascertain their purpose in the system?”

Isaac studied her for a moment. “No, Captain Birshaw. The tactical situation did not allow the chance for it.”

Birshaw grimaced. “Then are we sure this was actually a raid? For all we know, we could have just destroyed a peace envoy of some kind.”

Jacob opened his mouth, but Isaac gave him no chance to break in. “The possibility of that seems remote, Captain. The Odurans’ approach was clearly meant to intercept the convoy, instead of approaching the planet itself. They made no attempt to contact the civil authorities, nor any attempt to identify
themselves as anything but a hostile squadron. There wasn’t even any demand for surrender sent to the merchantmen, which may indicate they were there to destroy, and not capture, those vessels.”

Birshaw shook her head stubbornly. “Yet we have no conclusive proof this wasn’t some kind of peace offering. By refusing to contact them, you may have prevented the possibility of making peace with the League.”

Jacob spoke evenly before Isaac could launch into his own defense again. “Captain Birshaw, Captain Bellworth’s assessment of the situation is correct. We’ve already been receiving reports of raids along the border, and this squadron appears to match the profile of an attack squadron.”

She met his gaze across the room. “Those raids could be the work of other factions. As Banks and his group have proved, the leadership of the League could be reaching out to us without our knowledge. Otherwise we would not have been so blessed by their presence at Tiredel in the first place.” The tone of her words indicated she clearly did not appreciate the opportunity to have welcomed their former enemies in, whatever their newfound attitudes toward the Union.

Isaac spoke again, drawing their attention back to him. “The discussion is pointless, Captain. Conversations with the prisoners recovered after the battle indicate the enemy squadron was in fact meant to raid our border.” A rustle ran through the room, and Birshaw glared daggers at Isaac, though he continued without any noticeable discomfort. “Their orders were to scout Union systems for weak points and possible footholds, and then report back to the League on our military strength. The only result in declaring my presence in Tiredel would have been to warn them, possibly allowing the Odurans to defeat us and reach the convoy to destroy it.”

He paused and met Birshaw’s gaze with a deliberate, unyielding stare. “Of course, that would have resulted in fewer Oathbound on Tiredel due to starvation or worse on the planet, and there are some who would have been satisfied with that result. In my opinion, however, anyone who endorses a plan that results in dead Celostian Navy personnel, starving refugees, and more operational Oduran raiders is a damn fool.”

The murmur that swept the room was close to a whispered roar, and Birshaw rocked back on her feet as if she’d been physically struck. She hadn't been ready for such a strong retort, nor was she likely to find an adequate response, but Jacob decided not to give the briefing a chance to descend into anarchy quite yet. He spoke before the murmurs had fully subsided, raising his voice to be heard over the hushed voices.

“I believe we’ve heard enough, Captain Bellworth.” Jacob paused when Isaac returned his attention to him. Birshaw and the rest of the room did as well, leaving their murmured conversations to subside. He thought over his options now, considering what to say to end the meeting. Birshaw, for all her faults, was a member of the Independent party, and a close friend to Admiral Siddiqui. Yet all the same, as he met Isaac’s gaze, he knew his friend was correct. Jacob would have made the same call, and Isaac wasn’t going to be punished for being right.