Exodus: Empires at War: Book 2 (6 page)

The meeting went on for
another half hour, and Augustine found himself looking at the time.

“We will meet again
when I get back from the
Donut
, gentlemen and ladies,” he said, nodding
at a couple of Ministers to stay.

“May I have a moment of
your time, your Majesty?” asked Halbrook, trying to stay in the room.

“After my return,” said
Augustine, waving the man away.  The looks from a couple of Secret Service
agents got the man moving, and soon the room was empty except for the Ministers
of War, State and the holo image of the Minister of Security.

“So how does it look on
the Lasharan front?” he asked Lady Hannah.

“We should be able to
handle anything they throw at us,” answered the ex-Marine General.  “The only
problem is the damned fanatics might give us a bloody nose.  I don’t like to
involve civilians in war, but it takes two to follow that rule.”

“Just do the best you
can,” said the Emperor, nodding his head.  “I have your subordinates figuring
out the best way to spread the wealth so we don’t get caught flat footed in any
sector.”

“The Three Stooges,”
said Jana Hannah with a laugh that brought a smile from Augustine as he thought
about those real old comic routines that he too was a fan of.  The rest of the
people in the room, with the exception of the Imperial family, returned blank
looks.  “They’re good people,” she continued.  “I hope you don’t have them
doing something that gets them hung.”

“Not worried about
yourself, Duchess?” asked the Emperor.

“Not a bit,” she
replied.  “Haven’t met anyone yet in Parliament I couldn’t take one on one, or
even two to my one.  “But, do you really think we’re about to see our old
friends again.”

“The curse has been
acting up lately,” said the Emperor, his smile turning up to a frown.  “I don’t
get a clear vision of who is steamrolling us, but can you think of anyone else
in this neck of the woods.”

“Hell no, Majesty,”
said the woman who had been born a commoner and gained social rank through her
own meritorious service.  “And if you think it’s going to happen, that’s good
enough for me.”

“And ideas Prince
T’lisha?” asked the Emperor of the holo image of the large Phlistaran.  “What
does the IIA tell you?”

“Nothing definite, Majesty,”
rumbled the deep chested centauroid.  “Rumors and supposition.  But my agents
are hearing an awful lot of rumors and suppositions.  Enough to really worry
me.”

“Sector Four?”

“As near as can tell, Majesty,”
said the spymaster.  “Near as can tell.  No guarantees, but it looks like
something is going to come down hard on us in that region of the Empire.  And I
have something that might be of interest.”

The holo projector in
the middle of the table came to life, showing the image of a ship.  All present
in the room sucked in a breath with the exception of the big alien, who knew
what was coming.

“It looks a bit
different,” said Lady Hannah, her eyes widening.

“Not too unexpected
after two thousand years,” said Augustine, looking at the massive vessel, then
over at his master of spies.  “And where did this come from?”

“It was taken by a
battleship that encountered this vessel in sector four,” said the Phlistaran
with a toothy smile.  “In fact, your son’s ship, the
Sergiov
, was
involved in this encounter.”

“Leave it to Sean to
stick his nose into something like this,” said Augustine, his face warring with
trying to decide on a smile or a frown.

“The ship displayed
unfamiliar hyperdrive resonances,” continued Lord T’lisha.  “Not that we had
any comparisons to what they resonated when we last encountered them, seeing as
how we did not have hyperdrive at that point in our history.”

Ours
, thought the Emperor,
nodding as he looked at the image of the big alien. 
They are so integrated
into the Empire that they now think of we as being one whole, not humanity as
the conquerors.

“Why don’t we show this
to the Lords and Commons?” asked Jana Hannah, her eyes narrowing as she
continued to study the ship.  “This is proof positive that the Ca’cadasans are
on our doorstep.”

“Would you answer that,
Lord T’lisha,” said Augustine.

“Because the Lords and
Commons would never believe it,” said the big alien in a voice like distant
thunder.  “They would say that it was a trick of computer animation, making up
something that we want them to believe.”

“And I also would not
want this released to the public, ladies and gentlemen,” said Augustine, waving
a finger in the air.  “I don’t want a panic.  We need to move what we can while
we can without people clamoring for shipping to get them to nonexistent
safety.  But we know that the enemy is at the gates.  And it cannot be long
before the enemy comes out into the open with a massive attack.  Which brings
us to the next question.”

He turned toward the
Minister of State.  “And our known friends and enemies, Lord Garis?” asked the
Emperor.  “What can we expect of them?”

“From the enemies,” said
the cultured Lord.  “A stab in the back.  What else.  I know the Lasharans will
do whatever they can to discomfit us.  The Crakastans as well.  But I think we
can handle the Fenri and the Muxxar using diplomacy.  As far as allies, I know
we can count on the Margravi Hegemony and Klashakians Concordium through
anything, especially on the Lasharan front.”

“Which leaves the
Republic of Elysa,” said Lady Hannah.  “Always the wild card.”

“I think we can depend
on them as long as the Brakakak are in charge of the Republic,” said
Augustine.  “At least as long as High Lord Grarakakak is in charge.”

“You’ve met the High
Lord, have you not, Majesty,” said the Minster of State.

“I have, and I liked
him,” said the Emperor.  “He is an exceptional member of an admirable species. 
And I am sure he will see the need to unite against the threat that is coming. 
At least as soon as he sees it coming too.  But we still must depend on our own
resources to blunt the assault until we can come up with an overwhelming
response.”

Augustine looked at the
time in his link as the internal alarm sounded.  “I’m sorry, Ministers, but I
have an appointment on the wonder of the Galaxy.  When I return we will meet on
this matter again.”

The ministers all
acknowledged their leader as they left the room. 
They’re a good bunch
,
thought Augustine as he escorted his wife and family from the room into the
long corridor leading to the wormhole gate. 
Probably better than I deserve
. 
Then he thought of his Minister of the Exchequer and shook his head. 
Actually
they are karmic payment for having to put up with Halbrook and the Prime
Minister.

*     *     *

“Prime Minister,”
called out the voice from down the hall.  “Can I have a moment of your time?”

Shit,
thought Prime Minister
Count Mejoris Jeraviki as he looked back and saw the figure of Grand Duke
Carlos Maldonado, the head of the Brotherhood Party faction of the Lords. 
The
last shithead I want to see.

“
I was heading back to
my estate, your grace,” said the Count, flashing a politician’s smile.  “Can it
wait for tomorrow?”

“Just a moment, Prime
Minister,” said the silver haired man who was the Emperor’s champion in the Lords.

Well shit again,
thought the Count,
pushing open the outer door to his office and allowing the Grand Duke entry. 
I
can’t very well refuse him during business hours.
  The Count shook his head
and tried to calm his heart.  He had wanted to be at his home when the shit
went down, where he wouldn’t have to play act his reactions.

Jeraviki said a couple
of words to his private secretary and led the Grand Duke to his private
office.  He waved the man to a chair.  “Would you like a drink, your grace?”

“No thank you,” said
the elder Lord, waving it off.  “My physician says I need to go easy on the
alcohol.”

Too bad,
thought the Count, going
over the bar and making himself a strong one. 
It would do my heart good to
see you fall dead on the floor of the Lords.

“I asked the Duke of Coventry
to join us,” said the Grand Duke.  “I am interested in hearing his input as
well.”

“Input on what?” asked
the Prime Minister, taking a seat, his mouth suddenly dry.

The door opened and the
ebony face of Theo Streeter, the Duke of Coventry, looked in.

“Come in, Theo,” said
Maldonado, waving a hand.  “Do come in.”

“What is this about?”
asked Streeter, who everyone knew was one of Jeraviki’s staunchest allies.

“Have a seat, Theo,”
said the Grand Duke of New Spain.

This is my damned
office,
thought the Prime Minister, gritting his teeth. 
Who does he think he is?

“The Countess gave me a
rundown on your actions the other day, Mejoris,” said the Grand Duke, leaning
toward the prime minister.  “I shouldn’t have been surprised, but even I did
not think you could act like such a pig.”

“Why you bastard,” said
the prime minister.  “How dare you talk to me like that?  I am the leader of
the Lords.”

“For now,” said the Grand
Duke.  “For now.  But I might try to pull together a coalition to unseat you. 
And then you will be just another Count sitting in the Lords.”

“And who would you
propose take my place?” asked Jeraviki, raising an eyebrow.  “Yourself?”

“I would better serve
our Empire and our sovereign than you,” said the Grand Duke with a smile.  “And
I wouldn’t get your hopes too high, Theo.  I think we have just about had
enough of your xenophobe party.”

“You don’t have the
votes to unseat us,” growled the PM.

“Not at the moment,”
agreed the Grand Duke, nodding.  “But there are some disaffected conservatives
who could be convinced to jump ship, and the Countess has said she will bring
the Liberal Party in as well.  So you could soon find yourselves outvoted.  And
then there’s the matter of Consolidated Ether Paddles.  A company in which I
believe you two gentlemen own a combined fifty-four percent of the stock
holdings ”

“And what about it?”
asked Jeraviki, feeling sweat begin to bead on his forehead, despite the
perfect climate control.

“You sold what?” said
the Grand Duke, ignoring the PMs question.  “Ten billion Imperials in the last
two years.  Which put what in your pockets?”

“We made a standard
profit,” said Streeter, his voice angry but his face showing his anxiety.

“You would have, if you
have put the standard mix of Super-platinum in the grabber units.  But I think
you know as well as I that you only put in sixty percent of the super metal
that the specs called for.  So they last, what.  Ten years, instead of the
twenty years that the contract calls for.”

“You can’t prove that,”
yelled Streeter.

Oh, shut up
, thought Jeraviki,
knowing that this man would not have brought up such a charge if he couldn’t
prove it.  All one had to do was pull one of the grabbers that Consolidated
sold to the Fleet and subject it to a thorough analysis.  And they couldn’t
even blame it on the Super-metal plant the Super-platinum came out of.  That
plant sold to many other concerns, and there was no problem with their product
going into those manufactories.

“I still don’t
understand why you oppose Fleet expansion,” said the Grand Duke, shaking his
head.  “That doesn’t make sense to any of us.  There would be so much more to
make selling shoddy products at full price.  I suspect that something other
than making money is going on, but I can’t see what.  Well, if we keep digging
I’m sure we can find it, eventually.”

“And who is we?” asked
the PM, wiping the sweat from his face. 
They already know too much.  We
can’t afford for them to discover our true agenda.

“Oh, Lady Sergiov has
some of her best operatives on it,” said the Grand Duke with another smile. 
“And you both know how much of a bulldog Ekaterina is.”

Imperial Intelligence
Agency
,
thought Jeravika with a shudder.  And investigation into his affairs was
somewhat out of their jurisdiction, and he could use IIB to raise hell with
IIA.  But IIA would not give up an investigation that they were fully involved
in, and finding the dirt would bring forgiveness to that agency.

“We still can’t figure
out what those devices you attached to the grabbers are,” said the Grand Duke,
looking from man to man.

“What devices?” asked
Jeravika, feeling confused. 
We’re guilty as hell of watering down the
supermetals.  But nothing else.

“These devices,”
answered the Grand Duke, pulling a small holo projector from his coat pocket. 
The projector lit up and a small schematic sprung into existence in the air
above it.