Lacuna: The Spectre of Oblivion (13 page)

“Sorry,” she said, “it’s…”

Tai’s death, the death of the Velsharn colonists, now the death of untold Toralii servicemen at the hands of Ben’s terrible power. Her legacy seemed to be slaughter and devastation, to bury her friends and enemies alike. Now she had literal blood on her hands, a metaphorical stain turned very literal.

“It’s nothing.”

Act II

Chapter V

“Game Plan”

*****

Cerberus Station

The next morning

The TFR
Beijing
appeared in the Mars-Phobos Lagrange point with a flash of light and the subtle rumble of the resultant shockwave as it passed over the station, a gentle shaking that faded quickly. Liao saw her old ship through the observation portal for the first time in nearly a year, a familiar and welcoming sight that made her heart soar.

The ship was just as she’d left it—long and thin and powerful, lined with fins to dissipate heat and dotted with missile launch tubes. It was widest at the rear and came to a narrow, thin point like an arrowhead, its dull metal finish glinting slightly as the faint light of the station’s floodlights illuminated it.

Liao was wearing her own uniform again, something that pleased her immensely. It felt comfortable and welcome, a return to the life that she had fought so hard to maintain. No, she was not the captain now, but in her mind, the
Beijing
would always be her ship.

She waited at the docking port for what seemed like an eternity before the seal locked and pressurised, making entry to the ship possible. She knew from experience that the crew would be eager to disembark even for a short while. She stood by in an adjacent corridor as the first wave of uniformed crew departed, laughing and joking with each other. She didn’t want to be recognised, didn’t want to make a scene.

None of them saw her, but as she prepared to step out and move aboard the ship, a stretcher supporting a wounded crewman was gingerly carried out of the airlock. The bearers held an IV bag aloft, walking past her with slow, careful steps. The station had no real medical facilities, so she knew they must be unloading him for transport to Mars, or even Earth. She caught a look at the wounded man’s face; it wasn’t one she recognised, and neither were any of the stretcher bearers. This would be a common sight, she mused, as the team walked down the corridor and turned towards the station’s tiny infirmary. Unknown crew, strangers aboard her vessel.

[“Commander Liao?”]

A voice startled her. Liao turned around, her face lighting up. “Saara!”

The Toralii woman stepped forward and wrapped her up in a tight, bone-crushing hug.

“Ow, ow, ow!”

[“My apologies, Commander.”] Saara released her but Liao still held on, squeezing the Toralii woman around her upper chest.

“It’s quite okay, really. I didn’t need those ribs anyway.” She smiled, stepping back. “What the hell are you doing here? James said you were aboard the
Tehran.
”

[“I was, but of course when I heard you were here, I requested a brief leave of absence to visit you.”] She smiled a wide, toothy smile. [“Given the disposition of the Commanding Officer, it was unsurprising that this request was granted. Besides, we were in the neighbourhood.”]

Liao smiled. “It’s wonderful to see you again.”

[“And I you, Captain. Thank you for showing me Earth… I have many fond memories of your planet, and I wish to return as soon as I am able.”]

The thought pleased her. “Great. Let’s go to Hong Kong next, okay?”

[“I am unfamiliar with that location.”]

“You’ll love it. I promise.” Liao couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “So the
Tehran
’s here, huh? All three original Pillars are together again… that’ll be quite the sight.”

[“It would appear so. Bear in mind, though, that we have had combined operations since you left.”]

At the mention of that, Liao felt a faint feeling of regret in her gut. Saara’s face shifted subtly, and Liao wondered if she’d picked up on her reaction, a suspicion confirmed when the topic was swiftly changed.

[“And the
Madrid
will be joining us within a day.”]

Liao forced her tone to remain lighthearted. “Good. We can best project our strength when we’re together.”

Saara nodded eagerly. [“Sound military doctrine, Commander.”] Her eyes widened. [“I was almost forgetful. Commander, Captains Knight, Harandi, and Grégoire request your presence. The TFR
Washington
has been launched from its berth under the command of Captain Anderson, and after it’s undertaken its first jump, it will be moving to the Cerberus Station with the
Madrid
.”]

Liao frowned. “They’re putting the
Washington
into action without a shakedown cruise?”

Every newly launched Pillar of the Earth had undertaken a shakedown cruise, a first journey via reactionless drive, typically out to Jupiter or Venus and back. This was seen as a good opportunity to find and solve problems with the incredibly complex machines before they were to see actual combat.

Saara’s face belied her concern, too. [“Grégoire explained to me that it is the opinion of Fleet Command that the
Triumph
class vessels are now a proven platform and ready for mass production. Protocol now dictates that the shakedown cruises for current and future vessels be curtailed to one day. Construction and material issues have delayed the
Moscow
and the
Tripoli
from being able to launch with the
Washington
, regrettably, so they are still a month away.”]

“Great. Don’t they remember all the problems the
Sydney
had in the beginning?”

[“Evidently not. Additionally, your nation of Libya’s financial problems necessitated a large grant from the South Korean government. They’re petitioning to have the ship renamed the
Seoul.
Meanwhile, the Brazilians, who also contributed significantly to Libya’s assistance, wish the vessel to be christened the
Brasília
. As you Humans say, everything is political.”]

Liao opened her mouth to say something but Saara’s eyes lifted, looking over Laio’s shoulder. She followed Saara’s gaze until her eyes fell upon Summer Rowe.

“Hey, Cappy!” The fiery redhead skipped forward, grinning impishly. “Ya’ made it!”

Liao shook her head at Rowe’s exuberance. “Well, look who’s still not locked up in an insane asylum yet.”

“Hah. Are you fucking kidding me? Everyone
else
is the crazy one. I’m totally sane.”

“I’m afraid it’s relative.” Liao couldn’t help but feel that Summer’s bubbly, energetic personality was infectious after having been without it for so long. “But anyway, it’s great to see you again, but I’m not the captain anymore.”

Summer blew out a loud raspberry. “Yeah, well, Commodore Wrong is a shit-eating shithead. They need to give that crotchety old fuck the boot and get you back in command, I reckon.”

Liao grimaced slightly, glancing around to make sure nobody had overheard. “Commodore
Vong
is a decent Commanding Officer,” she said, “based on what I hear. I have confidence in his abilities.”

[“I, too, preferred you in command,”] offered Saara, [“and I think your style is much more agreeable than his.”]

“And I appreciate that. But for the foreseeable future, the
Beijing
is under the command of Commodore Vong, and that’s all there is to say about it.”

Rowe rolled her eyes in an exaggerated gesture, causing guffaws from Saara.

Liao made little ‘tsk tsk’ noises at them both. “What, are you two six years old?”

“Mentally? About fourteen.” Rowe gave a wide, cheesy smile. “Certified, desensitised, disaffected youth.”

“You’re 28.”

Summer looked offended. “That’s still young!”

“Try joining a youth group and see what they say.” Liao gave her a clap on the shoulder. “Anyway. Let’s go see the captains, shall we?”

Summer gave her a strange look, half concerned, half elated. “You’re acting really weird.”

Liao blinked in surprise. “What? No I’m not.”

“Yes, you are.” Rowe leaned in towards her, almost accusingly. “You’re… you’re a lot less of a stick-up-your-arse, super-boring captain now. Maybe taking some time off for the first time in your work-a-holic life has done you some good!”

“I’m the same person I always was, Summer. For what it’s worth, though,
you
haven’t changed a bit.”

“Hah, and I hope I never do.” Rowe clapped her hands eagerly. “So, you want a tour of the ship?”

Liao gave her a sceptical leer. “Why? What have you changed about it?”

“Oooh, well, wouldn’t you like to know.”

Liao put her hands on her hips. “Summer, if you’ve fucked with my ship while I was away, I am going to destroy you.”

[“Aside from the newly installed, networked, tactical IFF computer, nothing of significance has been altered by Summer, Commander Liao. I promise you that.”]

Rowe stuck out her tongue at Saara. “Spoilsport.”

*****

Conference Room

Cerberus Station

Presumably because she had no actual ship to command and very little actual work to do, Liao was the first to arrive.

The conference room, only hours ago packed full of Toralii, marines, guards and observers, was now conspicuously empty. Liao spent a moment studying the seat where Avaran had sat and the occasional strand of fur left behind on the rear of the seat. It seemed impossible to believe that one so mighty had come to this room practically begging for an audience, ready to negotiate a cease fire. For all her victories and hard work, she had not accomplished anything so major in so little time.

Perhaps they didn’t need her after all.

She reminded herself that Avaran didn’t even know about the
Rubens
and either knew nothing of what the other ships had been up to during her time away or didn’t care. Yet the attack on Kor’Vakkar, the destruction of Cenar, even the events at Velsharn, these things were all known to him. Although she had not done these things alone, her ship and her command had been the driving force behind them. Her involvement was intertwined with every part of those events to the point where, if one were to remove her, they would never have taken place at all.

Perhaps they
did
need her after all.

The hatchway swung open with a faint groan. A tall, older Chinese man with surprisingly fair skin and the shadow of a beard and moustache across his face stepped into the room. His epaulets gave his rank as a Commodore, and Liao spent a moment sizing him up.

“Commodore Vong, I presume?”

The man extended a hand, respectfully inclining his head. “Commander Liao. It is a pleasure to finally meet you in person.” His tone was polite and formal, but Liao sensed a subtle underlying coldness about it and she doubted the sincerity of his words.

Still, she gave him a firm handshake. It wouldn’t be the first time her reputation had preceded her. “Likewise. I hope you’re taking good care of the
Beijing
, sir.”

Vong moved around to the head of the table, easing himself into a seat. “She’s in good hands, Commander. Don’t worry about that.” He pulled a small notepad out of one of his pockets and snapped off a pen clipped onto the side. “We’ve enjoyed a modest amount of success working alongside the
Rubens
to harass Toralii shipping lanes and the like.”

Liao felt a slight pang of annoyance at the use of the word
she
, but by her own logic, she could not deny the logic behind its use. Liao had claimed, somewhat as a matter of pride, that although tradition dictated that a ship was always a woman, this was only because the captain was married to the job. When it came to the
Beijing
and its female captain, of course, that would make the ship a man.

But she was no longer in command, and to argue this fairly minor quibble would be inappropriate. She inclined her head. “Warbringer Avaran indicated that the shipping harassment was of little consequence to him, sir.”

“Warbringer Avaran is entitled to his opinion, but to be frank, Commander, the opinions of Toralii mean little to me.”

Liao wondered for a moment if that opinion extended to Saara. “Well, in any event, he didn’t seem to care that we were doing it, sir. Are there any plans to alter the
Beijing
’s current area of operations?”

Vong jotted a few notes down on his pad, and Liao tried to read the characters upside down. “After the investigation of Belthas IV has been completed, the
Beijing
will return to assaulting the Toralii supply network. As the least capable of the four existing Pillars, this is a job well suited for it.”