Schism of Blood and Stone (The Starfield Theory Book 1) (9 page)

She was interrupted by two women who entered the command deck nearly arm in arm. Cassandra Teton-Sten and Kendra Mason were of a similar height and build and their features soft and delicate, but both hiding a strong interior. They were so close that Magnus' marriage to Kendra would only make their sisterhood official.

It would be a political marriage, as most between nobility were. Kendra was a Mason and heir to the family's considerable wealth and advanced military technology firms and the entire Aarhus Duchy. Uniting two of the most powerful families in the Commonwealth presented a power bloc that would rule for centuries to come. Before today, the brokering of the marriage was Salena's finest hour, but it would soon be eclipsed.

“Good morning, Mother,” Kendra said, kissing Salena sweetly on the cheek. She had started calling her 'mother' some months back. Salena did not object.

Kendra gave Magnus a peck on the cheek and he returned a thin smile. They hadn't seen each other much and her father sent her to Danvers so they could bond. The Sørensen coup interrupted her visit. Normally, Kendra's personality was bubbly enough to bring Magnus out of his occasional moods, but now he was only focused on the upcoming invasion. Salena did not want him treating her rudely.

Cassandra ignored both of them and leaned on the railing that overlooked the bustling command crew.

“Have you read over the latest defense reports?” Salena asked, bringing his attention back to the task.

Magnus nodded happily. He had read and memorized every operational detail probably down to the color scheme and personal crest of each Sørensen knight. “No more than fifty sections, mostly Sørensen, some Sten and a few mercenaries. The Royal Regiments are scattered here and there across the Commonwealth. Even Uncle Damien's host is barely combat effective. Thaddeus Sørensen will command the defense with whatever forces he can scrounge. Dietrich is too old and crippled to do anything more than watch.”

“I'd be more worried about our uncle,” Cassandra said resting her arms on the railing and sighing. She was the epitome of Teton beauty with her dark skin, almond eyes and straight, dark chocolate hair. She was just a year younger than Magnus and his rival in every respect. Her role as second child meant she was trained as a diplomat not a warrior. It was a hard resented truth that she occasionally voiced when upset. Salena figured, though, that with proper training she could probably rival Magnus on the battlefield as well.

“Lord Damien?” Magnus asked.

“No,” Cassandra said patiently. “Uncle Conrad and the Sten House Guard. They are superbly trained, but my contacts couldn't say for sure if he would intervene.”

“You think he'll stay up in his mountain fortress while we fight the Sørensens? Not likely,” Magnus said, giving his sister a look of doubt mixed with condescension.

Conrad Sten was Salena's uncle, brother to Haakon Sten, an aging, but capable fighter. For the last fifty years, Conrad led the Sten House Guard, a dozen sections of the nation's best warriors. Officially, they were bodyguards made up of individuals who were combat veterans, but they were not a front line unit. Besides being the Archduke's bodyguards, they were a last defense if Magdeborg was ever invaded.

Despite their skill, they remained secluded in their mountain holdfast. When Archduke Haakon disappeared, Conrad withdrew from politics and public life into his self-imposed exile. The Guard went with him. He never shared good relations with his nephew Peter and only sent subordinates to perform official duties. By extension, it was likely he did not share good relations with the Sørensens either and blamed them for Haakon's misfortune. Not even Dmitri Filipov, Salena's intelligence expert, could say for sure if they would involve themselves in the invasion. He was a wild card.

Cassandra flickered her gaze over the Teton fleet sitting in orbit, noting its size and composition. “You are so much like Mother, Magnus,” she teased.

Kendra chuckled, her sweet voice carrying through the command deck. “Magnus paid attention during all his lessons. The Duchess is not a bad figure to emulate.”

“Magnus would do better with some subtlety. With a force this size you risk doing serious damage to the city,” Cassandra said. “The people need to see House Teton as saviors, not destroyers.”

“The people must know the Sørensens usurped the throne,” Magnus said. “After centuries of loyal service they've stabbed our house in the back and murdered our Archduke. The usurpers must die and we shall be their executioners.

“And he has a touch of the theatrical that he got from his father,” Salena said with a grin.

“A little theater is good for the future Archduke of Magdeborg I think,” Kendra added. “Damien is a crusty, emotionless robot. He has no flair, nothing that captures the attention of the people. My love, you are the dashing young general who will take Magdeborg by storm. The people will love you.”

“I don't want them to love me, I need them to fear me,” Magnus said.

“Appearances are everything,” Cassandra argued quickly, not willing to concede the point. “You're too quick to go to extremes, Mag. The will of the people matters. They are afraid and need guidance and stability and you underestimate the power of the Azuren over the commoners. If we cannot provide those basic needs the Azuren might decide they can do so better. We risk turning the Commonwealth into a client state if this does not go over smoothly.”

“The people understand power,” Magnus lectured. “Our troops don't need subtlety, they have force of arms to accomplish their goals. If that's how we have to maintain control then so be it.”

“Look, I just think we need to be careful about this. Conrad shouldn't be underestimated and neither should the Sørensens,” Cassandra persisted.

“Or Damien,” Salena added.

Both her children looked at her.

“Don't disregard your uncle, either,” she cautioned. “You think he'll be quiet while we attack Magdeborg? You'd better believe he has something in mind. We may have the jump on him, but he will not let this go unnoticed. In this case, Magnus is correct. We need to move swiftly, outmaneuver your uncle and establish ourselves firmly before Damien can put any of his plans into action. Initiative is the key.”

“But his armies are on the Dominion border. If he moves, the Dominion will strike and overrun the entire Goteborg Duchy. There's nothing he can do,” Magnus said with a confident smirk. “He's trapped.”

Salena hesitated in responding.
Hubris has always been your weakness, my son, you're a fool if you think Damien has ever considered himself trapped. This might be a lesson he needs to learn on his own.

“Damien's reach and influence is very real. Don't forget,” Cassandra said lowering her voice, “His time on the border has given him many allies. A lot of houses owe their very existence to him.”

“And they're still on the border, light years away. What are they going to do from there?”

“He has other allies too, houses nearer to Magdeborg who are on good terms with the border houses. I've heard he also has contacts with Starfield Theorists and other factions who have the reach to hit us,” Cassandra said.

Magnus' prosthetic arm clenched seemingly of its own accord. “They do not have the power we have at our disposal-”

“There are other measures of power beyond military means,” Cassandra insisted. “You can't afford to ignore other ways-

“Enough!” Magnus shouted, swiping his real hand through the air, effectively ending the conversation.

Kendra took a startled step back and Cassandra rolled her eyes and fell into silence. Salena frowned as she watched her children argue. Magnus was easily flustered. Though he was generally clear thinking and a capable commander, he had a tendency to go cold when met with his match in wits or battle. Cassandra's combative personality and fearlessness provided Magnus with a natural rivalry that spurred him to improve himself lest he be outdone. That or angrily shut out all opposition.
Though Cassandra ought not to be pushing him just hours before he would go into combat,
Salena silently chastised.
I do not need my only son's head clouded by doubt when fighting for his life
.

“I have to prepare the attack,” Magnus said. “Cassandra, Mother,” he said with a slight bow. “My love,” he added, touching Kendra's arm. Magnus turned quickly and headed for the door.

“That one has a lot of learning to do,” Cassandra muttered.

Salena shushed her. “Magnus is your superior. You'd best remember not to challenge him in front of his men. You are brilliant, my love, but you must temper it with patience. You'll never reach Magnus by confronting him. Perhaps you should learn some subtlety of your own.”

Cassandra closed her eyes, acknowledging the rebuke, and sighed again. “Sometimes I prefer it were me that was born first.”

Salena laughed genuinely. “Honey, you aren't the only younger sibling to feel sidelined by tradition.” Salena gestured at herself. “Your time will come. Sometimes you just have to let events play out as they will. Now, you have your own role to play here. Keep an eye out for any transmissions from Conrad. He may he wondering why we're here. Make sure he understands the situation and offer some ways in which he can help us make this transition as easy as possible. Go make sure things are ready for us on the ground. I don't want any surprises as Magnus enters the city.”

“Yes, Mother,” she said quietly, then offered her elbow to Kendra an they departed in a flurry of discussion.

Salena shook her head slowly and turned back to the holotank. Several more ships had jumped through, but the going was slow. She wondered if Thessilony was intentionally delaying the process to spite her. She would not put it past him.

Alos questioning her intentions added to her concerns. He was the Supreme Legate of Magdeborg. If he wanted to, he could warn the Sørensens in advance, putting the entire attack in jeopardy.

Magnus had been extremely careful in his preparations, but details on the Sørensen defensive fleets were sketchy. They would be on alert and likely had the militias mobilized. In any case, they were preparing to bury one Archduke and crown another and there would be a large number of nobles and other aristocrats on the planet. Security would be tighter, guards more watchful.

The real problem was landing military forces on the surface of the planet before the Sørensens could mobilize their full strength. Cassandra's spies and fifth columnists indicated that the Sørensens were not prepared to defend the planet from an invasion. They were busy preparing Peter's funeral and the coronation which meant a focus on protecting people, not assets. It made them vulnerable.

There were still questions though. If the Sørensens were orchestrating a coup, why hadn't they taken better measures to defend themselves? Why hadn't they hired more mercenaries? Why weren't more militias called up in case of violence?

At first she had believed they were being as surreptitious as possible as to not attract attention, but the lack of any sort of defensive preparation was concerning. It made her suspect some sort of trap. Perhaps they had allies among the other noble houses. The Stens had their enemies of course. Perhaps the Sørensens had their co-conspirators. So far, it appeared as though the Sørensens were acting alone. Cassandra had a good diplomatic network in place on Magdeborg that fed her information so Salena was confident that the information was accurate.

But a wise commander never relies on only one source,
she reminded herself.

“Good morning, Duchess,” said a voice so close so abruptly that it startled her from her thoughts.

Dmitri Filipov, the stunted spy, stood a few meters away, blending in with the environment without actually doing anything. Somehow he'd managed to get his hands on a Teton navy uniform, cleanly pressed and presentable, but the man had no military training. Dmitri was unshaven and his hair had grown long and unruly, probably the remnants of his subterfuge on Magdeborg. Dmitri was short, barely a meter a half tall and of slender build and dark complexion. He had an incredible ability to be forgotten, to be dismissed as a nobody, unremarked and unremembered. Now that she thought of it, she couldn't have been sure he hadn't been here during her conversations with her children. While such a distinction might be crushing to any with a desire to be a functioning member of a society, it was ideal for what purposes Salena needed him for.

Dmitri had served several different roles in Salena's service ranging from political adviser to spy. His skills were his incredible ability to recall fine details, none of which he ever seemed to forget. He was intelligent, dedicated and completely twisted. There were times when even Salena feared his capabilities. Once she had sent him to the Lolland stargate to gather information about a new Azuren legate. He returned with the information and even the legate's favorite robes.

“Beautiful thing, the fleets of the Great States,” Dmitri said. “So much human effort, so much metal, power, focused in a single point like the great plumage of the nobility. Simply amazing.”

“You've always fascinated me, Dmitri,” she said. “You must have been some sort of failed Azuren experiment.”

“I'm sorry, Lady, I do not understand,” he said.

“You're a bad liar and you also have no capacity for modesty so you know damn well about what I'm talking about.”

“Is it my ability to learn the truth even when I am fed only lies? My ability to feel no pain? No remorse? No silly human emotions at all?” Dmitri asked shoving his hands in his pockets and leaning against the bulkhead.