Shadow of the Blue Ring (9 page)

“Very well, speak your terms.”

“When I lead the revolution against the Vulian occupation six years ago I had a fantastic team alongside me,” said James, “if I am to undertake this mission now, I want my old team back together. If you’re going to send me into an uncharted region of space against an unknown aggressor, I want the very best at my side. I want people I can trust.”

“You wanted this James,” Jamerson reminded him, “you have been saying for months now that you want a more exciting and more daring mission rather than your conventional duty. Here is your chance, here is what you have been wanting for all this time. A mission worthy of captain James Tavarez.”

He supposed Jamerson had a point, he had been wanting something interesting to happen for a while now. It would certainly break the monotony of patrol duty that he had been suffering for so long. Isha would not like it at all though, this was supposed to be their time alone where they could finally be a family rather than just a captain and first officer team who happened to be married.

“Admiral Jamerson is correct,” said Artennes, “and on the subject of your old team, I am assured that you already have some of the best that Earth has to offer currently serving on your ship right now. You have an able and willing crew ready to serve so I see no reason why you need your old crew back. Besides, they have all moved on with their own lives now and have their own commitments to see to.”

“My crew is excellent,” James agreed, “but back in those days we were more than just a crew, we were a team and we worked well together in an impossible situation and came out of it on top. I would like them back at my side if I am to undertake your mission. I can assure you, I will need them there at my side if this mission will be as dangerous as you are making it out to be.”

“James your old crew has moved on,” Artennes reminded him, “Marek Juarez did not even see fit to attend the party tonight I am reliably informed, General Ravenn has retired and can no longer serve with you, Jaiden Kosare has a commitment to the archives that she cannot easily break…”

“I will go,” Ansare piped up, “if it is acceptable then I will offer my services to the mission. I may not be your choice to lead this mission, Lord Artennes, but I am happy to serve under captain Tavarez once again if it means getting to the bottom of this threat against my people.”

The Naisan delegation went into conversation for a few seconds, clearly considering his proposal. James would be glad of Ansare’s company on the mission, he was a very able officer. Finally they spoke up.

“We accept your request,” said the Naisan councillor, “we will allow you transfer to the Earth Nations fleet under the command of captain James Tavarez until the situation in the Blue Ring sector is resolved. We trust you to do whatever it takes to ensure the safety of Naisus out there.”

“Councillor, you know as well as I do that I would die to protect my people,” Ansare said proudly, “you have my word that I will do everything in my power to ensure that these attacks are brought to a stop and that we do not lose any more people.”

“I will come too,” said Tasos, who had not spoken a word since coming into the council chambers, “I’ve been wanting to get back out there ever since the end of the revolution.”

“You will do no such thing, Tasos!” Artennes said angrily, breaking his air of calm for the first time in the meeting, “I almost lost you once, I will not risk it again. I will not run the risk of the Artennes bloodline coming to an end just so you can try to prove yourself as some kind of alliance hero.”

“Father, that isn’t fair!” yelled Tasos, “I have just as much right to go as anyone else.”

“You will not go and that is final!” Artennes snapped, “I am not about to lose my only son and heir. You have to understand the responsibility that comes with your position, the responsibility to your people. If you wind up dead then who will lead us once I am gone? If you have been studying your history properly, you will remember what happened on Tolis the last time our people were not under the rule of an Artennes. It will not happen again”

“What sort of a leader turns down this kind of mission!?” Tasos demanded, “surely if I am to win over the people of Tolis I must be seen as someone who is brave and who does not step away from such a threat.”

“We will discuss this later on in private,” Artennes dismissed him, “back to more important matters, captain Tavarez, who else would you ask to join you on your mission?”

“I want my old friends back,” James replied, “if it is acceptable I would like both Loca Morelli and Kasha Saavoy on the team. If possible I would also like Jaiden Kosare and Kaydenne Melina on the team too.”

“Miss Melina will likely join the mission without much provocation, I imagine she and your wife will be looking for an opportunity to catch up,” said Artennes, “as for Saavoy though, I cannot imagine the Malorian government will be keen to let him go, not with the difficulties that the people of Malorii are having to deal with right now. Does the Malorian delegation have anything to say on this matter?”

“Lord Artennes, it is the decision of this delegation that Saavoy be allowed to choose for himself regarding this mission,” said the Malorian councillor, “Saavoy is one of the most capable commanders and strategists in the alliance and we believe his influence could be exactly what a mission like this needs. This situation threatens every race in the alliance and without a resolution, things could fall apart very quickly.”

“I appreciate is councillor,” said James.

“Just make sure you bring him back to us in one piece if he does decide to go with you,” the councillor said sternly, “if we lose Saavoy, we lose one of the greatest war heroes our race has had in it’s history. Without him, our people will have no one to look up to.”

“I will make sure we all come back alive, I give you my word,” James assured him before turning to the Voronian councillor, “what about Loca Morelli, would she be able to join me on this one?”

“Morelli does not fall within any military based organisation, nor does she answer to this council, she works independently,” said the rather tough looking Voronian councillor, “if you wish her to join you then you simply need to ask and hope that her father does not interfere with the move.”

“I think you will have more trouble trying to convince Jaiden Kosare to join you for this one,” the Juyoan councillor added, “remember, she left her own homeworld to join the archives to begin a life of peace and of reform. Tempting her to adopt her violent ways once more could have unpredictable consequences.”

“I will talk to her,” said James, “I’m sure she will see the need to help us out on this one.”

James would be glad to have members of the old team with him once more, assuming they all wanted to join the mission. It was a shame that he couldn’t have them all back but with the events of the last six years, not all of them would be able to take part in such missions, their people needing them back home. Still, mixed with the talented crew of the Centaur, it would be a very capable group, perfectly capable of carrying out this rather dangerous mission.

“Very well, it is decided then,” said Artennes, “captain Tavarez, you will take a crew and travel into the Blue Ring sector. You are free to use whatever means necessary to uncover the truth and neutralise any threats you may come across. Find out what happened to the Churians, the Naisans and the Tolians who have been lost out there in the Blue Ring sector and find out who or what is threatening the safety of our alliance.”

“And what of my people?” Kyrakian asked. He had been so quiet that James had almost forgotten he was still there.

“If it helps keep the peace, I will look into the disappearances of the Vulian ships too,” said James, “we are both being targeted by the same enemy here so it is only natural we should be on the same side.”

“Maybe,” said Kyrakian, “but just because we are no longer enemies, it does not make us friends. We would all do well to remember that. Still, we have ourselves an accord, I will return to Vulia and inform the emperor of the situation. Hopefully we can avoid any conflicts in the future.”

Kyrakian turned and left the rest of them to it. Finally, the Vulians had produced an executor that James could deem as almost respectable. They had certainly raised their standards since the days of war criminals such as Sarkisian and Vahiman.

“As for the rest of you…” Artennes continued, “. . . I believe the party in Lahara will still be in it’s full flow. You may return there to enjoy the rest of your night and to gather up your prospective team members. The admirals of the Earth Nations Fleet are preparing for the mission as we speak. They will meet you in orbit shortly. This meeting is now dismissed.”

The groups began to break away from the central table, the diplomats and councillors made for the exits, their work clearly done. James took the others and followed out along to the hangar bay.

“So it looks like this one is all up to you,” Tasos sighed, “I wish I could join you on this one but my father isn’t going to have it, I’ll have to back sit and watch from here.”

“It’s not your fault,” James assured him, “I’m sure your father is just trying to protect you, he doesn’t want to put you in harms way again.”

“But it doesn’t feel right,” Tasos sounded very indignant about the way his father had spoken to him in front of the entire assembled council, “if I’m to be the leader that my people will need me to be, this is the sort of thing I need to be doing.”

“What you need to be doing is following your fathers example,” James told him, “he’s done an excellent job reforming the council, almost no other leader could have done that in the situation we were in after the war. You don’t want to be running off on missions like this when your people need you here out of harms way.”

“I’m inclined to agree,” said Ansare, “this is a mission that needs people of action. We don’t want people being caught up this who shouldn’t be. We had far too much of that last time, we shouldn’t be doing it again.”

James did get the idea that Tasos may have been trying to impress his people in the wrong way. If he was seen racing off into danger at every opportunity then it wouldn’t set him out as a strong leader. He was more like a young heir with his head in the stars. It was best for him to sit it out and from the look on Tasos’s face, he knew it.

“Suppose you’re right,” Tasos sighed, “just watch yourselves out there when you go, we have no idea what could be behind the disappearances, it could quite easily take you down too.”

James had to admit that Tasos was right, the Centaur was not the most powerful ship in the Earth Nations fleet and anything that could take down a Tolian battlecruiser could take down his own ship just as easily. He would have loved to have borrowed one of the triumvirate ships for the mission but the admirals would never allow it, those ships were the front-line defence of Earth and the property of the admirals alone. Other than that, the fleet did not have any other ships with the power this mission would need. Even the Athena, the next most powerful ship in the fleet was only just on a par with a Tolian warship. Unless the admirals had something planned that he did not yet know about, the Centaur would have to do for the mission.

“Isha is just going to love this,” James sighed, thinking of the times the two of them could have been sharing in this moment, “this was to be out first true holiday together since our wedding and it’s been cut short again.”

“It is the same for my wife and I,” said Ansare, “but it is all part of serving in the fleet, family time is hard to come by for people in our position. You are lucky that you at least have your wife serving alongside you. I am parted from mine all too often.”

James didn’t think he could be parted from Isha for such long periods in the same way as Ansare and his wife, it would put a terrible strain on their relationship. As soon as the mission was over, James would be confronting Jamerson once more and demanding that he get his just rewards for taking on this mission. If the mission was as dangerous as Artennes made it out to be, the entire alliance would owe him one, not just the admirals back on Earth. He just hoped that he would be able to return to see his wishes come true.

Chapter
Four

Th
e
Reunion

The party was still in it’s full flow by the time James and Ansare returned to the grand hall of Lahara. A few guests were drifting away but the majority of them were still inside and were still in fully party mode. James trudged up the steps and in through the magnificent doorway, back among the crowds of partygoers still inside.

“I had better find Anaya and tell her of the situation,” said Ansare, “I will be back to find you and the others shortly.”

Ansare vanished into the crowd leaving James to track down the rest of the team. It did not take him long though, Isha and Melina were waiting for him at one of the side tables near the entrance with both Morelli and Saavoy at the next table along, both seemingly having sorted out their differences. It could have just been the effects of the alcohol though, they both looked as if they had consumed a fair amount over the course of the night.

“That was quick,” Isha was quick to note, “what did the council want? Is it something bad?”

“I’m afraid the party’s over for us,” James said with a serious tone to his voice and he proceeded to relive the story of his meeting with the council to the others. The looks on their faces told him that they were not in the least bit surprised by any of it.

“I knew there was more to this than they were letting on,” said Saavoy, “ships don’t just go missing in uncharted regions for no reason. I’m surprised you agreed to look into the Vulian disappearances though, I would personally have pointed any new enemy in their direction and told them to fire away.”

“Well we need to at least try and keep the peace for now,” said James, “they’ve given me the mission and if it means having to co-operate with them, I’ll do what I must. In the meantime, all of the old team has been cleared to return for the mission. This is a situation that could affect every race in the alliance so we need the very best people that we have on it.”

“I don’t know James…” Saavoy said awkwardly, “. . . I wont deny that this mission sounds a little perilous. I was hoping I had seen the last of these kinds of missions. Rushing headlong into an uncharted region against an unknown enemy isn’t exactly how I planned to spend my week off.”

“Funny, I wouldn’t think of you as being the sort to run from a potential fight,” said Isha, “look at the battles you’ve won in your life, what do you have to be afraid of?”

“it’s not a case of being afraid, Isha,” said Saavoy, “it’s a case of having had a little too much violence and peril in my life. There is only so much a guy can take of near death experiences in one lifetime.”

“Well I think it sounds exciting,” said Morelli, “a trip out into the unknown against impossible odds and unknown enemies. It would be just like old times again.”

“Exciting?” Said Saavoy, “even with the element of almost certain death to the mission.”

“Ok, well I suppose the element of certain death does take a bit of the gloss away from it,” said Morelli, “but still, you can count me in for this one. Besides, you might need some of my expertise out there should you come across any interesting old tech.”

“I suppose it does sound a little exciting,” said Saavoy, “but still…”

“Oh don’t be such a wimp,” Morelli snapped at him, “you need to man up and do what you do best. If you don’t have the balls to take on this mission, how do you expect to convince me to give you another chance?”

“What makes you think I want to…”

But Morelli’s familiar glare said everything for her. Saavoy seemed resigned to the fact he was coming whether he liked it or not.

“I’m glad to see that you two have sorted out your differences now,” James noted the slightly calmer atmosphere between the two of them this time, “I trust you’re both over whatever issues you had?”

“Yeah, it took a while but I think she’s Ok with me now,” said Saavoy, “it just needed a few drinks and a visit to one of the private rooms to settle things down.”

“Funny what a bit of alcohol can do for you huh?” Melina chuckled, “one minute they’re at each other’s throats, next thing we know they’re going at each other’s…”

“. . . What she means to say is that you wont have to worry about any of our personal issues getting in the way of the mission,” Saavoy quickly interjected, “especially as it looks like my decision has been made for me in terms of joining you all out there. Don’t say I didn’t warn you if this things does actually turn out to be a certain death mission though.”

“Certain death mission!?”

Julio had just appeared out of nowhere having seemingly overheard their conversation, Danero following behind. Just like his father, Julio seemed attracted to hopeless causes too, when he wasn’t chasing the women around him.

“Hell you can count me in,” he said excitedly, “I’ve been waiting for a chance like this for years!”

“Karlo, I’m assuming this is Ok with you?”

“Julio is an incredibly competent young man with ample combat training,” Danero said proudly, “I believe he would be a very capable addition to your team although if you do take him, please try to bring him back safely. He is one of my top students and it would be a shame to lose him before he has had the chance to follow in his father’s footsteps.”

“I’ll be fine,” Julio assured him, “you know I can handle myself out there… Erm, where exactly is it we’re going?”

“I’ll fill everyone in on the details once we’re ready to go,” said James, “if you guys wait for me here, I need to go and find one more person before we’re ready to make our move.”

James left the assembled team to look for the one last person he had wanted on the mission with him and it wasn’t hard to track her down, her shock of red hair stood out like a beacon among the rest of the guests. Getting her on board would be a slightly tougher task though.

“Something up?” She asked as he approached, “you look a little flustered.”

“Not at all,” said James, “we just have a slight situation that’s come up, that’s all.”

Kosare did not look impressed as James explained the situation to her. He knew she was done with fighting and had left her homeworld to get away from everything that reminded her of the hell she had experienced as a teenager.

“You know I want no more part of this James,” Kosare said irritably, “I understand your reasons for wanting me on the team but I said I wanted a peaceful life from now on. I left everything behind to start over on Tolis, I don’t want to go back to being
that
girl again.”

“This situation could affect every race out there Jaiden,” said James, “if we do nothing, many more ships could be lost and many more people could suffer for it. I’m asking you this one favour, do this for an old group of friends. I know you don’t like the violence but your skill is undeniable and we stand a much greater chance with you than without you.”

James could see Kosare was giving it a considerable amount of thought. She was a very smart girl and she would have been fully aware of the consequences should the mission not be successful. She seemed torn over re-embracing her old talents for the greater good or staying with her new and peaceful demeanour and missing out on a chance to help protect the alliance.

“One time only,” she said eventually, a stern tone to her voice, “this will be a one time favour for an old friend but it will have to be the last time. After this, no more.”

“That’s all I’m asking,” said James, “after this, I promise I will not try to rope you into another of these missions ever again. With the old team back together, I know we can do this.”

At least he hoped they could. Once they passed beyond the borders of the Valoran sector and out into the vast unknown of the Blue Ring sector, who knew what they would find? If James’s suspicions were correct and the ancient Xerion faction was involved then they would be heading into some very serious danger. If not, then there was still something out there that was capable of taking down powerful Tolian and Vulian warships and anything with that kind of capability needed to be investigated.

Kosare followed James back to where the rest of the team, Ansare now among them again, were waiting. It felt great to be among them all once more, the circumstances of the reunion slightly less so but it was good to see them all again. It was a strange mix of emotions in James’s head, frustration, anxiety, but also a small hint of excitement at the fact that he was finally getting the kind of mission he had craved ever since the end of the revolution and the alliance had not had to go to war again for him to receive it.

“Ok then guys, the admirals of the Earth Nations Fleet are preparing us a transport to Earth as we speak,” James said to the rest of the group, “the council is forwarding everything we need to know to the admirals and they will brief us once we have everything ready. I wish I could tell you more but I’m afraid the council was very evasive about the real details of this mission. We’ll know more later on but for now, lets just enjoy the rest of the evening for as long as we can.”

There wasn’t much for him to say, there wasn’t much that he really could say, the whole group knew what they were in for, all they could do now was hang around until transport was ready for them. James left the rest of them, Isha alongside him, to head for one of the bars, he needed an extra drink or two right now.

“Of all the times for something like this to happen…” Isha sighed, “. . . oh well, I suppose it’ll at least be some excitement for once. A trip to the Blue Ring will be lot more interesting than our usual duty.”

“I wouldn’t be so optimistic about it,” James said grimly, “as exciting as it might sound, there is something seriously dangerous out there and I don’t know if we’re prepared to face whatever it right now. Who’s to say that we wont just go the same way as all the others?”

It wasn’t just the prospect of facing a potential unknown enemy that was bothering him though. What were the Churians doing in the Blue Ring in the first place? Why had the council and the Churian government sent a group of ships into a distant area of an uncharted sector so suddenly? Something about the whole situation just didn’t sit right with him. Hopefully the admirals of the Earth Nations Fleet would be a little more forthcoming about the details of the mission, Artennes had been far too evasive over the details.

Within the hour, another envoy from the council ship arrived to inform James and the rest of the crew that their shuttles had arrived. Their belongings had been packed for them and were already loaded and ready to go.

*     *     *     *     *

James was sat at the desk in his office on the Orion station, the headquarters of the Earth Nations Fleet that orbited Earth. With the expansion to the station complete, every captain in the fleet now had their own individual office but with James’s workload over the past months, he had barely had time to become properly acquainted with it. As the admirals made preparations for James’s mission to the Blue Ring sector, he had taken the past day to catch up with all his mission reports. He had never been fond of all the paperwork but he had found himself in trouble for not keeping up with it on more than one occasion and it was just not worth the hassle of not doing it. Being an official captain was not quite the same as being a revolutionary captain, too much talk and not enough action for his liking.

It had been thirty-five hours since he had left Lahara and James’s every waking minute had been filled with thoughts of what he would have been enjoying had his holiday not been interrupted so rudely by the council. James was itching to get going, all the waiting around was causing him no end of frustration but there was simply nothing he could do about it. The other members of his old team had their own preparations to make having also been pulled from their duties and their holidays so crudely. The admirals had also insisted on properly preparing his ship for the mission, although they had not told him the exact details of what they had planned. All James knew was that it was all taking a lot longer than he had wanted, the hanging around was causing him no end of frustration.

The doors to his office slid open, in came the familiar figure of admiral Michael Davidson. James was hoping that this was a sign that things were nearly ready and that they could get their mission underway very soon.

“This looks cosy,” Davidson commented on seeing inside James’s new office for the first time, “not quite as grand as my own but I’m guessing it suits your own needs?”

“Dealing with official business isn’t really my area of expertise,” said James, “taking care of my missions is easy, filing reports and doing paperwork… not so much.”

“I’ve never really liked doing it much myself actually,” said Davidson, “I guess the perks of holding such a prestigious position will always come with their drawbacks will they not? Still, I like what you’ve done with the place, a personal touch I see?”

Davidson was indicating to the large framed photo that James had displayed on his desk. James had very few mementoes from his days before he joined the fleet but there was one he kept closer to home than any other. Back when he had been on the run from Valdor and the Vulian forces occupying Earth, he had travelled with a close-knit team, running from one city to the next on what would have been a fairly spectacular adventure had it not been for the forces pursuing them every minute of every day. In a tongue-in-cheek move against Valdor, James and the other members of his team had posed for a group photo which they had then proceeded to send to the offices of all the Vulian officials who had been trying for months to apprehend them. It was fair to say that they did not take to the insult too well.