When the Stars Fade (The Gray Wars) (36 page)

-                           
V                            -

              Jonah admired the CE
O’
s office as he walked around the room. The man knew how to decorate, or at least whom to pay to do so. Tall oak bookcase
s—
real wood, not imitatio
n—
lined the wall by the floor-to-ceiling windows. Thick, leather-bound books filled the shelves, separated sporadically by pictures of Arnold and his family or knickknacks h
e’
d accumulated on his travels. Skulls of monsters the man had hunted on distant worlds hung on massive placards. Many rare paintings sat high above the door, their beauty not lost on the rebel leader.

             
The desk was a marvel. Rich mahogany, carved into a modest yet intricate design, and neatly organized from top to bottom. Each section of the furniture had a purpose, and not a single paper or pen was out of place. An LT33 quantum computer sat in the very center, the monitor tilted at a comfortable angle, casting a blue glow over the plush leather chair by the wall.

             
Soldiers of the Red Hammer marched the halls of the Galactic Media Tower, securing hostages in the many meeting halls. The two hundred soldiers Jonah had brought along were finding it hard to manage the near eight thousand men and women left behind when the Sky Rail was attacked. The
y’
d blown the passageways on the thirtieth and fiftieth floors, knocking out any way for the police or military to break in, but that left a lot of civilians to babysit. Ten soldiers were needed on the top floor to man the Anti Air cannons, lest someone try to land on the roof or any of the seven pads around the building. It left precious few bodies to guard the hostages.

             
A young soldier hobbled into the room, favoring his right leg. His black armor was scored with lines of white where h
e’
d taken fire. He stopped in front of Jonah and waited to be acknowledged, slinging his carbine over one shoulder. When he took off his helmet, the rebel leader was struck that the boy could
n’
t be past eighteen. Jonah held up a hand as his phone rang.

             
“This is Jonah
.”
The voice on the other end spoke quickly, spitting out a stream of information. The rebel nodded, pulling at his beard
.“
I understand. Thank you for the effort
.”
He tossed the cell onto the desk and sighed
.“
Tallus is a total loss. Burton and the Federate bit off more than they could chew with these xenofucks
.”
He turned back to the waiting trooper
.“
Speak, brother
,”
Jonah said, leaning against the desk.

             
The soldier ran a gloved hand through his sweat-drenched hair. He looked like h
e’
d been through hell and back
.“
W
e’
ve secured another hundred. I
t’
s getting pretty tense down there
.”
His right eye was swollen near shut, and a cut on his lip still oozed blood.

             
Jonah gestured to the bo
y’
s limp
.“
How did that happen
?
”

             
The soldier smiled sheepishly
.“
I was jumped by some rent-a-cops on the hundred and tenth floor. Took a charge to the leg
.
”

             
Jonah smiled
.“
Zapped you
?”
He laughed
.“
You are one tough hombre
.
”

             
“It was nothing, sir. Just thirty thousand volts or so. His buddies were laying into me pretty hard before I caught one with my repeater. H
e’
ll live, but he will need some help pissi
n’
for a while
.”
He pulled back the plate over his thigh, revealing a spidery network of burnt veins visible through a tear in his trousers
.“
Left me a nice mark
.
”

             
The rebel leader leaned over and pulled up the pants leg over his right shin. A long, purple scar ran from just under his knee to the top of his ankle
.“
Bomber dropped its payload over my mine shaft during one of our night raids. Brought down a few tons of rock onto my leg. If it had
n’
t been for my sergeant, I would
n’
t be here today. Spent a month laid up in one of our underground clinics, swaddled like a newborn babe
.”
He sat back upright
.“
Always good to have a souvenir of places yo
u’
ve been. Someone get this hero a drink. He can sit a spell before heading back into the breach
.
”

             
“Thank you, sir
.”
A guard walked over and helped the young man to a chair, handing him a bottle of water and a protein chip.

             
All eyes turned toward a commotion at the door. Victor came into the room with his entourage of security guards. He dragged a man in an expensive brown suit in front of Jonah and threw him to the floor. The soldiers formed a ring around the prone hostage, keeping their weapons trained on the unarmed man.

             
“Found us a real gem
,”
Victor said. He spat on the ground
.“
I present to you Gregory Kent, the star reporter of Galactic News America
.
”

             
“Put your weapons away
,”
Jonah said
.“
Yo
u’
re scaring my guest. And Vic, do
n’
t you ever spit on my good carpet again
.”
He knelt down by Gregor
y’
s face and peered into the ma
n’
s eyes
.“
Do you know who I am
?”
Gregory nodded
.“
Good. Tha
t’
ll make this go a little faster. I want you to know I have no intention of harming you. However, the man who brought you has every intention of throwing you out the window if you misbehave. You wo
n’
t misbehave, will you
?”
Tears in his eyes, Gregory shook his head
.“
Tha
t’
s very good, Mr. Kent. You should know, I respect what you do. Freedom of speech is a sacred oath, fought for by every generation for the last few centuries
.”
He leaned in close, until his breath caused Gregory to blink
.“
But that does
n’
t mean I appreciate the names yo
u’
ve been calling me
.
”

             
“Please
,”
Gregory sobbed
.“
Do
n’
t kill me.
I’
m just a reporter. I read lines on the teleprompter
.
”

             
Jonah backhanded him, cracking his nose
.“
You read the lies put before you without thought, and you began to believe them yourself. I wonder, do you think at all? Is it even worth me sparing your life?
I’
ll bet there are a hundred men and women downstairs who would jump at the chance to take your place in front of all the citizens of humanity
.
”

             
“This business is all politics
.”
Gregory nursed his bleeding face
.“
I had to follow the party line. I was reporting on county fairs and little kiddy pageants before I got this gig
.
”

             
“Yo
u’
re a dog jumping at scraps
,”
Victor said. He pulled out his pistol and pressed the barrel against the reporte
r’
s face
.“
How old were you during the Mars Uprising? Eight? Ten
?”
He brought his fist back to crack Gregory again, but Jonah held up a hand. Vic sneered and holstered his weapon.

             
Jonah stood straight, looking out the window as he spoke
.“
We were children too, caught up in a war that had started before we were even born
.”
He glanced down at Gregory
.“
You know, they teach now that the war began at the start of the 23rd century. That Marshall Borogrin fired the first shot at the Council blockade. The spark that lit off a planet-sized powder keg. I
t’
s all ridiculous
.”
He turned to face the room, the vista of New York at his back
.“
Borogrin was a newborn when this war began, starting with the subjugation of the Martian people by Emperor Norton III. The taxes, the embargoes, and the atrocities brought down by the Imperial Guard all led to a planet rising against tyranny.

             
“You ever read the journal of Calvin McMallen
?
”

             
Gregory shook his head
.“
Yo
u’
re talking about the Foundation conspiracy
?
”

             
“He was a soldier when the Empire finalized control of Earth, spent most of his life locked up on the moon. When he was finally paroled, he organized a group of several armies that helped destabilize the Imperial government. They called themselves the Division. After fighting to free their planet, they turned on each other. Even as the Council took its first steps into power, the Emigration War was laying the seeds of its destruction. Mars just ended up on the wrong side of that battle, and the war taxes did the rest. It took fifty years to get the good Marshall and his unions armed and fighting
.
”

             
Gregory held up his hands
.“I’
m sorry. I do
n’
t know what you want me to do
?
”

             
“I want you to tell the people of Earth and the rest of the galaxy what really happened. I want them to know about the assassination of Mr. McMallen, and how his death fueled the fires of revolution. I want them to know the truth that got hidden away when the UEC became the Colonial Federate. And when they know the facts, w
e’
ll let them decide the fate of the biggest hypocrite of them all
.”
Jonah smiled as Gregory cowered at the idea
.“
Not you, you idiot. Alexander Burton, the venerable High Chancellor of the Terran Federate Council
.”
He leaned in closer to the reporter, pinching the ma
n’
s jaw with his hand
.“
W
e’
ll try him before his people, allow them to make a final judgment.
I’
ll lay bare all of his most heinous sins. And then, with the galaxy watching, w
e’
re going to execute him
.
”

-                           
VI                            -

              Josh and Dax finished loading the second truck with explosives just as the sun was beginning to fall toward the horizon. The ambush had gone off without a hitch, and eight more soldiers were chalked off the roster. Alpha was down to two platoons, including their guards in the towers. Still an imposing threat, but the soldiers were driven by their successes to continue forward. Having already done a few impossible things, one more seemed downright simple. With the car bombs set, the squad moved into position just outside direct fire range near the fort.

             
Alexa and her team stood by with their mortars. The trick would be to draw Alph
a’
s soldiers out into the open. The explosions would do the trick, causing as much confusion as possible while the steel rain came down. Once the towers were dealt with and the soldiers crammed inside the scant few buildings, the real work could begin. With only a few dozen grenades left, the room clearing would be grueling work. Dax handed off his DaVinci for a GK Carbine, rejoicing in the lighter-weight weapon. His team formed behind him, two hundred meters from the towers.

             
Dax slid down the ramped ground to where Josh waited, next to their improvised mobile-bomb
.“
Are you ready
?”
His thick square jaw was covered in a thin layer of black stubble a shade darker than his skin.