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Strategos (A Great Captain Roberts Tale!!) - Part 4 -
Chapter 18 - The Shallows Have Currents[]
Limited Options[]
"...got your officers out…
…chasing down replacements already?" Foster was pleased. "I do get reports from other sources, Amanda."
"We're down twenty hands total after the deep recon," she said. The staff meeting was short a few, leaving just Billie Hoel's remote presence, ALICE, and a handful of others.
Not enough for the strategy session. But then, the draft plans were being reviewed by the Khans, who would have their own ideas and input. "And that counts the veterans I've pulled to other commands, I know,” Foster said sagely. "You didn't forward any requests from Helena's units."
"I didn't get any applications except for Stacey," Amanda observed. "She's better in her current hull, and I'm not sure I could really handle more than one fangirl."
“Oh? I smell gossip. But this is an official meeting. So maybe we can talk about that later.” Helena smiled.
"Based on force structure, readiness, and the current rate of repair, Evanescent will be ready to head out in fourteen days for a crew shakedown," Amanda said. "I say fourteen days because I can put to the stars with the crew I have by Friday. But we won't have a full complement for the Air Wing, Navigation, or Engineering. And we'd have to double-shift some of the Able Spacers."
"Hence pressuring your officers to 'get on the stick' with their personnel recruitment. But you're overlooking a source that's available, so give your reasons." Foster ordered quietly.
"One, as the First Privateer, there's a public angle." Amanda stated. "Unit 7 of the correspondence courses you had me take. We're an Outworlds ship. The Raven Alliance counts, so it's fair to say Snow Raven and Outworlders should be the most common in the complement. No offense, Director-General, but your people are… foreigners. There's an image that the Service is using, and that doesn't work for it."
“None taken. We’re here to help, not stage a slow quiet take over of military assets from within.” Helena winked.
"There's a second half to that," Amanda added. "My CAG is a foreigner. It's not her fault, but having to explain things to her because she's from a radically different culture has shown me that I'm not good at that. Your people are Spacers, Beltah, however you want to term it, but from a different tradition. And that means training time, not just for them, but for the rest of the crew. Third, they're used to working with AI, and we don't have one unless you count Desmond."
“Even from the same nation there can be cultural differences. Space is big and there are a fair number of worlds in the Alliance. So growing pains for adding new crew will always happen, no matter the source,” Helena countered.
"You're being…" Foster sighed. "Very closed minded, Roberts," he settled on. "Prejudiced, even. You will reconsider your stance. Your argument is not persuasive, am I clear?"
"Yes, sir."
“And to be fair, I don’t exactly have a bottomless well of people to draw on. So I suspect most of your crew will still be Outworlders,” Helena smiled.
"Next order of business…" Foster visibly shuffled hardcopy. "It relates. Helena, how much room do you have for personnel on Destroyer Groups One and Two?"
“Group Two hasn’t been refitted to have long term human supplemental crew. One, I can shuffle around a few people as they have two Carrier conversions. Stacey, Tabby, Betty, Olivia also have human crews in my other detachments. And there is the currently fully human crew of the Larry Nichols.
"Our allied Clans are asking for permission to embed observers with your Fleet," Foster explained. "So give me numbers that let me say 'no' to everyone but the Snow Ravens, please."
'You want to say no?" Amanda looked a bit shocked.
"I desperately want to tell them 'no', especially the Wolves and the Jade Falcons." he stated.
"What about the Republic?" Amanda asked.
He frowned. "I'm probably going to have to say 'yes' to them. Stone's offering a pocket warship group for the Larry Nichols."
Amanda looked… displeased. "He's paying the bills." is all she said, but it was a reminder of their actual, long term position. "President Avellar will go for it, because we need the money and the help."
“I can make the Pocket Warship group work well enough with that. Tabby has a few safeguards there to keep everyone honest. The trouble with the Wolves and Falcons is they are not exactly idle themselves, and have a few chips to cash in that make saying no to them painful. I’d love to put the Falcon and Wolf reps on Tartar and Zulu just to see if we could at least make them uncomfortable. Neither of them have more than absolute basic facilities, but their Watches probably have full reports on which of my AIs are Carrier conversions and thus have proper accommodations,” Helena said, frowning.
“I’m not sure I’ve actually met either of them face to face. Why them?” Amanda asked.
“Tartar fell in love with a remote about the size of Alice’s but has no tolerance for anyone that declares her ‘short’, or makes short jokes at her expense. And she loves to sing. All the time. So I’m pretty sure she’d drive whoever I put with her insane from sleep deprivation unless they insulted her. Zulu would be very ‘for science’ with whoever I saddled her with.” Helena smiled wistfully.
“Your assessment is likely correct. So, who do we realistically stick the Wolf, Falcon, Ghost Bear, and Snow Raven reps with?” Foster changed the subject.
“So my options are Billie, Lucy, Stacey, Betty, Olivia, and doubling up on Larry. Discounting Johnson, Regina, Sikh, and Cossack because I’m technically leasing those hulls from you. They already sent the observers? It would help to meet them before deciding who to pair with who.”
“Star Captain Umberto Binetti from Clan Jade Falcon, Star Captain Wu Ch’in from Clan Wolf, Star Captain Eric Bourjon from Clan Ghost Bear, and despite my attempts to convince them Lori Crow was already a sufficient observer, Star Captain Wilson Cooper from Clan Snow Raven,” David Foster listed off.
“Go ahead, put the appointments on the books for when I’m not tied up with my own dog and pony shows,” Helena sighed.
“Very good, Ma’am. At least it will be your problem, not mine, this way,” Foster grumbled.
Seeking the Target[]
Lori…
…Crow, as the most difficult to secure target, had been the focus of Si Fu Lan’s attention.
She wasn’t as prone to partaking in alcohol as Esme and was far more aware of her surroundings. The confirmation that she was of the Raven Watch that he coaxed out of Amanda in their night of passion meant he had to be even more careful in even the simple act of observing her.
Getting her drunk and in a compromised state would be next to impossible, but he’d devised a solution. The right chemical mix applied to the skin would do the trick. It was a well known blend that made subjects especially susceptible to suggestion that many field operatives such as himself had used for perhaps centuries now. And with the right precautions, and what he was learning about the woman Lori, she wouldn’t know she was under the effects until it was too late.
But how to approach her without raising suspicion was the core goal he was grappling with now.
Plus, the electronic virus he’d introduced to the Station’s AI was rooting out the location and access codes for the device he needed to bring back Kali would need more time before it bore fruit.
He was surprised the station’s AI hadn’t updated the security protocols. The Word of Blake would have quite easily subjugated this station with electronic warfare with how out of date the protection was.
To keep up the illusion of being just another customer as he watched Lori to plan his approach, he had some carefully concealed flasks, pumps, and tubes that let him replace the tequila he was ordering with water. One flask he filled with alcohol, while another replaced it with water. All while no one paid any attention to him. This careful and subtle act of sleight of hand allowed him to stay sharp without drawing unwanted attention to himself.
A small buzz from his jacket pocket let him know that his virus had finished doing its work.
The next tour. Both Lori and Esme would be off shift again, and he’d again be able to excuse himself from Daoshen’s entourage without raising suspicion. That would have to be when he made his move. And he was confident now that he knew enough to safely approach Lori and Esme and get them both where he needed them.
An Unusual Request[]
"Captain Gomez…
…if you have a moment?" Daoshen Liao was on the dock, alone.
"You're not sporting your usual security teams," Esme noted.
"It’s a… delicate… matter, Miss Gomez. A cometary tail made of staff is significantly less low-key than showing up, as I am, in less ornate costume and alone."
"What's it about, Chancellor?"
"Scanning artificial intelligences," he stated. "You're the resident expert, in a sense. You're the reason I'm here, and the reason I'm willing to swallow Devlin Stone's shit to get this chance."
"Little old me?" she arched an eyebrow. "It kills the patient, Chancellor. If you're looking for a silicon eternity, you might reconsider."
"Not for me," he said.
It clicked. "Your old man, the 'greatest chancellor since Barbara'. He didn't die in the fighting, did he?"
"No. He’s… in suspension, could it work?"
"I don't see how." She shook her head, then stopped. "No, that's not right… come to my office."
She led him up the ramp into Erinyes, to the Captain's office, and cleared a seat. "Have a seat," she said. "We scanned two people. The first was a volunteer, that volunteer died weeks later of total nervous system collapse. The second was a terminal patient, and you've met him," she began. "Luther Bedwyr exposed himself to a close range thermonuclear strike and lived long enough that it was delayed radiation sickness that would've killed him. How bad is your Poppa?"
"Then you'll help me?" he asked.
"I might help you, Mister Chancellor. I'm an Outworlder. We have no beef with the Capellans, but we do have an unfortunate history with our closer neighbors. House Davion used the Terran Conquests as an opportunity to take worlds from us. Just like the Dracs did. And they used unequal treaties during the Star League, just like the Dracs and the Terrans did. You might say I've got some sympathy for a boy who just wants his father back. Mine died of something he could've treated because he used the medicine to save other people."
"Will you not be in trouble?"
"Until I get the okay, all I can give you is my ears. And a promise to consider your case," she told him. "I don't own the gear-that belongs to the Outworlds Alliance. You don't own a Core, so you'll need to buy one, and there are good reasons not to go through with it, so you might change your mind."
"Tell me what I need."
"You'll need a server rack big enough to house the scan, with enough processing to compile it. You'll need that stack interconnected, but able to be independently powered because once it's begun, it can't be undone or done over," she explained. "A Niraski 400 at minimum, if you can even find one intact that hasn't been imprinted. After that, the gear itself is ruinous to whoever gets strapped into it. It's going to be a one-way trip, Mister Chancellor. If your poppa could be healed tomorrow, it won't matter because the scanning process destroys the original. Fast or slow is the only difference in levels."
"But it works?"
"Luther's Luther," she said. "At least, all the bits that matter are the same-to us, to him? He's still wondering if he's 'him' or just a copy of a dead man." She fished out a bottle of something amber, and two glasses.
"Drinks?"
"We're talking about killing, or saving, your old man, Mister Chancellor," she said. "A drink is appropriate, because what we're really discussing is whether or not the scanning process will save the man, at the cost of his soul."
"Philosophy." Daoshen suggested.
"Philosophy, Mister Chancellor," she confirmed. "I worked with our first patient closely for quite a while. Their copy has… marked differences. Many of the same personal traits, but there are subtleties that weren't there in their original, relationships that shifted, changed… what are you trying to preserve?"
“At this point, anything I can. I need more than what he put into the record. I need his insights and perspective on new issues. I feel no shame in admitting he was more than me.”
"My god, you brought him with you, didn't you?" she breathed.
“I need him, the Confederation needs him. If this can be done, I must pursue it.”
She inclined her head. "Erin, contact Captain Roberts and have her come down to the Erinyes, don't tell her why."
Daoshen started, "I thought we were-"
"We are. Erin's good enough to keep secrets from me, and I've worked on her internals."
"Why, Captain Roberts?"
"She has the salvage claim, and first refusals," Esme said simply. "Amanda is the reason Alice works for the Alliance. She was 'first in' and if she wanted, she could probably kick the rest of us out… And I don't think Dave Foster's going to listen to you if you don't have Amanda's agreement."
“Then I shall wait and pray.”
"Mister Chancellor, keep one thing in mind." Esme said.
"Which is?"
"Amanda Roberts is a Christian, and she's serious about it-in her way. Affairs of state won't mean as much to her, as things like family and compassion."
“I thank you for your insights.”
Pleading for the sake of Family[]
"This had better not be another one of your mad-science pranks, Esme!!" Amanda growled. "We agreed to suspend the experiments after what happened with Mina!!" The young woman was scowling as she scolded. "You remember that? How she died?"
"I remember. I'm asking…”, began Esma
“Please forgive her. It was my doing that brought you here.” Daoshen announced his presence.
"You are NOT PLUGGING HIM IN!!" Amanda seemed to rise a bit taller in her offense. "Christ, Esme, that process Kills people and excuse me, Chancellor. He's a foreign head of state!!"
"It is not for me," he said simply. "Except that I am the one making the plea."
She blinked at him, then. "Indicators show sincerity, embarrassment, no flushing consistent with a lie and pupil response is appropriate… so you're telling the truth." She crossed her arms. "Who is it for?"
“Yes. It is for my father. Without this, there is no chance at all. With it, I at least have something of him.”
"Foster's going to have kittens," Amanda stated. "Right on the CIC deck, Esme. He's going to squat and shit out giant cats… ******. You could've said no, could've pretended we don't have the capability…"
"He wants his father back, Amanda. He's willing to swallow his pride as the price."
"I know. Erin, contact through ALICE, to Helena and Foster, code Gemini, give our location to them, and only to them." Amanda said, then to the Chancellor. "I accepted a chain of command when I signed the Letter of Marque. This is above my paygrade, so we're going to check with the Admiralty and make the call. But either way it goes, it doesn't leave this room and nobody, including the guys you're here to negotiate a Peace treaty with, is going to be told."
“I hope I can prevail upon you for your support, Director Roberts.”
"I wouldn't call it if I didn't feel inclined to help," Amanda admonished him. "If I wanted to reject you, I'd just tell you to go away and then I'd be putting Esme on report for violating secrets."
“Thank you. I’m in your debt. If I can repay you in any way, please let me know. If it is within my power to grant as Chancelor, it will be yours.”
"Buy Outworlder first," she smirked. "Favorable trade deals. Hell, I don't know. It might get all the way through approval and fail. So don't promise payment until you see the goods, and the deal might fall through anyway… But maybe expediting war loans might sweeten the pot some. I'm not a President, or an Admiral, and this shouldn't even BE my decision."
“If Stone doesn’t derail these peace talks, I will be more than glad to shift some of the Confederation’s budget to a more worthy cause.”
“Sorry I’m late to the party. Seems to be some sort of buffering issue with the comms. Esme, maybe you should check Alice out?” Helena entered Esme’s lab.
Meanwhile, near the spine of the station, a cell kept secure with hard vacuum, is lining up to seal against its inner door…
Lights are on, but no one is home.[]
"Alice? Where are…
…you honey?" Billie Hoel could tell ALICE was still online, but she wasn't responding. The landscape had changed. Fog and tight passages, and things moving through the render, like…
A virus.
"Oh, shit…"