The Lost Fleet – Dauntless

Ancestors help me. But Geary turned and spoke as the crowd fell silent to listen. “I’m already proud to command you.”

And they cheered again, but that was okay, because what he’d said this time was completely true.

He had to be escorted by Captain Desjani when he went to see the hypernet key in its secured area. About half as large as a cargo container, the device took up most of the space in the compartment where it rested. Geary walked around the outside, seeing the power cables snaking into it and the control lines weaving in and out. He looked at it for a long time, wondering at how something so ordinary in appearance could be so important.

“CAPTAIN Geary.” The only good thing about Co-President Victoria Rione’s expression was that it was marginally less cold than her tone of voice.

“Madam Co-President.” Geary stepped back to allow her into his stateroom. He’d been trying to wean himself off the meds and hadn’t taken any today, which had left him feeling even worse than usual and in no mood for a visitor. But given her authority over some of the ships in the fleet, he couldn’t send Rione away. “To what do I owe the honor of this visit?”

Apparently, he didn’t quite manage to keep the irony out of his voice, because Rione’s expression dropped a few more degrees toward absolute zero. But she walked into the stateroom, waited while Geary closed the door, then eyed him silently.

If she’s trying to unnerve me, she’s doing a good job. Geary tried not to let Rione anger him, since he had a feeling that Rione used such emotions to trick her opponents into saying and doing things they’d probably regret. “Would you like to sit down?”

“No.” She turned and walked the three steps that took her to the far bulkhead, apparently absorbed in studying the picture there. It was a legacy of Admiral Bloch, of course, a stunning starscape that was just the sort of thing you’d expect to find in a naval officer’s stateroom. Rione spent perhaps a minute looking at the picture, then turned toward Geary again. “Do you like starscapes, Captain Geary?”

Small talk. He hadn’t expected that, and it made him warier than ever. “Not particularly.”

“You can change it. You can put any picture from the ship’s graphic library on here.”

“I know.” He refused to add that he hadn’t been able to bring himself to wipe out the picture because it represented a legacy of Admiral Bloch’s former presence here.

Rione eyed him for several seconds longer before speaking again. “What are your intentions, Captain Geary?”

My intentions are purely honorable, ma’am. The incongruous thought arose totally unbidden, causing Geary to pretend to cough so he wouldn’t laugh instead. “Excuse me. Madam Co-President, as we discussed earlier, I intend to try to get this fleet back to Alliance space.”

“Don’t evade the question, Captain. We’re en route to the Corvus System. I want to know what you intend doing next.”

If I knew for sure, I’d tell you. But perhaps Rione’s visit wasn’t such a bad thing after all. She was apparently one of the few people on this ship who didn’t worship the space he sailed through, she’d already made it clear she wouldn’t hesitate to express her opinions, and as far as he could tell from their earlier conversation she had a good head on her shoulders. Granted, she also didn’t try to hide her dislike of him, but unlike the hostility he’d seen from people like Captains Numos and Faresa, at least the Republic Co-President ’s disdain seemed tempered by some degree of common sense. “I’d like to discuss that with you.”

“Really?” Rione’s skepticism was clear from both her tone and her expression.

“Yes. Though I ask that our discussions remain confidential. I hope you understand.”

“Of course.”

Geary took one step to the table and painstakingly worked the still unfamiliar controls to call up its display. Stars glowed in the air above the table’s surface, then winked out. Cursing under his breath, Geary tried again, and this time the display remained steady. “We’re got some options.”

“Options.”

“Yes.” If she can talk in one-word sentences, so can I. Geary carefully manipulated the controls, and the stars were replaced with a miniature picture of how the Alliance fleet would currently appear to a godlike observer. “We’re likely to have a head start through Corvus before any Syndics come through the jump exit behind us. A few hours, at least.”

Rione frowned and came to stand near him, one arm almost touching his, but apparently as unreactive to his personal presence as if he were another wall. “The Syndic fleet was in very close pursuit when we entered jump. Surely they’ll still be right behind us when we enter the Corvus System.”

“I don’t think so.” Geary pointed toward the display. “We’ll be disposed like this when we leave jump. It’s a decent formation. More important, we’ve got plenty of heavy firepower toward the rear of the formation.”

“Heavier than the Syndics?”