The Lost Stars: Tarnished Knight

Naturally, there was always the chance that the technicians would talk, despite the certainty of what Iceni would do to them if they told anyone. But between fear and the rewards promised for their discretion, the technicians would almost certainly stay quiet. Iceni had long ago learned that, like threats, promises of rewards were best kept. She had once worked for a man who thought the opposite and routinely stiffed his subordinates and workers on things he had pledged for them. Business as usual, until the night an assassin came for that boss, and his guards, employees who had also had promised rewards yanked from them, looked the other way.

She took care of those who worked for her. That was simple self-interest. But even workers who had been treated well could decide to betray those they worked for. Thanks to the heroics of Kontos and the other surviving members of the outfitting crew, she had gained control of this battleship. No one, no matter how heroic, would take that control away from her.

But it was still a long way to the jump point at point zero three light speed.

* * *

“SOMETHING is happening at Lono,” Colonel Malin reported.

“Dangerous something?” Drakon asked.

“It could be. A merchant ship that came from there said it saw three heavy cruisers and a number of smaller escorts.”

Lono. Only one jump away, with enough firepower mustering there to blow away the single heavy cruiser that Iceni had left at Midway. “Did you find out anything about the HuK that President Iceni sent to Lono?”

“Yes, sir. According to what the merchant ship heard, sometime ago a HuK appeared at the jump point from Midway, took off across the Lono Star System without pausing, and jumped for Milu.”

So much for that HuK. Someone had decided to go home or take other independent action. “What can we get to Lono to confirm what that merchant reported about a flotilla?”

“All we could do is requisition another merchant ship, General.”

Something slow. “We need scouts out, Colonel Malin. How can we get scouts watching the nearest star systems for trouble?”

“It’s a mobile forces issue, General,” Malin said.

“And we’re damned short of mobile forces.”

Malin stiffened as his comm alert sounded and he checked his reader. “A HuK has arrived at the jump point from Kane. There’s a message coming in from it. It’s eyes only for you.”

“Route it to me.” Drakon waited impatiently until the message popped up on his queue, then tagged it.

Iceni smiled triumphantly at him. “I am happy to report that I have defeated a snake-controlled flotilla at Kane and gained control of the battleship being outfitted here. As soon as the battleship is ready to move, we will proceed back to Midway.” Attached to the message were some files listing detailed events.

Drakon scanned the files quickly. “President Iceni hasn’t lost any units. She actually picked up a few more. Plus the battleship.”

“How long until she gets back?” Malin asked.

“She didn’t say. Call that HuK and tell it to divert to the jump point for Lono. The HuK is to pop in, look around Lono, then head back here.” The Syndicate flotilla at Lono might already be on the way to Midway, in which case it would arrive before the HuK even got to Lono to find it empty of threat. That couldn’t be helped. “How much chance do you think that heavy cruiser we’ve got, C-818, would have against a flotilla with three heavy cruisers in it?”

Malin shook his head. “From what I have been able to learn of C-818’s commanding officer, she would probably run rather than fight.”

“And I can’t replace her because of my deal with President Iceni. But C-818’s commander could have an accident and need to be replaced. Morgan would take care of that.”

“Sir, I advise against that action. C-818’s commander is remaining on her unit in orbit. She is wise enough to know that is the safest course of action for her personally. As long as she is on that warship in orbit, reaching her will be hard to achieve, and deniability would be even harder to achieve if something happened to her.”

“Damn. Then all we can do is hope that whatever’s at Lono doesn’t get here before President Iceni gets back.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“THIS is Executive Level Two Fon, acting commanding officer of CL-187, for President Iceni.”

Iceni rested her head on one hand as she watched the message. Light cruiser CL-187 was about four and a half light-hours distant and nearing the second planet, so this wasn’t exactly timely news, but it was also the most recent information she had received from that part of Kane Star System. Her own flotilla, crawling along in company with the battleship, was itself still nearly thirty light-minutes, or sixteen hours’ travel time at its current velocity, from the jump point for Midway.