Fall of Icarus (35 page)

           
Keryn swallowed hard, knowing where the course that his speech would soon take.
 
The spokesman returned to his pre-written notes before reading the official declaration.
 
“These atrocities cannot go unpunished.
 
The High Council declared war on the Empire when they encroached on our sovereign space.
 
At that time, we were a reactionary force, responding with violence to the intrusion of the Terran Fleet.
 
Our time of being reactionary is now at an end.
 
From this moment on, the Alliance will be on the offensive, pressing our advantage against the Empire until every last Terran soldier is defeated and every last Terran ship destroyed.

“One hundred and fifty years ago, the burgeoning Alliance fought the Terrans to a standstill.
 
We
are
no longer a youthful conglomeration of races
.
 
Today, we are a unified front, powerful and deadly.
 
There will be no stalemate this time.
 
There will be no Accord signed when all this is completed.
 
This time, we will bring the Empire to its knees before we take its head.”

           
With no more pomp and circumstance, the Wyndgaart stepped off the podium and disappeared off the screen, leaving the audience staring in wonder.
 
As quickly as it had happened, the screens turned back to the evening news anchors,
who
sat dumbfounded in front of the cameras.
 
Clearly, they had not been briefed on the message beforehand, and now they scrambled to cover the news story as it unfolded.

           
As quickly as the monitors had gained their attention, the four now quickly ignored the telecasters.
 
Turning to one another, they sat in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.
 
Keryn glanced up once at the monitor, feeling a deep seeded hatred toward the Wyndgaart spokesman.
 
It had been easy to stand before a camera and tell the known universe that there would be a second Great War.
 
But the
spokesman wasn’t a soldier, nor were
the High Councilmembers.
 
They were politicians who made tactical and militaristic decisions based on anger, frustration, and intelligence passed along second or third hand.
 
They weren’t members of the Fleet or Infantry who would have to lay their lives on the line in order to succeed at their own aggressive plan.
 
In that respect, Keryn realized just how alone the four people at the table truly were.

           
“It doesn’t make any sense,” Adam said, breaking the silence.

           
“Which part?” Yen asked sarcastically.

           
“How much more ‘offensive’ could we get?
 
I mean
,
we were fighting for our lives against six Destroyers.
 
What do they want from us now?
 
Planet hopping?
 
Wiping out one outpost after another until we finally reach Earth?”

           
“You joke,” Penchant growled, “but this war won’t be won until we reach Earth.
 
You thought the Fleet was tough, just wait until you run headlong into the Earth defensive system.”

           
“I heard about that,” Adam added excitedly.
 
“After the battle with the Lithids and the defeat of their Fleet, the Terrans were sure the Alliance would bring the fight to their doorstep. So the Terrans chose to hide on Earth, and built a grid system in orbit around their homeworld.
 
That thing’s supposed to be damn near impregnable.”

           
“So we’re just supposed to fly right into a satellite grid’s laser defense system?” Yen asked angrily.

           
“I guess we’ll find out soon enough,” Keryn said, holding up her transponder.
 
They could all hear the low humming tone that signaled a recall to the
Revolution
.
 
Moments after Keryn held up her transponder, everyone else’s began to vibrate and emit the same tone.
 
“We’re being recalled.
 
Grab your stuff and meet me back at the ship.”

           
Quickly parting ways with the other two, Keryn and Yen hurried back to their hotel.
 
The streets were already packed with Fleet personnel all hastily checking out of their rooms.
 
The signal they had received was not isolated to the
Revolution
.
 
Every Fleet ship docked at the Farimas Space Station had sent out their general quarters message, recalling all personnel.

           
Keryn packed exceptionally quickly, knowing that as the Squadron Commander, she would have more responsibility in the next couple days then most on board the
Revolution
.
 
Yen seemed lost, not quite certain how his infiltration team would fit into the grand scheme of an Alliance assault.
 
The directive was surprising and would be attempted on a scale far surpassing anything else attempted since the days of the Empire’s Manifest Destiny Directive.
 
To Keryn, her feelings alternated between excited and frightened.
 
She hardly paid attention as she finished packing and wasn’t even sure if she had remembered everything before hurrying downstairs.
 
Keryn sat by impatiently while Yen checked out of the room.
 
As soon as he was done, they left the hotel and ran through the streets, toward the lifts that would take them to the outer ring.

           
As expected, the lift was packed with returning personnel.
 
As soon as she approached the kiosks that would scan them back off leave, Keryn swiped her card and was surprised to be met on the other side of the kiosks by a pair of burly Fleet security guards.
 
Their shoulder patches identified them as belonging to the
Revolution
, though she didn’t recognize their faces.

           
“Commander Riddell,” one of the two said in a tone that made it more of a statement and less of a question.
 
“You are to accompany us at once.
 
Captain Hodge has a vital communication for you.”

           
“What about Magistrate Xiao?” she asked, gesturing toward Yen.

           
“I’m sorry, ma’am,” the other guard chimed in.
 
“Our orders were for you alone.”

           
Keryn turned toward Yen and shrugged apologetically.
 
“Get on board and find the others.
 
As soon as I get done with… whatever it is that I need to do, I’ll find you.”

           
Nodding, no longer showing the public affection for which they had quickly become renowned since they were once again in uniform, Yen turned toward the lift and was quickly lost in the sea of pressing bodies.
 
Following the guards, Keryn was led to a private airlock, on the far side of which was docked a small transport ship.
 
Motioning for her to step inside, Keryn found herself in the surprisingly spacious confines of a private transport.
 
The entire ship was richly upholstered and, though it could have easily sat nearly
two dozen
soldiers, it had seats for only six.
 
The rest of the space was filled with personal console tables.

           
As she looked around, both stunned and confused, the cockpit door slid open and Captain Hodge emerged into the crew compartment.
 
Her smile seemed strained as she shared it briefly, but
it was quickly replaced by her stoic demeanor
.
 
Wordlessly, Captain Hodge sat down heavily into one of the chairs, gesturing for Keryn to sit in a chair across a console table from her.

           
“I’m sure you’re a little confused right now,” the Captain said in her melodic tones.

           
“That’s an understatement, ma’am.
 
I don’t think I’ve had a chance to think straight since the news conference.”

           
Captain Hodge nodded knowingly.
 
“I understand, but I can’t help you.
 
I told you before that there were many things going on that I couldn’t tell you about, simply because of their classified nature.
 
Now, there are things going on that I can’t tell you about because I simply don’t know myself.”
 
She reached into the jacket pocket on her uniform and pulled out a small disk.
 
“I was given this with direct orders to bring the disk straight to you.
 
I was not allowed to view the contents, nor am I allowed to be in the room when you watch it.
 
This is truly for your eyes only.”

           
Keryn stared at the disk as it was placed in her hand.
 
With no more words shared, Captain Hodge stood and exited the airlock at the back of the ship, disappearing into the throng of people still waiting for the elevator within the space station.
 
Hesitantly, Keryn turned back to the disk still resting in her hand and was suddenly very aware of the console built into the desk in front of her.
 
Alone in the crew compartment, Keryn slid the disk into the slot on the side of the console and sat back in the plush chair.

           
The blue screen of the console flickered to life before turning an inky black with a vibrant red symbol in the middle.
 
Slowly, that too faded away, leaving Keryn looking at a horseshoe shaped conference desk, behind which six wizened and cloaked figures stared back at her.

           
“Hello, Commander Riddell,” the elderly Wyndgaart High Councilmember said.
 
“We have a special mission for you…”

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

           
The stage at the front of the auditorium had been converted until it was nearly unrecognizable.
 
A large cylindrical container sat on one end, a series of cables and wires running from it before disappearing behind the thick curtains on either wing of the stage.
 
A series of test tubes and small medical instruments lined tables that had been prepositioned along the back wall.
 
On the far right of the stage, a surprisingly empty table stood, a lonely piece of furniture amongst the bustle of the rest of the stage.

           
Yen, Adam, and Penchant took their seats in the front of the auditorium, with a clear view of the displayed science experiment.
 
Yen was honestly surprised from his trip through the halls of the
Revolution
.
 
In remarkable time, less than a week, the shipyard had repaired the majority of damage the Cruiser had sustained during the war.
 
Though there were still entire hallways marked as off limits to non-essential personnel, the ship no longer appeared in distress as it had when it first made dock at the space station.

Looking over his shoulder, Yen watched the lines of recalled Fleet personnel filter into the auditorium, but he didn’t spot Keryn among them.
 
Other familiar faces caught his eye as they entered, both previous friends from the
Revolution
and some newcomers, Iana included.
 
As the crowd began to thin, the last of the people entering the auditorium and finding their seats, Yen began wondering if Keryn would arrive for this meeting at all.
 
When he had just about given up hope of seeing her, he was stunned to see a ghostly figure enter the room.
 
The Uligart male frowned at the gathered crowd as he searched for a seat.
 
Turning back around, Yen slumped heavily into his seat.

“What’s gotten into you?” Adam asked from beside him.

Yen nodded toward the back of the room.
 
“It’s Buren,” he said, still surprised.

Adam turned quickly to look and Yen could hear the Pilgrim’s breath get caught in his throat.
 
“I thought he got out of the service.”

Yen turned around as well, looking again at the stern-looking Uligart.
 
“I did too.
 
Hell, we all almost did after Purseus II.
 
You think it’s just a coincidence he’s on board?”