Hunt for the Saiph (The Saiph Series Book 3) (18 page)

DSN
VOLAR -
GEOSTATIONARY ORBIT - DERES

Twelve minutes after the comms officer on board the freighter transmitted the go signal, it was received aboard DSN
Volar
, flagship of the Deres Space Navy in orbit around its home planet of Deres. The
Volar
and the majority of the fleet, some forty destroyer-sized ships weighing in at around 16000 tonnes each and armed with two main heavy energy weapons and forty-eight missile tubes apiece were a formidable force, and one which Fleet Admiral Toro was justly proud to command, but at this precise moment his mind was elsewhere. For what seemed the thousandth time in the past hour, his eyes were drawn to the bridge clock located directly above the main view screen. If all was going to schedule, the marshall should be launching his attack about now.

When his mentor first approached Toro and outlined his plan to seize the alien database, Toro had been shocked. Marshall Poll had guided his career from Toro's earliest days in the navy and Poll had always expounded the merits of loyalty and discipline, so to hear him so blatantly discussing treason was a tremendous jolt. But the more he listened to the marshall's argument that it was not he who was the traitor, it was in fact the members of the House of the People and Commissioner Malas himself who, by allowing the Nilmerg access to the alien secrets, were the true traitors, the more he saw the logic of it. Poll had not pushed Toro to join him, but over the coming days, Toro thought long and hard about what his mentor had said to him and slowly but surely he found himself agreeing with him. By the end of the week, Toro became the second member of the marshall's coup d’état. Over the coming months, Toro and the marshall sought out officers in key positions whom they knew to be like-minded, until the day came when the marshall declared them ready to begin the operation which would see the end of the Nilmerg threat forever.

The communications officer left his station and approached the admiral. Stopping in front of him, he spoke in a voice just loud enough for only the admiral to hear. "Admiral. We have received the go code from Marshall Poll."

"Thank you, Rana. Please take up your post." The officer nodded once and then, apparently without any real purpose, strolled over to the
Volar's
commander, Captain Wol, and struck up an idle conversation. Once the captain was suitably distracted, Toro punched a code into his armrest’s comms panel. The call was answered immediately.

"Aft Weapons. Lieutenant Possa."

Toro took a second before uttering the single word that committed him to his path. "Auro." The Deres word for vengeance. With that, Toro closed the channel and punched a complex code into the panel. This code was known to him and him alone. It was a code which, when entered, bypassed the normal communications channels and connected him directly with the captains of fifteen of the fleet’s destroyers. Captains who had aligned themselves with the marshall. A small light on the comms panel went from red to green as one after another, each captain acknowledged the signal.

The raised voice of the tactical officer broke the normally hushed conversations on the bridge. "Captain! My panel is showing Tube 15 loading a mark four ground-attack missile. Outer doors are opening and a launch sequence has been entered!"

Wol lunged out of his seat and raced to the side of the tactical officer, bending over his shoulder. "Cancel the launch command!"

The tactical officer’s hands moved urgently over his panel, but he wasn't quick enough. The
Volar
shuddered slightly as the missile left its tube. "Initiate the self-destruct," ordered the captain. The required commands were entered but still the missile sped onwards.

"I'm sorry, sir, I've been locked out."

The captain spun around, intending to head back to his chair. The comms panel on his chair allowed him to override any lockout and he would destroy the missile before it could do any damage. The last thing he expected was to find his communications officer, Lieutenant Rana, blocking his path. Wol was about to push past him when he noticed Rana's arm was raised and in his hand was a small pistol. The sharp crack of the pistol echoed around the bridge as Rana pulled the trigger and shot the captain right between the eyes. The small caliber round exited the rear of the captain’s skull and sprayed brain matter and blood over the horrified face of the tactical officer. The bridge crew froze in place as the captain’s body crumpled to the deck. Rana swept his arm back and forth, ready to deal with any crewmembers who tried anything.

From his seat, Toro initiated a ship-wide call. Throughout the
Volar,
crewmembers stopped whatever they were doing to listen to address. "Crew of the
Volar
. Fellow Deres. This is Fleet Admiral Toro. I speak to you now on a matter of national security. Some months ago, Marshall Poll and I became aware of a number of traitorous activities being committed against our government and our people. The traitors have infected the highest echelons of our government and of our beloved navy. Even here, on our navy's flagship, the traitors hide in plain sight. Captain Wol was one of these traitors. Today, under the direct orders of Marshall Poll, loyal officers have taken control of key parts of our military and have begun arresting the traitors. Those who resist arrest will be executed on the spot. We must show no mercy to these traitorous elements. Not since the first attack by the Nilmerg has there been such a threat to the very existence of our people. The traitors will try to subvert you with their promises of peace and reconciliation with the Nilmerg, but in your hearts you know the truth. The Nilmerg cannot be trusted. So I call upon all loyal officers and men to follow me and Marshall Poll as we secure the future of all Deres."

Toro scanned the bridge to gauge the reaction of the bridge crew as he spoke. They were getting over the shock of the sudden and violent end of Captain Wol. Toro could see the doubt in their eyes. Could it be true? The captain was a traitor? They all knew Commissioner Malas had announced his intentions to hold more peace talks with the Nilmerg. On the other hand, why would the fleet admiral lie to them? He and Marshall Poll had led them into battle against the Nilmerg. Risked their own lives side by side with them. A growing number of the bridge crew began to nod. He had them.

"I ask nothing more of you than that you do your duty. In a few moments, we will be breaking orbit along with other loyal ships of the fleet and will be charting a course for Uolas, where we will join Marshall Poll, who has secured the alien database for the Deres people. With its secrets, we will forever rid ourselves of the Nilmerg threat and the traitors in our midst. Long live Deres!"

Toro sat back in his chair as throughout the ship, crewmembers began to chant, "Long live Deres!"

#

Deputy Aral Lex was running late and his constant haranguing of his driver was not going to help matters, so he forced himself to sit back in his comfortable ground car and relax. Opening his secure briefcase, he decided his time would be better spent reading the commissioner’s proposals for the next step in turning the ceasefire with the Nilmerg into a permanent peace deal. Aral frowned. There were a few in the military who were deeply opposed to any talk of peace, and the commissioner believed Marshall Poll was inactive in quelling voices of discontent. The commissioner believed, as did Aral, that it was not the military’s place to decide government policy and he was willing to take measures, however unpopular with the military, to ensure they were reminded of that. The first of these measures was the removal of Marshall Poll from his post as head of the Deres Space Forces. Of course, the commissioner would announce it was with great regret that after many years of faithful service Marshall Poll was tendering his resignation and although the commissioner pleaded with him to stay, he reluctantly bowed to the marshall's wishes. A move that the commissioner hoped would keep the honor of the marshall intact but still send the required signal to the military.

A sudden and violent change in the ground car’s direction threw Aral up against the armored passenger window. Aral experienced a sharp pain and raised his hand to his head. Withdrawing it, he found a warm, sticky substance on his fingers. He was bleeding! The ground car bounced into the air and came crashing back to earth a moment later, throwing Aral into the rear of his driver’s seat, but this time the strong arm of Galas, Aral's bodyguard, saved him from causing any more injury to himself. Galas was screaming at the driver. "The tunnel! The tunnel!"

Aral struggled against Galas' strong grip in vain as he tried to sit upright. "What is happening?"

"The capital is under attack, Deputy. Now stay down and let me do my job!"

Aral was flung forward again and the ground car’s tires screamed as the driver brought it to a halt in the middle of the tunnel. Galas touched the controls, which darkened all the vehicle’s windows and sealed the ventilation system. With deft movements, Galas secured the emergency restraints around Aral before doing up his own. Galas began speaking, but Aral realized it wasn't to him. His bodyguard was speaking into his concealed radio. “Deputy Aral is in his ground car stationary in the middle of the Zelek tunnel three Jils from the capital building..." Aral could hear the muted tones of someone on the other end of the radio interrupting Galas. The way the bodyguard’s face hardened, Aral knew it wasn't good news.

"Impact imminent, Deputy. Hold on."

Aral's world shook as if the entire planet was coming apart. A few seconds later, a howling like that of a thousand screaming poltergeists filled the tunnel and the ground car was battered as if by a thousand fists. Through the armored windows, Aral could see the other cars in the tunnel fold under the tremendous pressure, their windows imploding and slicing into their unfortunate occupants before an invisible hand picked up the cars and threw them around like toys. Aral opened his mouth to scream as, through the front windscreen, he saw a cargo truck barreling toward them in midair.

For Aral, everything went black.

#

TDF NAM RIVER - EDGE OF 23 LIBRAE SYSTEM - 83.7 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH

The urgent beeping of the comms terminal by his bed brought Vusumuzi Mkhize to instant awareness. Pushing the accept key before his eyes even fully opened, the commander of Cruiser Squadron 1.2.2 swung his legs out of the comfortable bed and onto the floor as the anxious face of the duty watch officer, Commander Li Ming Liou, filled the small screen.

"Commodore. Communications has intercepted an all-frequencies signal from Director Boone on Planet IV. She states she has armed Deres soldiers entering the base. The signal was terminated at that point."

Mkhize started to get dressed as he spoke to the terminal over his shoulder. "Anything from the
Henry Moseley
?"

"Negative. I launched a comms drone on receipt of the message from Director Boone, but so far no reply."

Mkhize sat down as he pulled his boots on. If the
Henry Moseley
hadn't replied, he had to assume it was lost. "Time for Director Boone's signal to reach us?"

"At this distance it takes... er...forty-three minutes for a radio signal to reach us."

He guessed this was the beginning of a general push by Deres forces and the seizure of the base on Planet IV and the destruction of the
Henry Moseley
were the opening shots. "OK, Li, let’s prep the surveillance drones. I want to know what the status of both the Deres and Nilmerg fleets are. If this is the start of a general conflict, then fleet movement will be a key indicator. Bring us to battle stations and warn the rest of the squadron to prepare for a fold back to Planet IV. As of now, we are operating as peacekeepers, but let’s be ready for anything."

Mkhize cut the link and headed for the bridge as the battle station’s alarm began to wail throughout the cruiser. He was reasonably confident his four cruisers were a match for anything either side could fling at him, but if the Deres had already captured the base on Planet IV, they had hostages, and Mkhize was simply not equipped to handle a surface rescue operation.

#

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT - GENEVA – EARTH – SOL SYSTEM

"...That’s the situation as of thirty minutes ago, Madam President, Councilmen," concluded Senior Force Leader Tolas from his post in Central Command under the towering Mont Salève.

In her office in the center of Geneva, President Coston allowed herself a silent curse. The Deres incursion couldn't have come at a worse moment. With Admiral Jing on Alona trying to head off a conflict between the Commonwealth and the Alonan Empire, the Persai in the middle of selecting a new head of the Council of Twelve, and the Garundans so heavily committed to their mission to relocate and secure the Others POWs, Janus was still totally reliant on Commonwealth forces until it established its own defense forces and President Crothers estimated this could take him anywhere up to a year to do. This left only the forces of Earth and the Benii in a position to react to Marshall Poll's occupation of the joint base on Planet IV. The faces of the five ministers, one from each of the member states of the expanded Commonwealth which made up the Commonwealth Council regarded her blankly from the holo cube. The Council offices were only across Lake Geneva, but for propriety's sake, they had chosen to show their independence by joining the conference call from their own sanctum.

"What are your recommendations, Senior Force Leader?" asked Rebecca, although she already knew she was not going to like what the Persai Deputy Chairman of the Combined Joint Chiefs of Staff in the holo cube was going to say.