Oh hey, more free time than I expected. Early update for Bandwagon victory. Armed forces list has been updated with some new stuff.
***
Escorting the Spirit of Adventure
“Good news,” grunts Captain Grimrock. “The Fifth Fleet will be meeting us at Moon L4.”
We're a week into our escort journey with The Spirit of Adventure, the Britannian freighter that had been hired to ferry the refugees, and making good progress. Everyone seems to be cheerful thus far, and I even spotted Minister Azo sparring with Butterfield in the gym. Rose and Babs, the security guys, had been dragged into the match after cheering on the sidelines, and gotten their asses kicked despite their youth.
Grimrock continues, “Fifth Fleet has been assigned the new Arina II battleships, which are basically just old Arinas refurbished to carry CFs instead of fighters. You know what that means, right?”
“Of course,” I reply. “They've started the production run for the CF based off Anhur's preliminary data. The XM-26 Onuris. It's a scaled down version of Anhur, but it still matches the enemy's Vizala II in performance. I didn't expect them to produce it so soon, though.”
“I suppose war makes everything go faster. Usually it would take years for a model to go from prototype to mass production, but we needed a frame of our own urgently.” remarks Grimrock with a grin. “Amazing what people can do when they're desperate. There's practically a new toy popping up every month or so on both sides.”
“The Empire has far superior industrial capabilities thanks to its factories in the African continent. Now that mass production of CFs is underway, it should only be a matter of time before the UNS-Indus are defeated.” I muse.
“Huh, I wouldn't be so sure about that, kiddo. Them bastards on the other side are pretty inventive themselves.” muttered the captain, looking at a report that just came in. “We lost Marduk's Navel to an enemy attack.”
That isn't good news. “I heard from the captain of the Kalai that the Third Fleet was stationed there. Eighteen cruisers, three battleships. It's not a small force, and the asteroid itself has plenty of defenses. I think we would have noticed if the enemy was mobilizing a fleet large enough to take Marduk's Navel. Did they send the Scarlet Lightning there?”
Grimrock shakes his head. “No, that's not it. They unveiled some sort of monster-sized ship. Our people are calling it a super heavy carrier-battleship – it's almost three times as long as the flagship of our space forces, the Ankida. Looking at the after-action report, it's armed to the teeth and carries enough CFs to overwhelm an entire fleet by itself. Of course, it was sent there with the support of the UNS's Second Fleet, so losing Marduk's Navel was probably a foregone conclusion.”
“What happened to the Kalai and the Sarmatia?” I ask. They had left us to undertake repairs at Marduk's Navel.
“Sarmatia was lost with all hands, while the fate of the Kalai is unknown. Well, perhaps we should count our lucky stars that we weren't there.”
“We might have been able to make a difference.”
“You think?” said the captain. “True enough, you are good in that frame. I wouldn't want to be captaining any battleship going up against you, not even in the Ankida.”
“That's some praise, Captain, but don't forget what happened in the last sortie.”
“If you're talking about the Scarlet Lightning, that's a different matter. You held your own, son, and that's more than most people can say. You've earned the right to display just a bit of confidence. An ace pilot can't be selfless and humble all the time, or people will lose their faith in him. Hell, haven't you seen the looks the crew are giving you? You really are fast becoming an inspirational figure of some sorts... Which, in itself, poses another problem,” finishes Grimrock darkly.
“Politics?” I venture.
“Yeah. Shine too bright and you gotta watch your back. That's a problem we have here in the Empire, where the interests of the ISC and the interests of the Empire don't always coincide. It seems to me that you've made a powerful enemy.”
The Empress. That might be a problem later down the road.
“I'll just have to make myself indispensable then, don't I, captain?”
“Hah.” he grunts. “Like that'd work with those buffoons. Nothing's indispensable to them except for their own skin. Anyway, just watch your back. Though I figure the princess's already watching it for you, it helps if you can think of something on your own.”
“Yes sir.”
In truth, I already am. The information I had Yua retrieve from the Crab Frame before we destroyed it was... interesting, to say the least. The logs from the frame indicated that the test data sent out to the carrier transporting it was to be analysed by one Mattaki Adum. Further investigation showed him to be an ISC engineer. I'm having Yua delve deeper into this, but it's likely that at the very least, certain factions in the ISC are attempting to profit from both sides of the war.
***
“The captain is right, Senya. The interests of the ISC and the interests of the Empire don't always coincide.” sighs Kyrie. “Which is why I am going to do something about it.”
“What would that be?”
“Revoking the ISC's long-held monopoly on just about every facet of Imperial life.”
It sounds like an immense undertaking. I wouldn't even want to attempt it peacefully; it would be much easier to kill the directors and become a tyrant than strip them of their power.
“So you're going to execute the entire board? I'm with you there.”
“What? Oh, no. Perish the thought. You've become a particularly bloodthirsty hound, haven't you? Is it all the fighting?”
“I've always been for the practical approach.” I grin.
“Hm. You underestimate Papa and I. We've been working on it for some time. Did you think I spent my time in the Academy for naught?”
“Actually, I thought you spent your time there to sadistically-”
She shuts me up by hitting me over the head gently – by her standards – with a chop. “Hush. My ascension provides us with an opportunity that we cannot let slip. All I am doing will be to replace the old Council of Nobles with a cabinet of ministers appointed on meritocracy.”
“I don't think that would get rid of their influence.” I point out.
“No, it wouldn't,” she agrees, “But it would reduce it, as no longer do I have to appoint ministers from the council itself, which is practically synonymous with the board.”
“I'm not sure they'll cave in so easily...”
“As the new president of the corporation, Mother is in excellent position to rein in the board. She already has their fear and respect. In the end, their profits would not really suffer, and I think that's what matters to them the most.”
“You trust the Empress?” I ask.
“She might be cold, but she is still my mother. Trust me on this. She wouldn't harm me.” she says defensively. I trust that she wouldn't harm Kyrie, but me, on the other hand... that's another matter, no? Still, I can tell she's not in a mood to discuss the Empress's dislike for me right now. We would just get into another heated debate about why I'm unable to impress her mother sufficiently. Perhaps I should've licked a bit more boots.
“By the way, I've spoken with Minister Azo about the current war. He thinks we can end it.” remarks Kyrie casually.
“Let me guess, the Higashi offer a treaty agreeing to total Indus independence?”
“Clever boy.” she grins. Well, that is why the war had started after all. “Apparently we're now in a good position to negotiate, and if the Indus get what they want, they shouldn't have any more reason to fight. Once that happens, the UNS will probably decide to agree to a ceasefire.”
I suppose with the production of the Onuris frames, the Empire and the Higashi are in a position to fight back, having finally caught up with the arms race. Rather than causing more needless loss of lives, the Higashi see that they can gain the moral high ground here by offering a 'surrender' of sorts even though it would be trivial for them to continue the war. It's not a bad move, politically and economically – the Empire would prove to be a more beneficial partner than the Indus were. Domestically, they would have some explaining to do, but that is not a huge problem.
“When is this going to happen?” I ask Kyrie.
“Soon, before the year is over. Papa is going to focus on ending the war as his last act in power. Then we can go back to living normal lives... well, as normal as it can be.”
I understand what she means. After this, she will be the new Empress. Her life will be different, no matter what.
***
Ten days into the escort journey, we finally run into trouble. Three UNS warships corner us, refusing to allow us passage.
“This is a violation of the Ankida Convention.” repeats Captain Grimrock. “We are a vessel performing a peaceful escort of the Spirit of Adventure. You cannot deny us passage.”
“We would be fools to let you pass. We know this ship. You carry that black frame, don't you? You think we're just going to let you slip by us?” retorts the enemy captain.
“Don't worry about us, Captain Grimrock. If need be I'll ram the enemy ships to allow you to escape.” interrupts the Spirit of Adventure's young captain, Garland. Apparently he once served under Grimrock and worships the older man. Grimrock told me he was thrown out of the navy for his great love of unnecessarily risky maneuvers. I can see why.
Captain Grimrock exhales in exasperation and looks at Naim. “Lieutenant, get ready to sortie. We might have to fight our way out. Protect the Spirit of Adventure if you can, but take no unnecessary risks.”
The Anhur has already been equipped with the barrier technology I saw on the Crab Frame, though due to its less powerful generator we had to scale down the performance. In a pinch, I should still be able to take a direct hit from a warship's turret. Before I can go anywhere, a transmission arrives on all channels.
“This is the Mehrgarh of the Indus Confederation.”
I hear Jean let slip a “Fuck.”
Grimrock's brow furrows at the Mehrgarh's arrival. This is the worst possible time for the Scarlet Lightning to arrive.
“We are here to assist in the escort of the Spirit of Adventure. All hostile actions against the Spirit of Adventure and its escorts will be interpreted as a direct threat to our wellbeing.” They said escorts. It looks like we were included in that comment.
Almost as an afterthought, the Mehrgarh announced, “Major Rei Wakayama will be overseeing this escort mission personally.”
A few minutes later, the UNS cruisers retreat. The Mehrgarh continues to follow us at a safe distance. Apparently they are serious about this.
“This is Captain Grimrock, hailing the Mehrgarh.”
“This is Captain Raviputra of the Mehrgarh. What is the matter?”
“About this escort mission...”
“We mean to conduct it to the end, Captain Grimrock. The Major was particularly stubborn about this, and I'm afraid that I am unable to overrule her instructions at this time.”
“Understood, Captain Raviputra.” Turning to the rest of us, the captain scratches his beard. “Well, you heard what he said.”
***
A. Advocate the idea to abandon the freighter without warning. If the Mehrgahr makes good on its promise and sticks to the freighter, we can lose it and get to Moon L4 ahead of time. If it doesn't, we'll still be ahead of it. Since they could have attacked us just now, I can only assume the good Major has a taste for honourable action... there's a good chance they wouldn't follow, opting to keep to their word. It's only tactically sound to run – it might not be winning hearts and minds, but there's little tangible disadvantage to being a dick in times of war.
B. Stick to the freighter. As they could have attacked us but refrained from doing so, they probably won't do so for the duration of this journey. Besides, the Fifth Fleet is meeting us at Moon L4. They won't be able to try anything then – even the Scarlet Lightning will be in deep trouble if we down her only carrier. To be honest, I'm being a bit selfish here; I have a pretty good idea as to who the Major really is. If I'm not mistaken, she'll probably want to meet with me soon. I'm interested in having a chat with her too, on rare neutral ground... like the Spirit of Adventure.
C. Run off to Anhur to sortie and strike down the Mehrgarh now, while they think they're being honourable goody two shoes. All is fair in war. I knew she had some sort of honourable streak to her... escorting refugees to lure the Scarlet Lightning in worked JUST AS PLANNED! Even Grimrock wouldn't expect this, but that's why I'm the resident genius. All will be forgiven as long as I obtain results.
