The Price of Liberty (Empire Rising Book 4) Read online

  “I am happy I was able to help,” James said, genuinely pleased. “I watched you closely when you started participating in the war simulations with the Sub Lieutenants. You showed yourself to be a fast learner. No doubt there will still be more hurdles in your way. Some in the navy will always class you as just a Science Officer. But I am sure you can overcome them. If you work hard, a ship of your own someday may just be on the cards.”

  “I hope so Sir,” Scott said. “And I know I couldn’t have a better teacher to prepare me for that than you.”

  “I don’t know if that’s true,” James said. “But I hope I can teach you a thing or too. Now, let’s get to the second question I wanted to ask you. When you were speaking with the Admiralty, did you talk to them about the alien ship you saw?”

  Scott’s face relaxed and a look of tension passed from her eyes. More than ever James could see the woman he had first met. He had thought it had just been her injuries hiding her beauty, now it was clear there was something else.

  “So you believe me?” Scott almost pleaded.

  “Yes,” James said. “Of course, I do. I trust you. I take it no one else has?”

  “I tried to convince them,” Scott said. “But they would not listen. I was laughed out of the navy’s Science Foundation buildings and I almost didn’t pass my psych evaluations because I refused to accept what I saw could have been hallucinations as a result of my injuries.”

  “That’s absurd,” James responded. “The Overlord had to get his advanced technologies from somewhere. We sure as hell know the Kulreans didn’t give them any. They have no weapons technologies.”

  “I know,” Scott agreed. “But my superiors told me the Vestarians turned the Overlord’s mountain complex upside down and couldn’t find any trace of a ship. Whatever exploded down there didn’t leave a trace of itself.”

  “But Jil’lal was there, she saw the ship,” James said. “Can’t she back you up?”

  “No,” Scott replied. “I wish she could, but whatever the ship hit her with to knock her out wiped her memory. She has no memory of the attack on the complex at all.”

  “Damn,” James said. “So you are the only survivor who saw the alien ship. That still doesn’t explain why they don’t believe you.”

  “I think it is just too far-fetched. The ship I talked with claimed to be an artificial intelligence. We abandoned such technologies centuries ago. After the Concordant Incident, any research into AI was made illegal. I think the Science Foundation believes other alien species would have come to the same conclusion. The Kulreans certainly did, there is no sign of any AI’s in their civilization.”

  “That doesn’t mean other species may not try it, especially if they are a civilization who goes around giving advanced weapons to pre-space flight species. No one with friendly intentions would do such a thing. We need to know who this third species is. It should be of vital importance.”

  Scott couldn’t help but smile.

  “What is it?” James asked.

  “I’m just happy to have someone who agrees with me,” Scott explained. “I felt alone for months as I tried to convince people. I even tried talking to the head of Royal Space Naval Intelligence. He listened to me, but I’m not sure he thought anything more about me after I left.”

  “He must have taken you somewhat seriously if he gave you an appointment,” James said.

  “He didn’t,” Scott replied. “I ambushed him when he was having a private lunch to himself.”

  “Oh,” James said, “Well then I’m surprised he gave you any time at all.”

  “What do we do about it now?” Scott asked, not eager to relive her failed attempts to reach out to the Admiralty.

  “I’m not sure,” James said. “Right now we have the Indians to worry about. Our focus has to be there. But once we get back to Earth, we are going to try to get more people on our side. I can get my uncle to listen to your story. And we can contact Jil’lal on Vestar. Maybe she can look into things for us. If there really was an alien ship on Vestar giving the Overlord advanced weapons technologies, then we need to know who put it there.”

  “That’s for sure,” Scott said. “Though I think we will have a hard time convincing anyone. The working theory is that the Overlords managed to get their hands on some Kulrean technology and reverse engineer new weapons from there.”

  “I suppose it is possible,” James said reluctantly. “But I believe you, and if there really is another alien race out there, we need to be preparing to meet them. However, for now we need to focus on Endeavour.” The Admiralty’s slowness to accept Scott’s story was troubling but there was nothing he could do.

  “Tell me about my acting Science Officer?” James asked. “Your second in command, Ensign Dugan, has been filling in for you since your injuries. Yet he is hardly experienced enough to take over full time. I thought the Admiralty would have assigned me a replacement months ago.”

  “They’re having trouble finding volunteers after my experience, one look at me and most of the naval researchers run a mile,” Scott said.

  “That’s not hard to believe,” James replied. “Actually, if it’s not too personal, can I ask, why didn’t you allow the naval doctors to completely remove the scar tissue from your face? If it was down to cost, I would be more than willing to handle your medical bills.”

  “That’s not it at all,” Scott said. She made to say something further and then lapsed into silence.

  “It’s ok if you don’t want to tell me,” James said. “We can move on.”

  “No, I do,” Scott said, still looking at the ground. “It’s just not something I like to talk about.”

  She lapsed into another silence, not wanting to force her, James gave her a few moments. “You see,” Scott said slowly. “Ever since I was a young girl my father wanted me to be a scientist. I wanted to travel the stars, but he wanted me to be his pretty scientist who would get married and live on Earth for the rest of my life. When I was young I followed my father’s guidance. But deep down I knew what I wanted. The Science Officer posting gave me the chance to change that and I embraced it with open arms. You then gave me the opportunity to grow into something more than a scientist.

  “I am proud of my scars,” Scott continued, finally raising her head. “They are a reminder of who I can be, of what I can do. My father hated them and insisted that he would pay for more advanced surgery to undo all the damage. I refused. I knew that if I went back to the way I looked before, he would only see me as a scientist again, that everyone would. My scars show that I am something different. This is how I want to be viewed.”

  “I see,” James said, not entirely sure that he did. If there was one thing his marriage was teaching him, it was that women were complicated beings.

  “Well, I just want you to know the offer is there. You don’t need scars to remind me that you are far more than just a scientist who can only sit at her research desk.”

  “Thank you Captain, I appreciate that.”

  “I have one last question,” James said. “Do you know why I assigned you to assist Lieutenant Becket at the tactical console?”

  “Because of my inexperience,” Scott answered. “I do not yet have the experience to be responsible for a department on my own. I know that.”

  “That is partly it,” James acknowledged. “But, she is one of the best tacticians I have commanded, you can learn a lot from her. If you are going to command a warship of your own one day, then Becket can get you started on the skills you will need to take a King’s ship into battle.”

  “A warship?” Scott questioned. “I only hope to command an exploration frigate one day.”

  “Well then you need to aim higher,” James said. “I have been busy over the last few weeks, but that is not the only reason I waited until now to meet with you privately. I wanted to see how you managed as a Sub Lieutenant. I was in half a mind to promote you back to your previous role as Science Officer.

  “Don’t worry,” James sa
id quickly, raising his hands to ward off the protest that was forming on Scott’s lips. “I am smart enough to realize that would be a mistake.

  “What I’m trying to say is, I have been impressed over the last two weeks. I think you are right where you are meant to be. Make the best of the opportunities you have, but don’t throw away your past accomplishments. You have skills and knowledge that will set you apart from other naval officers. You just need to find a way to use them.”

  “Thank you, Sir,” Scott said. “Your words are very encouraging; I just hope I can live up to your expectations.”

  “I expect you to,” James said, fully aware that his uncle had said the very same things to him more than once. I guess you are rubbing off on me uncle, he thought with a smile.

  “Captain,” a new voice said from the COM unit. “We have just dropped out of shift space as scheduled. The Flagship has sent a message to the fleet, all Captains and First Lieutenants are to repair on board forthwith.”

  “Acknowledge the message,” James said, “Then tell Chief Driscoll to prep the shuttle for launch.”

  “Aye Sir,” the bridge officer said.

  “Well, I guess that concludes our meeting,” James said. “Don’t ever feel like you are alone Sub Lieutenant, if you remember anything more from the Overlord’s Mountain complex, or you are having any other difficulties, you can come to me.”

  “Thank you, Captain,” Scott said as she stood. “That means a lot to me.”

  After Scott walked out of his office, James called for his steward, Liam Fox, to come and assist him into his dress uniform. Rear Admiral Rooke would no doubt be expecting his Captains to come dressed for the occasion.

  As he donned his best uniform, he thought over what Scott had told him months ago about what had happened in the Overlord’s mountain complex, before the whole Indian situation had boiled over. There is another threat out there, there has to be, it’s the best explanation for how the Vestarians got their hands on advanced weapons technologies, James thought. Knowing it was one thing, knowing what to do with it when no one else believed it was another thing entirely.

  Chapter 3 – HMS Hood

  There has always been a HMS Hood in the Empire’s navy. The name is a holdover from the British navy. Once HM stood for the British king, now our Emperor is the only human who takes such an honorific for himself.

  -Excerpt from Empire Rising, 3002 AD

  24th June 2467 AD. HMS Hood, near the New France System

  “She’s beautiful,” Mallory said as he stared out the shuttle’s view port at HMS Hood.

  “I can’t disagree with that,” James replied. He had asked the pilot to fly them around the battlecruiser before they entered its hanger bay to land.

  “I hear the new battleships won’t look nearly as streamlined,” Mallory commented. “But then, I imagine they will look impressive in their own way.”

  “I believe that when you are commanding a vessel with a broadside of thirty missiles you’ll not be too worried about how your ship looks,” James responded.

  “Would you like to command one someday?” Mallory asked.

  “A battleship?” James said. “I don’t know; I haven’t thought about it. To be honest, I have never thought that far in the future. Five or ten years from now we are likely to have as many as ten battleships in service. Even so, I don’t see myself being picked to Captain one of them.”

  “But what if it was offered to you?” Mallory pushed, not entirely in agreement with James’ pessimistic view of his career prospects.

  “I don’t know,” James repeated. “A battleship command would mean being assigned to one of the large fleets. That’s ok in times of war as it guarantees you will see action. But normally, you’d be stuck patrolling the same system over and over again. I like commanding Endeavour, things are always different.

  “What about you?” James asked. “What kind of ship do you dream of commanding one day?”

  “I’m not sure,” Mallory said, suddenly embarrassed. “I’ll just be happy to get a command.”

  “Nonsense,” James laughed. “If you do well on this mission, you could put yourself to the front of the queue of young officers ready to take command of a frigate or a corvette.”

  “Maybe,” Mallory said. “Why do you think Rooke wants us all on his ship?”

  “I imagine he plans to fill us in on our real mission,” James said. “And to assign us to our flotillas.”

  “What do you mean?” Mallory asked. “Aren’t we going to fight our way through to Haven?”

  “Come now Lieutenant,” James said. “The rest of the fleet may not know about the Gift, but you do. If we were going to hit Haven, don’t you think we would be taking the quickest way?”

  “I just thought that Rooke wanted to defeat the Indian fleet in their colonies before we proceeded to Haven,” Mallory said.

  “That’s one strategy we could employ,” James said. “But it would be risky. A defeat now would put an end to any attempt to free Haven.”

  “So we’re not going to Haven right away?” Mallory said.

  “No, not right away, as to what we are doing. I only know because the Prime Minister included me in a few COBRA meetings before we left for our scouting mission to Haven. If the general plan has stayed the same, we will be taking a few detours. Exactly what they will be, we will have to wait for Rooke to tell us.”

  “I see,” Mallory said, not entirely sure what James was getting at. Something else James had said had caught his interest. “Do you think that we will be reassigned to a new flotilla then?”

  “I hope so,” James replied, careful to keep his tone neutral. He didn’t want Mallory to start to worry that there was a rift between his Captain and the fleet’s Admiral. “If we are going to be doing some of the types of missions I think we will be doing, then Endeavour should be operating alone, or as part of a small specialized fleet with ships like Captain Gupta’s Discovery.”

  “Well that is something to look forward to,” Mallory said with a grin. “Now that we’re at war there can be no reason for anyone to complain about us sneaking up and saying hello to a few Indian warships.”

  “I would hope not,” James said. “But let’s just wait and see what happens,” he added, not wanting to get Mallory’s hopes up. The fact that Rooke had assigned Endeavour to the flagship’s flotilla suggested the Rear Admiral didn’t envision Endeavour carrying out independent missions any time soon.

  “I guess we’ll find out soon enough,” Mallory said as a jolt reverberated through the shuttle, letting them know it had just touched down on Hood’s hanger floor.

  As both men walked down the shuttle’s ramp they were greeted by a Captain with a large, welcoming smile on her face. As she approached, James pulled her into a hug. “It’s good to see you in the flesh Captain,” he said.

  “You too James,” Gupta responded as they broke apart. “This is my First Lieutenant,” she continued as she stepped back to allow James to see who was standing beside her. “I think you both know each other already.”

  “Lieutenant Romanov,” James said as he clasped the man’s hand. “You are looking well, congratulations on your promotion.”

  “Thank you, Sir,” Romanov said. “I believe the Admiralty thought my time serving as your Second Lieutenant aboard Ghost qualified me to serve on Discovery.”

  “Ha,” Gupta said as she elbowed Romanov in the side. “I think it was more down to the fact I requested Romanov as my First Lieutenant when I took command. If it wasn’t for me, he would be back at Admiralty House pushing paper.”

  “I find that hard to believe,” James responded. “Romanov always was the quicker learner out of the two of you.”

  Gupta faked a look of shocked disbelief before she turned to Malloy and held out her hand. “It’s a pleasure to see you again Lieutenant,” she said. “I guess I will have to do the honor of introducing you as your Captain seems to be too busy insulting me. Lieutenant Romanov, this is Lieutenant Mallory.�
�

  “Good to meet you,” Mallory said as he shook Romanov’s hand.

  “And I you,” Romanov said just as formally.

  “Now, we better get a move on,” Gupta said to James. “You were one of the last Captains to land, we don’t want to be late.”

  “That we don’t,” James said. “Have you been on Hood before?”

  “A couple of times for fleet briefings,” Gupta answered.

  “Then lead on,” James responded as he motioned for her to take the lead.

  *

  Five minutes later James, Mallory, Gupta and Romanov all shuffled their way into Hood’s large briefing room. Even though the flagship had been specifically designed for such circumstances, the room was packed to overflowing with Captains and Lieutenants tightly squeezed together.