A New Day (4 page)

"That possibility must also be weighed against the very real possibility that the other Dukes are as aware of his plans as we are and have taken steps to ensure it fails. Either way, if the Lizards are allowed to make this assault, it would be a very bad thing for all humans in the Galaxy." She paused. "How certain am I? About eighty percent certain that he will destroy the entire planet. I'm a hundred percent certain he will use those troops here in some capacity."

While she had been speaking, the other two Councilors joined the meeting.

"Councilor Juno has a question," Mother intoned.

Ben nodded to the Councilor. "Good Morning Brothers and Sisters, I apologize for being late. Prime Council, although we are gaining much knowledge of the outside world through monitoring your interactions, will you be bringing the Ranger Commander here for us to interview as well?"

Ben was surprised. He hadn't believed the Council would even want to speak to her. "Honestly, I hadn't even considered that you would want to speak to her. Although we have not hidden anything from them, the Rangers do not have an accurate idea of how large a population we actually have beyond a vague 'a lot'. I thought you would want to keep yourselves isolated from them for the time being, so I have tried to limit her interactions to just our local pod group. However, if you would like to speak to her, I can easily ask her if she would be willing to meet with all of you."

"I think it is more our own curiosity driving us, Prime. She seems a very friendly and personable individual. Very approachable and open. I think it is simply we would like to get to know her and her organization better," Councilor Juno explained.

Ben nodded his understanding. "She is a nice person and I will admit I enjoy speaking to her. Would you like me to ask if she would be willing to meet with you here, in a non-official capacity, based on your curiosity? As she has done with me, she could give you a much better idea about what we are actually facing by declaring this planet our homeworld."

"Councilor Yinshi wishes to speak," Mother said.

Ben smiled at the diminutive man. "Yes Councilor?"

"I think her insights will be very good for us to hear. I only caught part of what she told you, and I do have questions about it. If nothing else, could you inquire on our behalf if she would be willing to come here and advise us?" Yinshi asked.

Councilor Yoshi, who worked very closely with Councilor Yinshi, nodded agreement.

Looking around, Ben saw the number of green lights and nodded. "I will speak to her on your behalf. Now, the question I needed the answer to was about the modification of our ground combat drones to update them to modern standards. Do any of you have questions on this issue?"

"Councilor Rustov would like to speak," Mother said.

"Yes Councilor?" Ben asked.

"Because of the pace these events are taking, I would make a motion that we allow the Prime Council a certain leeway in making this type of decision. We all are monitoring the actions thanks to the AI network. If he makes a decision we cannot live with, we can always call him directly and speak to him about it, or contact Vice Councilor Jorga to intercede on our behalf.

"As to the upgrading of the drones; we lack a large defensive force as well as the means of creating one. The use of drone craft is a very feasible and viable alternative to this and has the added benefit of saving the lives of our soldiers. The more drones we can field, the safer and more effective we will be in the upcoming war.

"Make no mistake on this, my brothers and sisters, there is a war coming. It might not be apparent to you that we have a stake in it, but we very much do. Our very existence, not only as we are now, but also as a race, may very well hang in the balance. We have little choice but to take an active role in our own defense. I understand and agree, with hesitation, to resort to violence, but I feel we are to be given little choice in this matter, and we must prepare for it. Thank you."

"Councilor Cormier would like to comment," Mother intoned.

"Your thoughts, Councilor?" Ben asked.

Cormier nodded. "While I do support a more peaceful method of resolving issues, I think Brother Rustov might be correct in this instance. I abhor the thought of war, but he is correct, we will be given little choice in the matter. If we do not act, we could very well see an end to our species. I am aware that there are other, better equipped militaries out there that are there for our protection, but it is becoming clear that they have been taken by surprise as well.

"Out of necessity, I would like to second the motions made by Councilor Rustov."

Ben nodded. "What say you, Brothers and Sisters? Let us vote on these motions separately. Do you wish to give me leeway in making decisions for this Council in matters dealing with our defense when contacting the Council for approval might not be viable?"

"Vote is ninety-one percent in favor, zero percent opposed, nine percent abstained," Mother replied.

"Motion carries," Ben said and tapped the gavel to make it official.

"Item logged," Mother replied.

"Thank you Councilors, I will do my best to not abuse this authority. Next, Councilor Rustov made a motion to not only proceed with the upgrades to the drones in question, but to proceed with research into the development of drone technology to augment our military for our defense. Before I call for a vote on this, I would like to ask Councilor Rustov to make one clarification; as I understand this, it was your intent for this to apply to defensive technologies only, am I correct? You did not wish to include offensive drones, although most of these can be used in either role?"

Councilor Rustov nodded his head. "Yes, Prime, I did mean for defensive purposes with the understanding that some of this technology could be used offensively, I did not intend for the development of purely offensive weapons. If that decision is to be decided, it should be a separate issue with more time given to debate." 

Ben glanced over to Councilor Cormier and saw he was greatly relieved. "Does that set your mind at easy, Councilor Cormier?"

"Very much so. Merci for that clarification," Cormier replied.

"Prime Councilor, Vice Councilor Jorga Bedouin is requesting entry; she has Commander Halst with her," Mother informed him. "There has been a development."

"Please grant them entry, Mother," Ben replied. "Brothers and Sisters, it looks like you are going to get your wish sooner than expected. Mother has just informed me that Vice Council Bedouin and Commander Halst have requested entry. It seems there has been a new development."

The lift doors opened letting Jorga and Jance into the chamber. Half way to the podium, Jorga stopped and bowed to Ben. "Please forgive the interruption, Councilors. We bring urgent news we felt you would need to know of immediately."

Ben returned her bow. "Approach, Vice Councilor, and share your information. Brothers and Sisters, it is my honor to introduce to you, Ranger Commander Jance Halst of the Hyclarion Ranger Outpost."

Seeing all the active monitors surrounding the podium, Jance bowed to Ben. "It is my honor to make your acquaintance."

Ben smiled at her, "The Council had asked me to relay a request for you to come here anyway. They would like to learn more about the path we've chosen."

Jance nodded. "I would be happy to share what knowledge I can, Prime Council. However, I have just received word from my ship. Moments ago, almost a hundred Ranger vessels arrived in orbit of this planet. It would seem the Rangers have arrived. I have also been told that we are to have a very special guest."

"Considering the nature of the situation here, and who this being is, I granted them clearance to land in the main hanger of the base," Jorga replied.

"I'm sure that will be fine, Jorga, but if I may ask, who is this guest? Considering what is likely to happen here very soon, this might not be the safest place in the galaxy," Ben asked.

Jance sighed. "In that, all of my commanders agree with you, Prime. Unfortunately, the person in question believes that this will be as safe a place as any, and he would like to speak with you about your claim to this planet. No one could talk him out of it, and it isn't very healthy for one's career to argue with the Emperor."

"Wha…" Ben cleared his throat, "I'm sorry, did you just say the Emperor is coming here? As in the Hyclarion supreme leader?"

Jance nodded. "I did. In fact, he'll be here in about fifteen minutes."

"Fuck!" Ben said, forgetting where he was at the moment. He blushed when the rest of the Council laughed at his outburst. "I apologize for that vulgar outburst. If you would all excuse me, I should probably go change clothes. I don't think meeting the Emperor in my daily work clothes would make a very good first impression."

"Prime Council, I make a motion to recess immediately so you may prepare to meet the Emperor," Councilor Yinshi spoke very rapidly. "All in favor?" all the lights immediately snapped to green.

"Motion carries!" Ben said as he took off running for the lift. Jorga, Janet and Jance followed him.

"Item logged," Mother said drolly. "On behalf of the Prime Council, we bid you a good morning, Councilors."

"And to you, Mother. Watch over him for us, please," Councilor Rustov replied grinning.

"I will, Councilor," Mother replied and deactivated the channels in the Chamber.

"Mother, please search the DataNet for acceptable modern formal wear suitable for this occasion for us. Also see if you can find any images of formal dress uniforms for the Rangers and get them replicated for them. If she hasn't already done it, ask Gail to assemble an honor guard and get herself and them dressed and assembled in the main hanger in ten minutes," Ben said.

"General Greenwold has already made the arrangements, Prime. Commander, although they will not be made of the same materiel, suitable uniforms will be ready for you and your team in their quarters as soon as they arrive. I took the liberty of replicating your uniform here so you will have time to change. Councilors, your clothes are also being prepared as we speak, but the replicator pad needs to be cleared of the first delivery," Mother said.

When the lift opened, Ben rushed to the replicator in the kitchen and handed Jance her uniform. The next item to appear was for Jorga, and he handed it to her as well. After handing Janet her new outfit, Ben grabbed his own and followed the women to the bedrooms to change.

Eight minutes later, they were on their way to the base to welcome the leader of the Empire to Earth. Ben was nervous, but had control of it. "Jance, can you tell me what you know of the Emperor? What kind of being is he?"

"His Majesty Hjoolous is very young by Hyclarion standards. As such, he will be about the same height as you. However, mature adult members of his race are much taller. They are physically strong beings, but usually gentle by nature. Hjoolous is known for impulsiveness, but will listen to reason in most cases. Based on his past history, he is a fair minded ruler, not taken to the greed or insanity that his father suffered from." Jance replied as she fidgeted and readjusted her uniform.

"What is the correct form of address we should use?" Jorga asked.

"Your Majesty, or Lord Emperor are the most common, although I am told in private he prefers to forgo titles since he finds them to be redundant, but that is more rumor than truth," Jance replied. "I've never actually met him either. I've seen him on vids and the like, but I've never seen him in person, even from a distance. He is not very popular with the court since he is more concerned about the people than the corporations his father encouraged. Hjoolous feels that should be more of an Empire than a Consortium and that belief is not very popular."

"I don't imagine it is, especially from the big corporations and business concerns. However, without the people, the Corporations would have no customers," Ben replied.

"Yeah, well, the largest mega-corporation in the Empire belongs to the Emperor, although it is controlled and run by his family. They are none too pleased with some of his decrees, either, according to the news agencies." She shrugged as they arrived at the base. "I'm just a peace officer, I know even less about business than I do about the Emperor himself."

Terran Marine Base Alpha

26 Apr. 10266 CE (AD)

Sector 34871 - Great Inland Sea

Earth, Sol system

When Ben and his group arrived at the base, it was a scene of ordered chaos. The hanger had been completely cleared of all craft, and soldiers were running around all over the place on differing errands. Over by the door to the Command Center hallway, Ben saw Gail standing with a group of about fifteen men dressed in smart looking formal uniforms. He headed in that direction.

When he got closer, the whole group came to attention but Gail was the only one to salute. Ben returned the salute. "Looking good, Gail. How are the preparations going?"

"Pretty good actually. We should be ready by the time he gets here. Commander Halst, Ranger Hyroan simply didn't have time to get back up here and get changed. He is returning and will change and join you as soon as he is able. The rest of your team should be here any minute," Gail replied.

"Thank you General, this event has taken all of us by surprise." Jance replied. "We didn't even have formal uniforms for this until your Prime had them made for us."

"Well, we all do what we can for our fellow citizens," Gail replied smiling. "Sir," she said turning back to Ben. "Mother was able to get a layout of the craft being sent down, we worked up a formation that should be at least presentable." Gail explained and brought up a holograph of the hanger and showed him where everyone should stand after the craft landed. During landing, the Hanger would have to be clear of all but the landing personnel. Once the powerful engines were shut down, the honor guard, Ben, and his party would quickly move into position to welcome the Emperor.

Finally, she brought up an image of the Emperor taken from the DataNet. "Ben, I thought you might like to know what the Hyclarion’s actually look like. Other than a sash denoting rank or station, they usually don't wear clothes. His Majesty will not require a respirator for our atmosphere." The being she displayed was very human-like in appearance, however, he was covered in fur. Like the mythical Sasquatch from before The Fall, they were large, muscular beings. Gail also put an image of Ben beside that of the Emperor and a fully mature Hyclarion for comparison. Just as Jance had told him, the Emperor was about the same height as Ben, however, the other image was over a foot taller and very powerfully built.

"No jokes about the Emperor having no clothes; got it. Anything else?" Ben asked. ”No, the rest is pretty much as you'd expect. Just be respectful. As far as I can tell, most Hyclarion are pretty forgiving in the protocol department. As long as it's clear you’re trying to be respectful and polite, you can't go wrong."

"Excellent, thanks. Mother?" Ben asked. "Could you please find out the dietary requirements of the Hyclarion in general, and the Emperor in particular? We will also have to find suitable quarters for him and his retinue."

"I have already gotten the Hyclarion dietary requirements Prime, however, providing quarters suitable for the Emperor is proving a challenge. The closest area we have is the Command Pod Atrium level."

Ben was thoughtful for a moment. "Can you use that area and still permit access to the transit area?"

"I would have to have my remotes build temporary walls over the entrances, but I could modify the area. It would still be smaller than what he is used to, but I think it would suffice," Mother replied.

"Please begin recording, Mother," Ben asked.

"Recording."

"Citizens, I am temporarily closing off the Command Pod Atrium. Until further notice, please use the park levels in our sister pods. I'm sorry about the inconvenience folks, but we have a visiting VIP and our Atrium is the closest thing we have that we can use as suitable quarters. We will all still have access to the transit areas and, other than the temporary loss of the Atrium, you should not be impacted in any other way. Thank you," Ben finished and smiled. "End recording. Please play that for our people and begin modifying the atrium level as needed."

"Thank you Prime Council. I'm sure His Majesty will appreciate the gesture," Jance replied.

"I just hope it's large enough for the Hyclarion that are coming. One park I can take over without too much grumbling, but if I had to take over another, I think someone would have issues," Ben said, sighing.

"Prime Council, the ship carrying the Emperor has landed in the water and is on the way down. It will arrive in four minutes," Mother said.

Ben nodded. "Gail, you heard the lady, let's clear the hanger."

Gail nodded and began giving orders to her people. As she did, she motioned everyone to enter the hallway hatch they were standing near. As soon as the hatch closed behind them, Jance's communicator chirped at her.

"Halst here," she replied.

"Commander, we're showing an increased interest in your area by the Duke's on-planet forces. Currently, the planetary traffic authority reports an asteroid strike in your area. Several armed skippers are being sent to the area to investigate," a voice told her.

Ben shook his head. "Before the fall, we did get several meteor strikes a day; most of them so small no one even knew they had hit the planet. However, ones large enough to be seen always got people's attention, but even they usually burned up in the atmosphere. I'd be suspicious of this report; why would traffic control take an interest in something so trivial?"

Jance nodded. "Did you get that, Sir?"

"Indeed I did, Commander. Intelligence agrees with him. If you need assistance, let us know, but keep in mind that such a move would focus the Duke's attention on you," the voice replied.

"Understood, Commissioner. The man that spoke earlier is the leader of these people, Ben Bedouin. His title is Prime Council," Jance replied.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Prime Council. You sound like you would have made a very good Ranger yourself. I look forward to the day we can meet in person." As the man spoke, Jance told Ben he was the Commissioner of the local Ranger Outpost, which was on Hyclarion.

"I am honored by the compliment, Commissioner Holdst. I look forward to the day we can meet as well," Ben replied.

"Commander, I will end this before the Duke can locate the stations. I will contact you again as soon as we can," Holdst replied and ended the call.

Ben turned and faced one of the camera pick-ups in the hallway. "Brothers and Sisters, I propose we instruct Mother and her fellow AI to infiltrate and assume control of the planet's computer networks. Before you make this decision, I feel I should warn you that this, while being intended as a defensive action, is actually offensive in nature.

"This is currently a sovereign planet under the control of the Duke of Cassius. I will speak to the Emperor before I give the actual order, but by doing so, it will greatly improve the chances the Rangers have of not only finding resolution to this issue, but surviving what the Duke has planned for them. By definition this is electronic warfare and in previous doctrine was a very common first strike against an opponent.

"By taking control of the planet data nets, we will have up-to-date information on the Duke's actions and most orders he issues, at least until he realizes he has lost control of it. In all honesty, I do not even know if our AI are even capable of this action. However, while we find out and I speak to the Emperor about it, I would like you to consider giving approval. Thank you, and may wisdom guide your thoughts."

"Prime Council, to answer your question, we do have this ability and capacity. While we were designed for the purpose of assisting you, this was a primary task of ours during the war and one we are very familiar with," Mother replied.

"Thank you, Mother. I suppose I should have asked before addressing the Council but I'm worried about the Rangers in orbit and the people on the surface. If we can delay or hamper the Duke's efforts in this in any way, we might just be able to save some lives," Ben replied.

"If no one else does, I thank you for the effort, Prime," Jance said. "Since Mother has been verified, there should not be much of a problem, at least from that stand point."

Through the hatch, they could hear the roar of the engines of the craft that was landing. Ben smiled. "Well ladies, should we go say ‘Hi’ to the ruler of the galaxy?"

The ship the Emperor chose to come down in was Jance's vessel; the Dalphine. It did fit in the hanger, but just barely. It was a testimony to the skill of the pilot landing that ship in the hanger with only inches to spare for clearance. He did it without so much as scratching the paint.

Ben was amazed at the precision and execution of Gail's troops. Even though they had little time together for training, even though some of them had been former enemies before the fall, they worked and moved together like they had been doing it from birth. Ben was impressed and made a note to Mother to remind him to speak to the team as well as to place commendations in their files for their performance here today.

When Hjoolous exited the ship, as one, the entire honor guard dropped to one knee and bowed their heads. Gail, standing at their head, knelt as well, but did not bow her head so she could issue a salute, open palm over the heart, in Hyclarion fashion.

Ben also knelt to one knee, but did not bow his head. On each side of him, and one step back, both Councilor Carlyle and Commander Halst knelt and bowed their heads.

Hjoolous walked up to Ben and bowed from the waist in an almost oriental style. "Please, Prime Council, rise. You are not a part of our empire yet, so such supplication is not required."

Ben nodded his head. "Forgive me for disagreeing with you, Majesty. Even though we may not be officially part of the Empire we consider ourselves to be part of it. As such, we felt we needed to show you respect in some form, however inadequate. This is how we chose to show it. I am Benjamin Anthony Bedouin, I represent the remaining members of the human race from the war with the Sal'andori and the Lizarrus. I serve as the Prime Councilor for our 'Council of Elders'." He turned to Janet Carlyle. "This is Councilor Janet Carlyle. In addition to serving on the Council, she is also my intelligence adviser." He waited until the two greeted each other before turning to Jance Halst. "This is Commander Jance Halst of your own Hyclarion Ranger Outpost. We invited her here for multiple reasons, but primarily because we could not ignore the threat that we saw to the Empire." Again he waited while the two greeted each other. "On behalf of my people, welcome to Terra, Majesty."

"I am Hjoolous, leader of the Hyclarion Imperial Consortium, and serve as Emperor. On behalf of the Empire, I greet you in kind. Thank you, Prime Council Bedouin. Although it is only rumor, I believe I might have had an ancestor that crash landed here long ago. At least, that is the theory now. She disappeared in this sector before the Lizarrus War." He then turned and introduced the beings that had accompanied him. The first was First Admiral Yolinar; the senior military commander of the Empire, second only to the Emperor in the military. The second person was a female, Glandril, who served as a representative of the Consortium Senate.

"An ugly business, war. I've been told of the plot you discovered. May I ask how certain of it you are? I only ask because if it's true there will never be peace between the Lizarrus and the Empire again," Hjoolous asked as Ben led the small group back towards the exit.

Ben frowned in thought. "Nothing in this is an absolute certainty, Majesty. However, it seems that every hour that passes we learn something new that supports it. Your quarters are not yet ready, Majesty. If we could temporarily use one of the briefing rooms here, we can present our evidence to you while they are completed."

"That would be just fine, Prime Council. I must admit that both Yolinar and I are very anxious to learn what you know. While we are here, we will also work out your status in the Empire. Now that humans have a home world, it will change things rather radically in the Empire," Hjoolous replied.

"Majesty, are we certain of that claim? We have yet to see proof of this," Glandril asked.

Hjoolous snorted and gestured to the huge hanger. "Look around you, Senator. Do you see where we are? Ask yourself one thing; if this were simply a ploy, how could these people have built this under the eyes of a human-hating lizard that would rather have them for lunch? I know you did not get much time to review the information we have on the way here, but the simple fact that we are here can have no other explanation.

"I will grant that they could have simply discovered this bunker as a left-over from the previous occupants of this world, but if that were the case, why is everything written in the ancient human tongue? Why are all the facilities here built to accommodate humans? If you were to analyze one of these walls I have little doubt you would find that it is exactly the age these people claim it to be. No, we have long suspected this was the human world, but Tammerain would never let us prove it."

Ben bowed to the Senator. "If it would help, we did rescue a prospector from the surface. She can provide testimony as to her discoveries here from before the time we rescued her if you wish?"

Ben noticed that Gail had introduced herself to the Royal Guard captain and they were talking quietly, no doubt working out security arrangements for the Emperor while he was here.