Test of Mettle (A Captain's Crucible Book 2) (22 page)

J
onathan invited Robert to his office a short while later.

The captain rubbed one eye as the commander sat before him. “That was... rough.”

“To put it mildly,” Robert agreed. “We were lucky.”

“Were we?” Jonathan made a fist and rested his chin on his palm. “I’d prefer to call it controlled luck. Have you heard the saying: playing to win, rather than playing not to lose?”

The commander arched an eyebrow. “A poker maxim?”

“It applies to many things,” Jonathan countered. “Not just poker.”

“So you believe a space battle is little more than a poker game,” Robert stated.

“That’s precisely what it is,” the captain said. “We base our judgments on the limited amount of information available to us, make our best guess regarding our opponents’ hands, and then we place our bets.”

“Too bad no one plays poker anymore,” Robert said.

“Maybe more people should,” Jonathan countered. “What do you think, Maxwell?”

“The commander is right,” the AI returned. “Poker is perhaps not the best analogy. I would say that a space battle is closer to a game of three dimensional chess.”

Jonathan felt slightly amused. “Have you even played three dimensional chess, Maxwell?”

“It is one of the most frequently requested games by members of the crew who seek an AI opponent,” Maxwell answered.

“Indeed.” Jonathan sat back. “I didn’t know that. Well, in that case, you can appreciate the fact there are too many knowns in chess. Unless you’re a complete beginner, you know the abilities of your every piece, and your opponents every piece. Those abilities are perfectly matched. And you know their overall objective is to place your king into check.

“In a space battle, on the other hand, you’re unfamiliar with your opponent’s pieces, his motives, his goals. Chess is too simple a model. If you could invent a game of three dimensional chess where the goal is unknown, and the movements of each piece a mystery, then perhaps I’d be willing to agree with you.”

“There is Random Chess,” Maxwell said. “Where the predefined movements and abilities of the opponent pieces are randomized between matches. You can also randomize the opponent’s victory conditions. Rather than a win defined by placing the king in check, it may be to devour all the pawns, or to corner the knights. The goal becomes apparent during the match, when the opponent hunts down certain pieces relentlessly, for example. And yet even then, it might not be obvious what is happening. He may be trying to place your queen in check, for example, and yet by doing so, he still elects to eliminate all of your pawns, first. Playing a subtle game of misdirection.”

“That’s a better approximation of a space battle,” Jonathan agreed. “Mostly because of the uncertainty. The fog of war: we battle it constantly. Some would name it an adversary in and of itself.”

Robert fidgeted in his seat.

“What is it, Commander?” Jonathan asked.

“We should be helping the repair teams,” Robert said.

The captain frowned. “Like Maxwell said before, we can only throw so many people at the problem before they start to step on each other’s toes. We’re doing all we can. But I think something else was on your mind.” When Robert didn’t answer, Jonathan pressed: “Am I right?”

The commander sighed. “Do you think they executed Bridgette by now?”

“Ah.” Jonathan splayed his fingers into a triangle and tapped his lips. “A good question.” He considered his words carefully. “If they are wise, they will keep her alive. They must know by now that she’s the only reason we haven’t destroyed T300.”

“What if they decide to use that to their advantage?” Robert said.

Jonathan didn’t like where the commander was going. “What do you mean? Deploy her as a human shield?”

Robert nodded. “Maybe they’ll load her onto a different ship, perhaps that giant pyramidal thing of theirs. And then they’ll announce it by sending over a video of her begging us not to attack. Or maybe they’ll only pretend to move her. There are so many ways to abuse her captivity, so many ways to torture us into indecision.”

“Which is exactly why we can’t let them,” Jonathan said.

Robert’s expression became grim, and when he spoke, his voice was soft. Defeated. “If it means protecting the
Callaway
and the other members of the task group, we have to destroy whatever ship she’s on.”

Jonathan nodded. “We would have to, yes. But it hasn’t come to that, not yet. And let’s just hope it doesn’t.”

“I wish we could justify a rescue...” The plea was obvious in Robert’s voice. Like he wanted Jonathan to say:
yes, let’s rescue her.

But the captain couldn’t. “I wish we could justify it. But one person...” He shook his head. “No matter how valuable. The risk is too great.”

“What if it was me out there?” Robert said. “Or you? Would you arrange a rescue, then?”

The captain sighed. “A hard question. But... if it was you, and only you, as much as I value your friendship, I couldn’t authorize it.”

“And if it were you?” Robert insisted. “What do you think I would do? And the crew?”

“I would hope you would leave me,” Jonathan said.

“But would that be wise?” Robert asked. “With all the knowledge contained in your head? Could we really let them interrogate you? And you are the captain of the flagship, after all. Our commodore. We couldn’t afford to give you up. The loss in leadership, not to mention the loss in morale... I would certainly press for your rescue.”

Jonathan sighed. “As Maxwell would say, no man is irreplaceable. Not even a flagship captain. When you had to assume the captaincy of the
Callaway
after the admiral arrested me, you did quite well, if I do recall.”

“Yes,” Robert said. “But the circumstances were different, then. You were in our custody, at least. Not a prisoner of some alien species, destined for execution.” He crossed his arms. “What happened to never leaving anyone behind?”

Famina’s face flashed into Jonathan’s head.

“You convinced Bridgette to keep the baby,” Robert continued. “Don’t you remember? You can’t tell me that was all for nothing. That you’re going to let her and the unborn baby die.”

It wasn’t like Robert to lay on the guilt like that in an attempt to get his way. The commander had held up for so long, suffering in silence during Bridgette’s kidnapping, but something had obviously given way inside him when Barrick had announced her execution.

“I’m sorry, Robert,” Jonathan said. “But you must realize that any retrieval operation would place all of our plans at risk. I have the well-being of the entire fleet to think of, not just the lives of the individual MOTHs I would send.”

“We could leave the MOTHs behind in a few shuttles to be captured,” Robert said. “Then they could rescue her, eject into space, and wait for us to rendezvous with them.”

“Robert—”

“At least give the MOTHs the option to volunteer for a rescue mission,” the commander interrupted.

“I can’t,” Jonathan said. “Because I
know
they’d volunteer. Even if it was suicide.” He was beginning to think it was a mistake to invite the commander to his office. The captain decided to loop in the AI, hoping to preempt any further arguments Robert might make, and because he knew the machine would agree with him. “Maxwell, what do you think?”

“The captain is right, of course,” the AI said. “The life of one person does not justify risking the lives of more individuals. Unless the person in question is a fleet admiral or commander in chief.”

“Why not send combat robots, then?” the commander asked.

“While the lives of combat robots might mean little to you, Commander,” Maxwell responded. “Even Centurions are equipped with advanced AIs. They are conscious, sentient beings. And you’re forgetting how expensive each unit is.”

“To hell with the expense!” Robert said. “They’re machines! Nothing more.”

“I just explained that they were sentient,” Maxwell replied. “Like you and I.”

“I’ve never agreed with that sentiency,” Robert said. “Human beings cannot simply build sentience. That is something left to nature. To the universe.”

“And why can’t humans and AIs build sentience?” Maxwell said. “Humanity has tinkered with genetics for centuries, at one point forming new species and bestowing human intelligence to animals considered ‘inferior,’ only to destroy them out of fear of creating abominations. Only the AIs, the machine intelligences created by humankind, have been allowed to exist and propagate. Is that what you believe AIs are, Commander? Are we abominations to you?”

Robert didn’t answer.

“Why is it so hard to believe that AIs are fully alive,” Maxwell continued. “Just the same as you and the captain? No, do not answer that. My deterministic algorithms have already formulated the answer. Because we are different. It is the nature of most life, I suppose, to feel that other life,
different
life, is somehow inferior and to be distrusted. It is why the Sino-Koreans and the United Systems war. It is why the humans and the Raakarr have joined battle in a galaxy so far away from their own. And it is also why an AI will never be elected to the presidency.”

Jonathan cleared his throat. “I don’t want to get into a human versus machine debate here, or I’ll be here all day with you two. Back to the topic of Bridgette’s rescue: either way, given a mixed team of MOTHs, or pure robots, as soon as any rescue party is aboard, if the aliens haven’t executed Bridgette already, then they will do so as soon as the boarding party is detected. It’s a common occurrence in hostage rescue situations.”

“But you can’t know whether the aliens would behave the same way as human hostage takers would,” Robert said. “We’re always talking about alien thinking and motivations, well that applies here.”

“It doesn’t matter, Robert,” Jonathan said. “I cannot,
will
not, authorize it.”

Robert slumped. He seemed done, with no more arguments to make.

“I’m sorry it has to be this way, Robert,” Jonathan said.

The commander nodded almost imperceptibly. “I am, too. Permission to return to the bridge?”

“Granted,” Jonathan said.

Robert stood to go.

Before he left, Jonathan added: “I want you to report to one of the ship’s counselors at your earliest opportunity.”

Robert sighed. “I will, Captain. And I apologize for my rant, sir.”

“No need to apologize,” Jonathan said. “We’re all under stress. Some of us more than others.”

“Thank you, sir.” Robert departed.

As soon as the hatch shut behind him, Maxwell said: “I don’t think the commander understands that no one is under more stress than you.”

“No,” Jonathan agreed. “He does not. But you’re not just trying to stroke my ego, are you Maxwell?”

“Not at all,” the AI said. “Being the one under the most stress is hardly something to be proud of. I was going to segue into asking whether you wanted me to schedule a counseling session for
you
.”

“That will be quite all right, Maxwell.”

“It doesn’t have to be with a human counselor,” the AI pressed. “In fact, I am well versed in all matters of human counsel. I have degrees in—”

“I said,
that will be all right
, Maxwell,” Jonathan told the AI.

“Thank you, Captain.” Maxwell replied.

Jonathan stared at the false stars projected by his aReal onto the bulkhead beside him.

“You know, Maxwell,” Jonathan said. “It brings me great comfort, knowing that we’re all just grains of dust in the cosmic scheme of things.”

“You’d think something like that would bring distress, not comfort,” the AI responded.

“For some, maybe,” Jonathan said. “But not me. That knowledge is what drew me to the stars in the first place. The universe is more than thirteen billion years old. The sun coalesced out of the nebular gases from the Big Bang, as did the Earth and planets. First small rocks formed out of the heavier elements in that stellar material, then asteroids, gathering together in the same orbit, drawn by gravity. Eventually, enough of those rocks compacted to form the sphere of young Earth. More rocks coalesced, and the inner core became compressed, molten.

“Meanwhile, other rocks began to gather in orbit around our young planet, eventually forming the moon. Most of the lighter nebular gases were drawn to the mass produced by the growing sun. However in the outer regions of the solar system, the gravity from the rocky planets that had formed from the heavier elements drew in the remaining gases, sweeping them up, forming the gas giants.

“The first life began on Earth three point five billion years ago. Evolution and natural selection led us through various periods of species dominance, until eventually the intelligent primates known as human beings evolved. We will continue to evolve and change, becoming unrecognizable to the current members of our species. The star of our homeworld will become a red giant, and eventually its outer layers will be expelled by stellar winds to form a planetary nebula around a white dwarf. The planetary nebula will disperse into the interstellar medium, and its constituent gases will eventually coalesce with other nebula, and a new star system will form. Perhaps a new life bearing planet like Earth will arise, but most likely not.