The Burden of Command, page 32
part #14 of Empire Rising Series
Varma’s eyes flashed again. “If you do that, you’ll be signing your own death warrant. Don’t play smart with me. Whatever else I might know, I know this; we are in this together. We are equals now, and this is my planet, so you will do as I say.” Spinning, Varma didn’t give Teal a chance to try and answer her back. He had failed at New France. He had misjudged just how Somerville would respond to his plan to blockade Imperial shipping. Now, New Delhi was going to pay the price. From here on out, she was the one in charge, and if she could, she was going to salvage a future free from the Empire for herself and her people. Yet what if freedom is not what they want? A sudden voice of doubt asked as she stormed out of the spaceport towards where her shuttle waited. Just as she had seen Emperor Somerville’s message pleading with New France to remain within the Empire, she had also seen the holo recordings of the riots and protests from New France’s citizens. Teal and Garnier had badly misjudged the desire of their colony’s populace to be free. From the moment she had first set out on her quest to secede from the Empire she hated so much, she had never questioned the desires of her own people. But if Teal and Garnier could be so wrong, why can’t you? The same voice from before asked.
Chapter 27
In war, timing is everything. The best laid plans have been ripped apart because of a delay of just a few minutes. The most foolish of attacks had worked because they struck at the most inopportune time for the defender. A message arriving minutes too late, or just as many minutes early, has turned the tide of more than one battle. The best naval commanders understand and respect how critical the right timing can be, but even they cannot bend the timing of events to their will.
-Excerpt from Empire Ascendant 3015 AD.
Oblivion, 10th December 2508 AD, (three days later).
“The last squadron has just checked in Admirals, they are all ready to jump,” Oblivion’s COM officer warned James and Davenport. James took a breath to prepare himself. His fleet had passed through four systems in the last nine days on their way to New Delhi. Two had been uninhabited, whilst the other two had been home to Imperial colonies. Both of which had been a part of the secessionist movement. The first one they had come to, a former French colony called Ushant, had already removed the secessionist ringleaders from power. The local Governor and most of the colonial Senate had sworn allegiance to him as soon as his ships had entered the system. James strongly suspected more than a few were trying to cover how involved they had been in the secessionist movement, yet he hadn’t had time to worry about that. His fleet hadn’t even entered orbit, he had simply spoken to the Governor and Senators as Oblivion had passed by. At the former Indian colony of Agatti, things had been a little different. The secessionists had been able to remain in power, despite many protests and a significant amount of civil unrest. At first, they had refused James’ demand to surrender, but then, as his fleet approached the colony, they blinked. The leaders contacted James and offered to relinquish power, provided he pardon them for any crimes they may have committed. The idea had galled James, yet he had been seriously considering it. Circumstances snatched the decision out of his hands, however. Somehow, word of their offer got out to the colony’s populace. Fresh protests and riots erupted. To James’ surprise, the secessionists had requested a second meeting where they pleaded to be taken off the planet and protected from the colony’s citizens. James had readily agreed. They were all in Oblivion’s brig. They would stay there until Imperial agents could be sent back to Agatti to investigate their crimes. As soon as he had apprehended them, James had continued on with Home Fleet once again. Though he knew he was leaving Agatti in a serious political mess, an overwhelming desire to get to New Delhi quickly drove him. Now, he was here, and he knew returning New Delhi to the Imperial fold was not going to be anywhere near as easy as New France, never mind Ushant or Agatti. It was going to be a tense, deadly confrontation. Yet one he had to face. After slowly letting out his breath, he turned to Davenport. “Very well, jump us in, let us see what awaits us.”
The final jump took just ten minutes. Unsurprisingly, as Oblivion reverted to real space and her sensors began to actively search the immediate vicinity for threats, none were detected. New Delhi’s defenders had pulled back all their scout ships from the opening of the shift passage. They didn’t have enough forces to contest Home Fleet’s arrival, and so they hadn’t even tried. Immediately, James’ focus shifted to New Delhi itself. His lips pressed together at what he saw. The former Indian colony was a hive of activity. Several groups of ships were quickly moving towards it. The energy readings from them identified then as warships. In orbit, there were what looked like at least two hundred active military ships. James couldn’t help but screw up his face when he saw several of them where Imperial Navy warships. Either their crews had mutinied, or they had been captured by Teal or Governor Varma’s people. Though the secessionist ship numbers were concerning, it was the active targeting scans coming from the battlestations and defense satellites in orbit around New Delhi that gave James pause. Every one of them was active. Clearly, Varma had enough loyal crews to man them. That was not what James had been hoping to see. New Delhi, being much closer to the Empire’s borders, was nearly twice as heavily defended. The combination of the battlestations, defense satellites, fighter hangars and secessionist ships did not put him at ease. In his mind, James began to play out the many planetary assault tactics he and his senior Admirals had devised during the Karacknid War and over the last two decades. One by one, he dismissed them. Either it would take too long to make the preparations, or it would be far too costly for the colony. There was no point in him capturing New Delhi, only to end up destroying much of its precious industry in the process.
“How do you want to approach this Admiral?” Davenport asked, sensing what James was thinking.
“What would you suggest?” James replied.
“The colony’s defenses are formidable. And it looks like they have been making the best use of the time. I imagine Teal has drawn in as many ships from the nearby systems that he could. Yet that means if we defeat them here, we may very well put an end to this attempted secession. Yet they are powerful. A frontal assault will be costly. Perhaps very costly. Do you think a message to the system would change things? If we could weaken their defenses, it would help us greatly.”
James had been considering that very thing during the journey to New Delhi. He had been searching for the right words that he thought might persuade New Delhi’s citizens to turn away from the path Governor Varma had put them on. Yet New Delhi was not New France. He had a history with the Indian colony. Back when he had served in the Royal Space Navy, he had fought a war in the Indian colonies. Then as the newly-elected Emperor of the Human Empire, he had technically invaded New Delhi to ensure they held free and fair elections. The citizens of New Delhi had subsequently chosen to join the Empire, yet he knew full well that sentiment had dissipated over the last twenty years. “I do not think there’s anything I can say to persuade them. At least, not enough to make a difference. This must be solved militarily.”
“Then perhaps, there may be prudence in waiting for reinforcements. Emilie may not be more than a month or perhaps six weeks behind us. Her numbers would swell our fleet to the point where we would not need to worry about New Delhi’s defenses. We could overrun them with ease.”
“We could overrun what is here now with ease, yes,” James agreed. “How many reinforcements might Teal have on the way that will arrive in that time? Our numerical advantage might not end up being what we expect. And we would be giving them more time to prepare other defenses and surprises. Not to mention turning the hearts of New Delhi citizens even more against us. We could take the orbitals, only to find the idea of secession has firmly entrenched itself within the people’s minds. We could end up fighting a guerrilla war for years to no avail.” James shook his head. “No, we need to strike now and as quickly as we can.”
Davenport nodded solemnly. James’ words meant some of her crew and ships were going to be killed in the coming hours. “We take their ships first then. Like at New France, if we kill the ring leaders, it may persuade others to surrender… Though,” Davenport added as she considered it more. “I doubt Governor Varma will be fighting in orbit. She’ll be safe on the planet’s surface… What if we could get to her? Maybe that would change things.”
“What are you thinking?” James asked, suddenly intrigued by Davenport’s suggestion.
“I was thinking of Gayla,” Davenport replied. She gave James a quick smile at the memory. She had been his operations officer on board Drake during the Allied fleet’s Gayla campaign. “We could do the same here. Punch through a section of their battlestations and land Johnston’s marines. Though we wouldn’t need so big a hole, as we’d maybe only have to land a few hundred Marines. There are bound to be Loyalist groups on the planet surface. We could make contact with them and get some intelligence on Varma’s location and any other important leaders. If a Marine force could scoop them up, and we destroy the secessionist ships in orbit, the rest of the defenders may lose the will to fight.”
James nodded. It was a good plan. He didn’t think it had the greatest chance of success. Scooping up enough leaders to decapitate the secessionist movement would be a tough ask. Yet the downsides were minimal. If it didn’t work, he could pull his fleet back and reassess the situation. And we have to fight them anyway. We may as well fight them smart. He nodded again. “I like it. Start putting our side of the plan together,” he requested as he turned to Oblivion’s COM officer. “Patch me through to General Johnston. “
“Admiral, I presume you have a plan up your sleeve?” Johnston said as soon as a holographic representation of his face appeared in front of James.
James grinned. “Not me this time, Davenport actually. How do you feel about inserting some of your marines through the planet’s atmosphere in the midst of a firefight?”
Johnston screwed up his face. “I wouldn’t be very keen on the idea. The shuttles would be sitting ducks. I suppose I’ve got little choice though?”
“We’ll provide fighters, gunships, and frigates to escort them in,” James replied. “We’re thinking that if we destroy the pirate ships in orbit, and can land ground forces to capture Varma and the other main secessionist leaders, cutting the head off the snake might encourage the battlestations to surrender like at New France.”
Johnston’s expression turned more skeptical. “Just how many leaders are we talking about? The more politicians we try to grab, the riskier the whole plan would become. Trying to pull off a coordinated ground attack is difficult enough without doing it in the midst a fleet battle.”
“We’ll focus on the most important, Varma and Patel for sure. We’re going to try and contact any Loyalist groups that are on the planet. We can get intel from them regarding who we should nab and where they are. I know it’s going to be risky, but we have to try. Many more lives will be lost if our fleet has to engage and take out every battlestation.”
Johnston nodded. “That I understand. All right then, I’ll speak to my staff officers, and we’ll begin drawing up plans. Send all the intelligence you can get from any Loyalists on to us.”
James smiled at his old friend. “Thank you,” he said before he cut the COM channel. “All right,” he said to Davenport and the rest of Oblivion’s bridge officers. “We have a plan, let’s flesh it out. Take the fleet forward as well. Let’s get into position.”
Davenport nodded to her Flag Captain to begin the fleet moving and then turned back to James. “Do you intend to offer them the chance to surrender?”
“I suppose I better, but let’s wait until we reach New Delhi. Maybe once we are closer, the threat we pose will sink in a little more.” Davenport nodded and turned to see to the fleet’s needs.
As his ships closed with New Delhi over the next two hours, James worked with Davenport’s and Johnston’s staff officers to put their plans together. Though he was far from happy with a frontal assault on New Delhi, there truly were no other options. When his ships came to rest not far outside powered missile range, he ordered an unencrypted systemwide COM channel be open.
“People of New Delhi, Governor Varma, you all know who I am. I am sure news of the Imperial Parliament’s unanimous vote to remove Varma from her position and to reject your planet’s declaration of secession has also reached you. You will also have heard what has already happened at New France. Let me say what I said to the citizens of New France. We are one species. For better or worse, the responsibility to protect all of us has fallen on my shoulders. Therefore, I cannot, and will not, allow New Delhi to secede from the Empire. At least, not through an unconstitutional, undemocratic dictate from your former governor. The Empire has put in place the means where, if you so wish, your colony may secede peaceably. I urge all of you to reject the path Varma has taken you down and to return to following the Imperial Constitution and the democratic rules you all chose to adopt twenty-five years ago. To Varma, Patel, and those who are following them, I offer you this one chance to surrender. Face the consequences for the crimes you have committed, and no further harm need come to you or the citizens of your homeworld. Please, I have no more desire to attack New Delhi than I did New France, yet if you force my hand, I will. The resources that the Empire has committed to New Delhi and the strength its economy gives to the Empire are too great for me to simply allow you to squander, not when the threat of the Karacknids is ever growing. Surrender now, and there need be no bloodshed. Surrender now, and we may work out our differences peacefully. You have ten minutes to decide, for in ten minutes, we will begin our assault.”
As at New France, James expected Varma or Teal or someone else to reply to his message. He was surprised when none came. Instead, when the ten minutes were up, every orbital battlestation and warship increased their active sensors to full power. It was a clear message. They were ready to fight. James couldn’t help but feel worried. That Varma didn’t openly reply to publicly answer his words told him she was confident in her people. She doesn’t want to be seen negotiating with me, James realized. It would only make her look weak. “Very well,” he said, unable to hide all the disappointment from his voice. “They have answered. Take us in, let us get this over with.” As his fleet began to surge forward, James was filled with sorrow. Sorrow for his own people who were about to die, and for the secessionist and civilians on New Delhi. All of it was unnecessary, and yet now, it had become unavoidable.
*
Secessionist ship Neptune.
“Reverting to real space,” Lydia called out just before their destroyer jumped out of shift space. Jonathan’s body tensed as a small tremor ran through Neptune, the destroyer they had captured. He didn’t know what was awaiting them in the New Delhi system. Likely, there were secessionist patrol ships. Jumping out right on top of them was risky, but he couldn’t afford the delay jumping out sooner would cause.
“Active sensors,” Jonathan ordered. “Transmit the prearranged message.” From Neptune’s COM array, a message Jonathan had recorded was transmitted on every angle. It declared that Neptune was an independent vessel, not seeking conflict with any side in the secessionist war. It also included sensor data on the Flex-aor attack on Chennai. Jonathan was hoping it would stop Neptune being attacked on site.
“Look at that!” Lydia said, awe filling her voice. She was pointing at the main holo display’s depiction of New Delhi. Several other officers gasped. Jonathan was taken aback at the sight. Two powerful fleets were on the precipice of engaging one another. Even as he watched, Neptune’s computer started to assign ID’s to the various ships. It was immediately apparent what was happening. New Delhi’s orbitals were full of secessionist destroyers identical to Neptune along with almost a couple of hundred other ships. The battlestations were all emitting massive amounts of energy and emissions from their targeting sensors. Not far out of missile range from the large battlestations, an Imperial Fleet was charging them. Though eighty warships, Jonathan recognized Home Fleet when he saw it. The four dreadnoughts in the middle of the Imperial fleet’s formation alone would be able to crush all of the secessionist ships. It’s going to be a bloodbath! Jonathan thought as horror filled him. They will destroy each other and then the Flex-aor will waltz in and nuke the planet.
“We have to warn them!” Lydia gasped. “We can’t let them fight.”
Jonathan glanced around him. He had to convince the Imperial Fleet not to engage. Yet no Imperial Commander would listen to a warning coming from a secessionist ship. They would assume it was some kind of ruse to delay their attack. As his eyes passed back over the holo display, he froze. Neptune had just picked up one of the dreadnought’s transponder information. It was saying Oblivion was commanded by Admirals Davenport and Somerville. Jonathan’s eyes widened. Since his aunt had married in and become Emilie Alvarez, there was only one Admiral Somerville in the Imperial Fleet. His father was commanding the Imperial forces! Of course he was, Jonathan said to himself. His father would have insisted on dealing with the secessionists in person. Suddenly, his fear for New Delhi evaporated. If his father was here, then the Flex-aor could be beaten! They could be turned back before they could destroy the colony. But I have to warn him! Jonathan wracked his brain. He needed a way to get his father’s attention. “I’ve got it!” he said as he spun around to Lydia. “We need to use the prearranged maneuvering signals. Gravimetric waves are the only way we can stop them in time.”
“But what will we send?” Lydia asked, her eyes pleading with Jonathan. “If we say enemy sighted, they will think we are bluffing.”
