The Phoenix War (33 page)

I consider myself lucky, at the very
least
, he thought,
to have been able to witness even the
tiniest glimpse of it. By all measures of probability, I should
never have been. And yet, here I am
. Such thinking helped
soothe his nerves when he allowed his thoughts to run headlong into
the sheer inevitability and futility of his existence, and that of
his species.

He knew that, in the end, the ultimate
destiny of the universe was for it to expand so widely and
distantly that no life could exist anywhere. It would be too cold.
And then every sweat-drenched effort, every triumph of art, every
advancement of culture, every invention of industry, every stroke
of genius, every honeyed achievement, every bitter conquest and
desperate struggle, indeed everything that ever had been and ever
was would be rendered completely, entirely, and absolutely
pointless. And it would make no difference whatsoever that anyone,
or anything, had ever existed.

Perhaps that is why the Polarians cling to
their primitive beliefs and rituals
…

Still, despite what comforts religion and
tradition offered, Alex wanted nothing to do with them. He would
take the truth, however bitter-tasting, however beautifully tragic,
any day over the pleasant numbness of a comforting but entirely
empty lie. To do otherwise would be irrational, it would mean
voluntarily choosing delusion over reality. And, though Alex was no
philosopher, he could imagine no logical rationale to persuade him
that delusion carried any significant value.

The sound of the door’s chime interrupted his
thoughts. He immediately spun the chair away from the computer
terminal, where he’d been reading the latest news releases and
network speculation regarding the political crisis captivating the
Empire, and stared at the door.

Someone is calling on me
? He thought,
wondering whether this was desirable or not. Recently he’d enjoyed
feeling invisible, having slipped below the humans’ radar of
attention and suspicious, being left alone with his private
thoughts. But he was also becoming tired of feeling cooped-up and
helpless. Though they’d treated him kindly, and even given him his
own quarters, the humans thought of him as their prisoner, Alex
knew. And, for all intents and purposes, he was.
At least for
now
…

He waited, choosing to do nothing. Wanting to
see how the humans would react if he didn’t answer the door. He was
feeling more curious than cautious, but he was also aware that some
of the humans were very uncomfortable with having a Rotham on the
ship, and this might be a ruse by some of them to lure him from the
safety of his quarters and exact some sort of misinformed and
misdirected human
justice
upon him.

The chime range again. Alex head toward the
door to check the peephole camera.

The chime rang a third time. To his surprise,
it was none other than the increasingly infamous Calvin Cross. The
politically disgraced, ex-Executor of the Empire who, before all
the political theatrics, had been the commanding officer of the
Nighthawk. And had been the one to order Alex’s release from the
holding cell on the Rahajiim ship and, in so doing, had technically
saved his life. Not that it meant Alex owed him anything.

Strange and stranger
, thought Alex,
wondering what the human intelligence commander wanted with him
now. And why he was back. But before he could open the door, the
door opened on its own. No doubt reacting to a command
override.

“Not wanting any visitors?” asked Calvin as
he looked down at Alex. Like most Rotham, Alex was shorter than the
average human and it helped nothing that Calvin was taller than
average for his species, giving him an advantage of several inches
over Alex. Not that it mattered, the Rotham had gotten where they
were through superior cunning. IQ trumped size any day. If it
didn’t, the vast leviathan-whales of Alpha Sirius Three would be
the uncontested champions of the galaxy, a mature adult could grow
a thousand meters long and still only
just
managed to
outthink a walnut.

“I don’t mind visitors,” said Alex, “though I
don’t seek them out.” He waved for Calvin to enter. The human did,
allowing the door to close behind him.

Alex was intensely curious what brought
Calvin to him, but he also knew the human would reveal that on his
own, without any need for prying, and Alex thought it best not to
show too much interest. Hiding his thoughts and feelings around the
humans, as much as possible, had served him well so far. “I see
that you’ve returned from the Imperial capital,” said Alex. “Pity
that didn’t work out for you quite as you’d hoped.”

Calvin nodded. “Yeah I am sorry about that.
But that’s not why I’m here.”

Alex gave Calvin a look as if to say,
by
all means please enlighten me
. But he pursed his lips and said
nothing. Allowing the human to take the conversational lead.
It’s better for him to show me his cards without me showing
which of them I’m interested in
, thought Alex.

“I’ll get right to the point,” said Calvin.
“With civil war about to erupt in the Empire, and the Republic
laying claim to Renora, an Imperial planet, we can’t just wait
around. We have to
act
.”

“We?” asked Alex curiously. As he spoke, he
took a seat and looked up at Calvin comfortably, almost smugly.
“Human politics and human civil war sound like an Imperial problem
to me, as a citizen of the Rotham Republic, why should I get
involved?”

“An Imperial civil war would affect the
entire galaxy and you know it,” said Calvin, looking momentarily
frustrated.

Of course, this assertion was true, Alex was
perfectly aware of the spillover effects intra-human conflict would
have, and indeed was already having, but he wanted to hear it from
Calvin’s mouth. Anything he could safely do to test the human
helped Alex to understand him better. And during his stay on the
Nighthawk, he felt he’d gotten to know the young human rather well.
Even when Calvin hadn’t been there.

“If the Empire splits into factions and
begins to disintegrate, there will be nothing to stop Rotham
military ambition,” continued Calvin. “You and I both know there is
pressure in the Rotham Senate for the Republic to annex several
Imperial worlds in The Corridor. Hell, the Rotham government has
already publicly recognized their claim on Renora, like I said.
They make no secret about it.”

“The people of Renora voted and
democratically decided to leave the Empire. Just as they
democratically decided to petition the Republic for membership,”
said Alex. “The Senate reviewed their petition and granted their
request. It is therefore logical for the Senate to recognize Renora
as part of the glorious Republic, that does not mean the Republic
has any interest in any other human world.”

Calvin shot Alex a surprised, even annoyed
look. Clearly aware that Alex was playing a game with him, since
only someone truly naïve would believe that the Rotham Senate had
no interest in the ever-juicy, increasingly defenseless human
worlds. Especially those nearest to the DMZ.

“A raging mob took control of Renora, that
can hardly be considered a democratic process,” said Calvin.

“What is more democratic than rule of the
people?” asked Alex. Still baiting the human. Wondering if he would
snap with anger.

“Renora is a settlement of the Empire and is
therefore subject to the crown.”

“Ah but whose crown? The slain king? The
exiled queen? The uncoronated steward?”

“
Enough of this
,” said Calvin, clearly
not interested in Alex’s devil’s advocacy. “I am not a fool and I
will not be made into one. Nor will I be made to believe that
you
are a fool. You were a member of Advent and, as the
Nighthawk’s computer records indicate, you’ve been following every
scrap of news regarding political events with intense interest. I
also happen to know for a fact that you are a non-interventionist.
And you don’t approve of belligerence by your government to attack
and seize human and Polarian worlds, no matter how ripe and
defenseless.” Calvin’s eyes were sharp, showing a glimmer of
intelligence that seemed almost Rotham.

“Now let us stop playing games and face
facts,” he continued. “The Empire is splintering, and it’s getting
worse by the day. That means eventually the human military will
engage in war against itself, and the vast Imperial Navy that we
both
know is the main deterrent against a Republic-Imperial
war, will shrink and disintegrate until it is no longer a credible
power. When that happens, the Republic fleets will swarm human
space and a vast interstellar war will break out.” Calvin’s eyes
seemed almost to glow with passion as he spoke. He seemed collected
and in control, but behind it Alex could tell Calvin was equal
parts desperate and angry because of the grimness of the situation.
Alex decided it was best not to interrupt the human for the time
being.

“You’re going to help me,” Calvin continued.
“Because you want to prevent such a war as much as I do.”

Alex pretended to consider that for a moment,
even though he’d known from the beginning that helping Calvin
prevent a war was, in fact, what was best for the Republic. “What
about the Alliance?” asked Alex seriously. “Even if the Imperial
Navy grinds itself into the dust, the Republic would still have to
launch a fleet through Alliance space to attack the Empire, or else
Polarian space, either of which would be highly dangerous.” That
was true, although Alex knew this deterrent would be, at best, a
stall. Considering the Republic had gone to war with both the
Polarians and the Alliance before, in order to attack the Empire.
And that was in spite of an Imperial Navy that could mount a
resistance. One that couldn’t, one that had destroyed itself… that
would be far too juicy a plum for the Rahajiim and their minions in
the Senate to ignore.

“Excellent point,” said Calvin.
“Unfortunately I have intelligence that indicates the Alliance will
soon cease to be a threat to Rotham warships crossing the DMZ.”

“
What
?” asked Alex, unable to hide his
intrigue. “What intelligence?” If Calvin was telling it true, and
the intelligence he claimed to have proved correct, then it was
likely already too late to stop the war. Alex hoped desperately
that it was wrong, that it was a lie, a trick invented by Calvin to
manipulate him.
It has to be false
…

“That brings us to why I’m here paying you a
visit. I’m going on a mission into the DMZ to scout Alliance space
and monitor their military activity, and you’re coming with me.
Together, with a small team, we’re going to see for ourselves
whether or not there is any credibility to this intelligence.”

“Small team? So does that mean you’re not
taking this vessel?” He looked around at his quarters, thinking the
Nighthawk with its stealth capability would be especially
well-suited to the task. Alex had personally witnessed Calvin and
his operators successfully infiltrate Alliance space before, and
even land an away team on the closely-guarded fortress world of
Tybur.

“The Nighthawk must continue its ongoing
mission and eliminate the remaining isotome weapons, I’m sure you
agree that’s the highest priority.”

Alex nodded. He did agree. And wished he
could be in two places at once and assist in that effort as well.
Indeed if the humans would actually trust him and grant him full
access to the ship’s computers and communications equipment, and
actually let him assist in the isotome investigation, he would
rather remain and focus on that more urgent priority. But since he
knew from experience that they would only shut him away and
distrust him, and perhaps for understandable reasons, he would
gladly go with Calvin and try to stop a war.

“As for us,” said Calvin. “We will be taking
a small Rotham craft and posing as a harmless commercial vessel. It
will be your job to handle communications and make certain we’re
seen as authentic.”

“If we get boarded, it will be the end of all
of us,” said Alex.

“Then it is your job to make certain we don’t
get boarded,” said Calvin, folding his arms. “You’re former Advent,
you have adequate training, and best of all you’re a bona fide
Rotham. I have some humans on this ship who can speak your language
but we both know none of them can make it sound just right. That’s
why we need you.”

That and a few other reasons
, thought
Alex. “It’s because your vocal anatomy isn’t sufficiently equipped
to make anything better than crude approximations of our sounds,”
said Alex. “A true Rotham can always tell.”

Calvin nodded. “Good thing you’re a true
Rotham.”

“Indeed.”

“Once we see for ourselves that there is, or
isn’t, cause for alarm in Alliance space—such as a crippled and
defeated Alliance military—we will send word to the queen. That
way, if the threat is real, she’ll know not to engage the rival
human fleet.”

Alex doubted it would prove so simple as
that. But he also guessed Calvin’s intelligence made the threat
sound more credible than it actually was. The Alliance was governed
by a paranoid dictator and boasted a formidable military. Nothing
that could ultimately oppose any of the major powers in the galaxy,
but dangerous enough to make any of them think twice about dancing
with the Alliance. “And how do you propose for us to safely observe
the Alliance’s military activity without attracting unwanted
attention?”

“The basic idea is that if the Alliance is
operating normally, then the treaty is probably still in effect
that allows peaceful vessels to pass through the DMZ for commercial
purposes, so long as they have no weapons. Additionally, the people
we’re working with have connections inside the Alliance. We will
utilize those. However, if the Alliance has been compromised, then
I’m guessing they’ll be too busy to care about us. And if the
Alliance is so utterly defeated that the Rotham military is already
in control of the region, then we cross our fingers and hope the
Rotham won’t fire on one of their own citizens just trying to
operate a small freight business.”