Wrath of Axia (The Arcadian Jihad) (7 page)

“How the hell did Fabian Bartok manage to pull it off?” Rusal asked. “We all saw the President die on Axis Nova.”

Evelyn answered him. “The person who died on Axis Nova was a double, that much is clear, what we call a doppelganger.”

“You mean Bartok set up this whole charade?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know who set it up. Perhaps there was more than one plot to seize power, it wouldn’t be unique. The first plot was to kidnap and switch Xerxes Tell, but then Bartok murdered their man.” She smiled. “Yes, there were definitely two plots. The first was to substitute the doppelganger, and the second to kill who they thought was President Tell. It is likely that each was unaware of the other. The man that everyone thought was Xerxes Tell was killed, and Fabian Bartok was ready to step in and take his place. Remember, the other member of the cabinet, Sister Serena of Orphex, died within a few hours too. It seems that it wasn’t an accident, now that we know all of this.”

They looked up as a man descended the staircase. He smiled at their astonishment. In front of them stood the old Xerxes Tell, the man they’d last seen in Lyra city on Axis Nova. They all stood up out of respect. This was the President, their President, and the rightful President. There could be no more doubt.

“Sir, it’s good to see you again, I mean it, to see you as we last saw you.”

He tactfully avoided mentioning the lines and scars that still disfigured Tell’s face, but Tell was no fool, and he’d already looked in a mirror.

“Not quite as you last saw me, but it’ll do for now. Admiral Rusal, I had a hard five years, and it shows, so I don’t blame you for having doubts. Now that I’m back, we have much to discuss. The first question is this. Are you all prepared to stand with me to fight this tyranny that has taken control of the Nine Systems?”

“You don’t need to ask that, Sir. Every one of us here has fought for you in the past, nothing has changed.” Rusal’s expression was fierce, leaving no doubt as to his allegiance.

“We’re with you too, Mr. President. All of us,” Blas said, emotion choking his voice. The growing cruelty and the increasing hunger within the universe had made him angry, yet he’d had no way to fight back. In the First War of the Systems he’d been a serving naval officer. It was a time of continuous, massive attacks from the religious fanatics that led to the downfall of Republic. In the Second War of the Systems, when the rebels of the Republic fought back, he’d become a guerilla fighter. That had resulted in victory for the rebels and the restoration of the Republic. Even if it was a Republic in name only. Since then, and until this moment, he’d almost been a man without a cause. Apart from Evelyn, for she had become his life. But how could they enjoy the life they both sought when they were living under a tyrannical dictator? He realized to his surprise that he actually relished the idea of fighting once more, not only for the woman he loved but also for a cause that was just and good. It was the honorable way.

 
“Then it seems that we’re about to fight once more for the freedom of the Nine Systems. What do we need to do first, gentlemen?” Tell asked.

Blas looked at him. “We have to find Berg Smetana.”

Tell nodded. “You’re right, for if we are to beat these people we need his special brand of violence and cunning.”

 
Smetana’s exploits were legendary. He was a trained master assassin, and he could infiltrate an enemy position and leave reduced to a morgue. Men would follow him too. They would always follow a leader who won his battles yet never left a single man behind on the field.

“The question is this. Where is he?” Rusal added. “They say he’s on Cadmus, but if that’s true, whereabouts on Cadmus? It’s a large planet.”

“Sir, I think I can help you there.”

It was Karn Vansen, the man who’d brought Tell to the house. He continued, “Berg hid out with me for a short time. He said that there was a band of resistance fighters on Cadmus. If anything went wrong, he said he’d join them. Their base is in the city of Arta.”

So at least they knew where to start looking, but there was a further problem. Cadmus, in the Sirius system, seemed like an impossible distance for men with no ship.

“In that case we must find a way to get to Cadmus. I think I may be able to get us passage on a naval vessel,” Rusal said thoughtfully. “My adjutant, Captain Cantar, despises the cruelty of these people as much as we do. I’ll call him on my secure communicator and see if he can help. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

While he was out of the room, they tried to put together the beginnings of a strategy to begin the fight. It was a daunting prospect.

“Last time around we had the makings of a resistance movement, tens of thousands of troops fresh from their defeat by the Axians and waiting for a chance to strike back. This time, they’ve been clever. Most of the troops have been disarmed and demobilized over the years. We’ve got nothing left,” Blas stated, the dismay evident in his voice.

“That’s not entirely true,” Max countered. “If Smetana has joined up with the resistance movement on Cadmus, it could be the nucleus of our new army.”

“It’ll need to be quite a nucleus to take on Bartok’s forces.”

“Faith can move mountains, Mr. Blas.” Xerxes Tell smiled at Blas’ pessimism. “While I was imprisoned, I had little to comfort me other than remembering the words that great men have handed down to us over the centuries. One man said, ‘Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe’. I believe those words to be true, something for us all to keep in mind in the weeks and months to come.”

Rusal returned in time to hear Xerxes Tell. He gave him a nod of approval and picked up his glass.

“Gentlemen, I suggest we drink a toast. To faith, and to the President of the Nine Systems.”

They all raised their glasses and drank. Blas managed to keep his feelings hidden, for he was not entirely convinced. He’d much sooner have a Heavy Battlecruiser on his side than a useful piece of philosophy. When they’d drunk the toast, Tell looked at Rusal.

“What’s the news from your man in Tulum, Admiral?”

“My former adjutant, Ban Cantar, is prepared to do his utmost to help us get off the planet. He says he’ll try to commandeer a cruiser to take us to Cadmus. He’ll transmit a code to my communicator when he has the details. It should be available tomorrow, so we’ll need to travel to Tulum spaceport without delay to be ready to leave. We also need…”

He was interrupted by a thunderous knock on the door. A voice shouted through a loudhailer system.

“Security Bureau, open the door! We have to search the house!”

Max leapt into action. “Quick, this way.”

He led them through the house and down into the basement. In the far corner he pressed a hidden switch and part of the wall swung open.

“This city is a honeycomb of old tunnels and caves, a throwback to the time when the Hesperian priesthood were being hunted down and killed. Follow the tunnel to the junction and take a right turn. After two hundred paces you’ll come to a flight of steps. At the top of the steps there’s a door, here’s the key,” he handed them an electronic keycard.

 
“Go through the door and you’ll find you’re in a warehouse. It belongs to Berg, but no one knows about it. You’ll find spare clothes, food and even a vehicle, a ground transport. Take what you need and get out of Peria. They’ll be looking for you everywhere, Mr. President, now that they know you’ve escaped. They must be going crazy.”

“I hoped they’d assume that I got lost in the swamps surrounding the plantation and died of hunger or exposure.”

Max chuckled. “I can assure you, Sir, they won’t be satisfied until they’ve seen your body, alive or dead. They’ll tear this planet apart to find you. You’d better move fast, they’ll break the outer door before too long.”

Tell shook his hand. “Thank you, my friend, for everything. We will see you soon.”

“Good luck,” Max responded. He closed the door behind them and the tunnel was in darkness.

 
Max ran up the stairs just in time to see them kick in his front door, a squad of SB troopers rushed in. At their head was Pieter Bose. He nodded to his squad leader.

“Hold him, the rest of you search the house.”

The burly sergeant took Max by the arm in a vise-like grip while the troopers began their search. Max heard them pound up the stairs, through the house and a shout as they found the door to the basement. He smiled. An expert had constructed the doorway to the tunnel and they wouldn’t find it. But he hadn’t counted on them finding something else. A trooper ran down the stairs clutching a bundle of rags. Tell’s clothing. Pieter Bose snatched a torn shirt and held it under Max’s nose.

“Where is he, Biermann?”

“Who?”

Bose nodded at the sergeant who hit Max a stunning blow with his fist.

“I asked you where is he? Where is the escaped prisoner?”

“Sir, I don’t know who you mean? What prisoner?”

“The man who wore these clothes.” Another nod at the sergeant and Max reeled as the fist hit him again.

“I don’t know about any prisoner. Those are just some old rags that belonged to a beggar who came to my door asking for food. I felt sorry for him and gave him some new clothes, that’s all there was to it.”

The rest of the troopers arrived back in the living room. They shook their heads. Nothing.

“Very well, Mr. Biermann, we’ll do this the hard way. Bring him along, Sergeant. We’ll show him our cells, and that may change his mind about talking to us.”

“You can’t arrest me. I haven’t done anything wrong,” Max shouted.

Bose grinned. “But I’m not arresting you, Mr. Biermann. What in space gave you that idea? This is just protective custody, and it’s for your own welfare. Escaped prisoners can be violent, so you’re taking a huge risk letting a vagabond into your home. It could be anyone. Unless you have anything to tell me before you’re taken away?”

Max shook his head. “I don’t know anything, so there’s nothing to tell you.”

Bose nodded. “We’ll see.” He snapped at the sergeant, “Bring him along.”

Under the house, Blas led the way through the narrow passage, counting the paces until they reached the steps that led to the door. He pushed it open and went inside the warehouse. Wooden boxes lay scattered around and some sacks that he assumed were foodstuffs of some sort. Other than that the huge open space was empty. That is, empty except for a vehicle, a large, covered ground transport of the kind used for carrying goods over the planet. Like all ground transports, this one utilized wheeltracks. The strange, part wheel, part track, part air cushion was an increasing feature of ground transports. They gave the ability to move a transport over almost every variety of surfaces. Flat, uneven, marshy or a combination of any of these had made them invaluable. As had the reduced fuel costs, transports fitted with wheeltracks used half the energy of conventional vehicles. With the Nine Planets suffering a shortage of virtually everything after two wars that had left a trail of devastation, fuel was in short supply factor, at least until the Systems recovered. If they ever recovered, and provided there wasn’t another destructive war.

“Karn, do you know anything about this particular vehicle?”

Karn Vansen laughed. “I’ve driven it many times for Berg and Max. I’ll check it all out, but it shouldn’t be a problem. They keep it ready for instant use.”

“Good. In that case we can travel to Tulum and get aboard the ship that Ban Cantar is arranging for us. What are you planning to do, Karn?”

He chuckled. “It looks as if I’ve thrown in my lot with the rebels, doesn’t it, Mr. Blas? If Max and Berg are for it, then so am I. I’d like to visit Cadmus anyway. I’ve never been there before.”

“That’s excellent, Karn. President Tell, it looks as if your army is growing.”

“I welcome you, Karn. But our army will grow of its own accord. A great man once said, ‘you must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean, if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty’. The ocean has indeed become dirty. Whoever these people are who have usurped the government, they cannot destroy the great will of humanity. Our army will come to us, never fear.”

He smiled. “During my years of captivity, these great words were my only weapon to fight off depression, the hunger and brutality. They gave me hope for my freedom, and I intend to use them as weapons in the fight for humanity’s freedom.”

They were silent, awed by the strength and wisdom of this great man who had spent five long years in cruel captivity. But it was no time to reflect on philosophy. Besides, Blas had better things to do than listen to it. In the absence of a well-armed squad they had to make practical use of what fate had given them. It was time to leave.

“Karn, finish getting that transport ready. We need to get moving. The hunt for President Tell will intensify as they call in reinforcements. The longer we leave it, the more desperate they’ll be.”

“I’ll get on it.”

Blas smiled as the little Hesperian jumped into the cab and started making his checks. Barely five feet tall, with the dark skin of a Hesperian native, it was obvious that his skills were many and varied. Karn shouted down to them.