Gravity Wars: Nova Strike, page 11
The railgun had severely damaged Earth’s industrial capacity, hindering Earth’s ability to construct more Orion ships in a timely fashion to strike within the next one to five years. Before Earth could do that, they would have to rebuild their partially destroyed industrial capacity.
However, the Valiants lacked a credible strike force that could reach Earth in sufficient force and time to conquer it. The problem was twofold: building the threat and the journey. First, the Titan colony had to build the threat. Second, they needed time to cross from Saturn to Earth. Such a journey took one year at the least, more for railgun projectiles.
By the time the Valiants had built such an attack force, and then crossed the distance to Earth, the Earthlings should have enough defensive force to defeat the Valiant strike.
That meant more time to build a greater attack force, but time was on the Earthlings’ side for one critical reason. They possessed a greater natural resource site and had billions on their side. Billions could produce so much faster than a mere 170,000 could do, even with superior Valiant technology and robotics.
“This is our window of opportunity,” Naram Sin had told the assembly. “But we simply lack the time to collect sufficient force to turn the war decisively in our favor. That means we are bound to lose the fight… in time.”
In his office on Titan, Assur sneered as he recalled that horrible day. If he hadn’t risen and spoken with such assurance, the People might have lost heart. He should have ordered his security team to drag Naram Sin outside and shoot him.
Instead, Assur had used the moment to unveil his great plan. He hadn’t known Naram Sin would unleash his brutal honesty. If Assur had, it was doubtful he would have let the fool speak. In the end, however, it had helped cement his power even more.
Assur had unveiled his plan, which involved three Enforcer warships reaching Earth’s Moon. The rest were operational moves that ought to guarantee a Valiant space victory. With the Moon captured, the rest would be relatively easy.
“Or do you disagree, Naram Sin?”
Assur smirked as he recalled his question that fateful day.
Naram Sin had stared at him blankly. “Your idea could work, sir. It’s actually brilliant. I’m impressed.”
Later, Naram Sin told him the three Enforcer-class vessels had a one in four chance of victory. Yet, that was far better than he had ever envisioned.
One in four—a twenty-five percent chance of victory over the humans.
Great leadership and tactics would make it a more than even chance. Then, he, Assur, would become the great victor of the People.
That probability, however—the twenty-five percent chance—Assur had kept secret these last two years. He had sworn Naram Sin to secrecy as well. The aide had reluctantly given his word, perhaps never knowing his life would have been forfeit if he had given a different answer.
The three warships were weeks away from launching into the void. The great maneuver against the Earthlings would begin.
And now, Naram Sin had dropped these two bombshells on him in the report he had read on the tablet.
Assur wanted to roar with frustration. How could he allow such a fool to live?
Yet, the problem was this: Naram Sin was honest to a fault. The facts the fool had uncovered were radioactive realities.
Assur had no recourse. He needed to speak to the troublemaker and determine how much validity these probabilities and so-called facts meant in the real world.
“I hate you,” Assur whispered.
Yes, Naram Sin had been important to his continued rule. Now, however, the Valiant’s usefulness might have finally reached termination date.
-2-
For a Valiant, Naram Sin was bigger than average, with huge hands and blue-tinted skin. All full Valiants had that skin tone. He had short dark hair and the most honest eyes in the colony.
He wore a green uniform, indicating that he belonged on the Chief Marshal’s Staff.
He had a slightly furtive manner as he looked around as if checking to see if any security personnel were following him.
When Naram Sin failed to see any, he took out a small device and clicked it on. It showed all clear. That meant no spy-stick followed him and no tracker device was on his person.
He hurried through a large door into the sanctuary of An’Kar, the supreme deity of the stars with overarching authority over the cosmos.
Several statues of huge Valiants in heroic poses were at various locations in the spacious chamber. They wore military uniforms and sometimes sported hand weaponry like pistols and blast rifles.
The idea that An’Kar looked anything like that seemed wrong to Naram Sin. He was a stickler for precision. He wanted to know the truth and often picked at things until he found it, or at least what he conceived to be the truth.
An’Kar was an old god from the homeworld of the People. No Valiants had existed back then. Valiants were a genetic offshoot of the original People, genetically created during the interstellar journey from the three Vim missiles. Thus, An’Kar would be lighter colored, smaller and certainly not wielding modern weapons.
Naram Sin had complained to Assur about it. Assur had told him that people wanted gods that looked like them. The old gods were good for morale. Thus, he needed to let it go.
Naram Sin was well acquainted with Assur’s cynicism. He wondered, though, how Assur dared to mock a central pillar of his own political authority. The first chip against the belief that Assur was the rightful ruler had started that day during their conversation about An’Kar.
It had nearly brought a crisis of morale to Naram Sin. Luckily, he had met the new priest of An’Kar, Father Wolf.
Father Wolf presently consoled an older matron as she stared up at a statue of blue-skinned An’Kar.
It was strange. The People had lacked a real religion at the beginning of the voyage. Many had half-heartedly believed in old superstitions from the homeworld. The Vims had destroyed much during their conquest of the home star system, including belief in the supernatural.
The voyage across light years, with trailing interstellar missiles, had changed some mental aspects of the People. Naram Sin believed it had brought about a greater susceptibility to antiquated beliefs in unseen higher powers.
He wasn’t sure what he believed himself these days. He trusted Father Wolf, though, because the other often calmed him with wise counsel.
Naram Sin stood waiting in front of a statue of An’Kar. He had given Assur the report. He knew the Chief Marshal would hate it. Likely, Assur would respond to it the wrong way. That was one reason why he needed to speak with Father Wolf.
Naram Sin idly wondered if use of the word “father” as a religious term had come from the intercepts from Earth. The intercept teams had watched all kinds of Earth programs, including religious ones. The term “wolf” was also Earth based on a canine animal. There had been wolf creatures on the homeworld. Somehow, though, the wolves of Earth had tickled the fancy of many Valiants.
More and more Valiants watched Earth shows that had passed the censors. Those shows had come via the intercept teams.
In any case, perhaps because religious ideas had atrophied among the People, they had borrowed from the Earthlings. They took from the primitives something they had lost, forsaken or outgrown long ago.
“Naram Sin.”
The big Valiant turned, looking down at Father Wolf.
The Valiant wore a black robe, cowl, and rope belt, and went barefoot. That seemed to be taking Earther style too far.
Naram Sin winced.
“What is it?” Father Wolf asked.
“My dilemma, you prove that it’s already happening to us.”
“I don’t understand,” Father Wolf said.
“Do you have a place we can talk?”
Father Wolf looked around. “Let’s go in back. We can have a drink while there.”
“I could use one.”
“Since when?” Father Wolf asked.
“That’s what I want to talk to you about.”
Father Wolf was shorter and heavier than most Valiants. In truth, he was verging on becoming fat. He also had a different way of looking at things, at least as compared to most of the colony. That was probably why Naram Sin liked talking to him.
They went through a small door into Father Wolf’s living quarters.
Naram Sin wasn’t sure he should be doing this, but he had to talk to someone or he might go crazy.
-3-
Naram Sin and Father Wolf sat at a small table, sipping beer. There was a cot to the side and a small closet.
Life in the colony was cramped in most places. Everything took second place so energy and materials could reach the space-yards for constructing the Enforcers and auxiliary vehicles. It was even harder on those like Father Wolf who worked in non-essential jobs.
“Do you mind if I check for eavesdropping devices?” Naram Sin asked.
“Please do,” Father Wolf said, wiping foam from his lips.
Naram Sin took out his special device and clicked it on. It was clear—Naram Sin raised the device sharply. For just a moment, he thought he saw red. Now, the red disappeared—if it had ever been there.
Naram Sin lowered the device.
“Problem?” asked Father Wolf.
Naram Sin studied the priest. Could the security people have talked to Father Wolf? It was possible, maybe even likely. Could he trust anyone about this?
Naram Sin stood, lifting the device higher. It continued to remain clear. Maybe it had been a stray pulse from something else. He watched the device a little longer and finally clicked it off, putting it away in a pocket as he sat back down.
“What did you see?” Father Wolf asked.
Naram Sin studied the stout Valiant.
“The last visit from the security people was three weeks ago,” Father Wolf said, perhaps divining Naram Sin’s worries.
“You never said anything about that before.”
“They’ve been here five times,” Father Wolf said, no longer meeting Naram Sin’s eyes. “I tell them the same thing each time. You’re interested in An’Kar but more in what people speak to me about him.”
Naram Sin thought about that.
“I’ve layered foil around the room,” Father Wolf said, finally looking at Naram Sin again. “I heard somewhere the foil makes it harder to eavesdrop from outside. Each night, I check everywhere. Three times, I have found listening bugs. I crush them and drop the remains in a collector.”
Naram Sin mulled over the information. It was a classic maneuver to admit to some wrongdoing if the victim suspected a problem. Naram Sin realized the probability was high that Father Wolf had been compromised. He thought back to all the things he had told the priest the past few weeks and then the past months. There had been one or two matters that could come back to bite him. He needed something critical to say, or Father Wolf and then security would know he was guilty. Did this come directly from Assur, or from the newest Security Chief?
Naram Sin smiled painfully. He was terrible at intrigue and deception. He had trouble lying. That was one reason why he always tried to tell the truth. Life was so much easier that way.
Father Wolf drained his glass of beer. “I’m on a small allowance, but I’m going to have another. You should too.”
Politeness mandated the offer. Father Wolf loved beer but his allowance was minuscule. Might the security people have given him credits to buy more beer? Naram Sin hated to believe that.
“I’m good,” Naram Sin said. “I can hardly drink mine. Maybe you can finish it for me.”
Father Wolf hesitated. He truly loved his beer. “I hate to waste anything,” he said. “It’s against all the tenets of pure living.”
His pudgy fingers closed around Naram Sin’s glass as he lifted it and drained it. Likely, he would soon have a third beer.
“What troubles you?” Father Wolf inquired. “Have you been tabulating probabilities again?”
Naram Sin had, but he decided… “I’m having trouble believing in the utility of An’Kar.”
Father Wolf’s eyes widened. “You say utility. You don’t say belief in.”
“I know. I’m afraid I don’t believe in An’Kar as a living, breathing deity.”
“An’Kar is a spiritual entity. It’s doubtful that he breathes like you and I do.”
That was a good answer—one of the reasons Naram Sin liked talking to Father Wolf. Naram Sin pondered, and asked, “Why did our People forget about him for so long?”
“I’m not sure they did. Many people continued to believe in him, sustaining An’Kar during the journey through deep space.”
“Are you suggesting that our united belief created An’Kar?”
“I said sustained. That is a different matter,” Father Wolf said.
Naram Sin thought about that. “How did An’Kar become?”
“I suspect he was born on the homeworld from older gods yet, replacing them as they aged.”
The subject already bored Naram Sin. Earlier, he had spoken honestly about the utility of An’Kar. He believed those in power used the concept of gods to enforce their power over the people. Naram Sin knew Assur did that. While Assur did many unsavory things, Naram Sin doubted the Chief Marshal was the only horrible ruler in history.
These last two years had been hard on Naram Sin. He believed in honesty, but he had lost faith in so much else.
“What percentage of the people come to the shrine?” Naram Sin asked.
“To An’Kar or to all the gods’ shrines?” asked Father Wolf.
“In total,” Naram Sin said, appreciating the clarification.
“Over the course of a month, say?” asked Father Wolf.
“That will work.”
“I’d say one sixth to one fifth of the colony.”
Naram Sin raised his eyebrows. By a considerable amount, that was more than he had suspected. “Do they all believe?”
“No. Many are bored, tired of life in the colony. They yearn to walk on a world like Earth. They yearn for victory and want something to sustain their hope in it.”
The last statement sounded like pap fed from Assur. Now, Naram Sin knew the security people had been here in earnest. It felt as if the walls closed in around him. He found it hard to breathe. If he couldn’t talk to Father Wolf… that left only one other possibility.
Naram Sin stood up abruptly.
That caused Father Wolf to start.
Naram Sin reached into his pocket and pulled out several credit notes. He placed them on the table between them.
“What is that for?” asked Father Wolf.
Naram Sin wanted to say something biting and witty. Instead, he said, “You do a critical service for the colony. I think they should pay you more. This is to help offset the difference.”
“No. I can’t take it.”
Naram Sin knew Father Wolf wanted to. It was cruel to test a man like this with so little pay to sustain himself. Few could live long in such an austere manner. The security people surely knew this, as they were experts with their psychological profiles.
Naram Sin understood probabilities and percentages. “Good day, Father Wolf. I will see you next week.”
“I look forward to it.”
Naram Sin knew this would be his last visit, but he didn’t know that it would no longer be his choice.
-4-
Naram Sin left Father Wolf’s quarters, as well as the shrine of An’Kar, and walked through a barracks plaza for families with two children. These barracks were roomier and had more benefits than others, some of the incentives that automatically accrued to bigger families.
An Elder Board had instituted the policy to encourage faster population growth.
Assur had established the board a year ago, after recovering from a lengthy and debilitating cold. Until a year ago, Valiants never caught colds. Medical personnel finally pinpointed the origin: cold germs had arrived from a computer cubicle torn from a captured Orion ship.
Colds were the first Earth diseases trickling into the colony from the Orion ships and from the captive humans on the Akkad. Ningal and her people in the Corsair had brought some of those germs with them from the Akkad.
Geneticists and others were hard at work ensuring these diseases didn’t metastasize and start a plague, possibly wiping out the colony or seriously debilitating it.
As Naram Sin left the barracks plaza, he looked up at the dome that encapsulated this part of the colony. Beyond the dome, he could dimly make out Titan’s orange sky. The Saturnian moon had one of the heaviest atmospheres among the terrestrial planets and larger moons of the solar system.
Naram Sin hurried along a sidewalk past one-room apartments until he reached a green area. The plant was grass-like and from the homeworld. The park had Earth-style swings, teeter-totters, and the newest rage: chess tables.
The game had taken hold like wildfire. There were chess clubs, chess champions, endless chess matches, and even strategic manuals from Earth. The intercept teams had transcribed them from internet transmissions.
Naram Sin studied the opponents at the twenty tables until he spotted a particularly stout Valiant in a military uniform. The man was not seven feet tall, and certainly not seven and a half feet tall like him. The man was six-eight, on the shorter side for a Valiant. He made up for it in girth.
This girth was not like Father Wolf’s turning to fat with all his beer consumption, but hard muscle. He was one of the premier space marines and had dyed his short hair orange, giving his bluish complexion a seemingly strange hue.
The Valiant military had incorporated the Earth word since it had incorporated the same system. The man belonged to an elite group that used modified space-marine suits. The suits were stronger, tougher, and more durable than the Earth marine suits. They had studied captured battle suits acquired during the Battle of Neptune when the Earthers had attacked the Voyager Akkad. Many Earth space marines had died on the Voyager. Valiant scientists had reverse-engineered the battle suits. Interestingly, some of the captured Earthers were still undergoing tests aboard the Voyager.
