The battle of Devastation reef

records downloaded from your AIs. Way we see it, this is pretty much open and shut. So, speaking as your commanding officer, my formal response is this.”

She paused, weighing her words with obvious care. “Rear Admiral Perkins will take disciplinary action against you. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that. However, that action will be stayed until the board of inquiry into Operation Opera finishes its work. The board will review your report of proceedings along with those of all the other commanders, along with statements from everyone else who thinks they have something worthwhile to say, not to mention every datalog they can get their hands on. Given that dreadnoughts were involved”-a hint of bitterness crept into her voice-“and, more significantly, given that you disobeyed a direct order from none other than the flag officer in charge of Opera, I think there will be plenty of people wanting to be heard. Until the board reports its findings, it would be premature to speculate any further. Suffice to say, what happens after that will depend upon the board of inquiry’s findings of fact, as well as its conclusions and recommendations.”

“I imagined that’s how it would go,” Michael replied, his stomach tightening as he sensed the nightmare that lay ahead.

“So,” Jaruzelska said, her voice firm, “that’s my formal response. Let me give you the informal one. Put simply, you were 100 percent right and Rear Admiral Perkins was 100 percent wrong. If you’d complied with his order, Operation Opera would have failed. It’s that simple, and I intend to say so.”

Relief flooded Michael’s body: Even after hours of agonizing self-analysis, he still believed he had been right, but it was good to have a combat-proven vice admiral come out and say she saw things the same way. “Thanks for that, sir.”

Jaruzelska shook her head. “Don’t thank me. That’s the only conclusion to draw from the evidence. But”-why is there always a caveat? Michael wondered-“disobeying a direct order in battle is a serious matter.” She looked Michael right in the eye. “Let me tell you this, Michael. If you failed, if you’d not destroyed SuppFac27, a court- martial stacked with your best friends would have found you guilty of disobeying the admiral’s order. Nobody would have asked whether or not the order was right or wrong. Failure has no friends, none at all.”

“I knew that, sir,” Michael said. “The moment I ignored Perkins’s order, I knew I was laying my life on the line.”

“And yet you still did it?”

“Well, to quote you verbatim, Admiral, if I may: ‘It will be up to one of you to do whatever it takes to reduce that damned place to a ball of molten slag.’ I had not forgotten. So, yes. I still did it. Anything else would have been dereliction of duty.”

“It was still one hell of a big call, but one I’m glad you made. So don’t worry. I’ll be with you every step of the way. It’ll be a bloody business, but we’ll get you through it. So,” Jaruzelska said briskly, “let’s have a look at Serhati, a real shithole if ever there was one. Took the old Dependent there back in ‘85; the place was the pits then, and I’d be surprised if it’s improved any. We’re going to need a damn good plan if we’re to stop those scum-sucking Serhati vermin from handing us all over to the Hammers.”

“I’ll second that, sir,” Michael said fervently. “I think the Hammers are going to wet themselves when they find out.”

Saturday, March 31, 2401, UD

Serhati nearspace

With a stomach-churning lurch, Caesar’s Ghost dropped into normal space.

“Nice one, Kat,” Michael murmured while he scanned the command plot, happy to see that they were not about to crash into some sucker entering Serhati nearspace at the same time.

“Thanks, sir. Main engines to full power … now. Transmitting ID and flight plan to Serhati nearspace control. Ground links will be online in seconds … stand by. Okay, sir, links are up.”

Sedova had dropped the lander right at the leading edge of the drop zone for nonmilitary traffic, as close to Serhati as she could get it, the Ghost’s blunt stern facing planetward, ready for an immediate deceleration burn. Michael had crossed his fingers at that part of Sedova’s plan; dropping into a strange system ass first, unannounced, and without the benefit of up-to-date traffic schedules was generally considered a bad idea. The chances of surviving an impact nose first were not great; ass first, they were nil. But survive they had.

Michael turned to Jaruzelska. “Admiral, sir. Go ahead.”

“Thanks.” Her eyes rolled up under half-closed eyelids while she commed the Federated Worlds ambassador to the Sovereignty of Serhati. Michael left the admiral to spoil the woman’s morning cup of tea: When the poor sap had woken up that morning, she could not have known that her day was to be wrecked in quite such spectacular fashion.

The face of the Serhati duty controller appeared on the command holovid, eyes narrowed with concern. “Caesar’s Ghost, this is Serhati nearspace control.”

“Go ahead, Serhati.”

“There are irregularities in your ship data. We have no record of any Federated Worlds mership matching your registration, nor have you filed any flight plan. For that we will be lodging a code violation against you. Terminate your deceleration burn immediately and adjust vector to take station on space battle station SSBS-45. Transmitting approved flight plan to you. Any deviation off vector risks use of deadly force. Acknowledge. Serhati nearspace control, over.”

Sedova kept her voice noncommittal, matter-of-fact. “Caesar’s Ghost, negative, negative. We are non-combat-effective Federated Worlds lander registration PHLA-442566, carrying wounded urgently in need of medical attention. We are also critically short of life support supplies, and our driver mass levels are dangerously low. In accordance with the Hague Convention, essential we land to receive immediate assistance. Request you designate landing field as matter of extreme urgency. Federated Worlds embassy has been advised of our arrival.”

The Serhati duty controller sat bolt upright and leaned forward; he stared open-mouthed. “Ah, um … Caesar’s Ghost, stand by,” he said in a strangled croak. The man had never seen a problem like this before, Michael guessed. Judging from the color of his face, the excitement was a bit too much for him.

Michael glanced across at Jaruzelska, who was still deep in her com to the ambassador. The ambassador’s job was to make the Serhatis believe the Feds would wipe Serhati off the face of the map if they laid a finger on the Ghost before it landed safely. Michael was confident she would: The Federated Worlds might not be the power it once had been, but it possessed the military grunt to destroy a puissant planet like Serhati without breaking a sweat, and he would bet good money that the Serhatis knew that.

If the Serhatis called the bluff, the Ghost would be forced to stay in orbit. That meant circling Serhati until the Hammers came and scooped them up. Of course, the Serhatis would protest furiously at the Hammers’ abuse of their neutrality, but it would be too late by then. He would be on his way to Commitment and an appointment with a DocSec firing squad while the rest of the survivors headed for a Hammer prisoner of war camp.

Michael did the only thing left to him: He crossed his fingers and prayed hard. It was not much of a plan, but it was the best they had.

At last Jaruzelska’s eyes opened.

“Done,” she said. “Ambassador Sharma will do her best, so we’ll keep going.”

“Roger that, sir. Bet she was surprised.”

“More stunned, I would say,” Jaruzelska said. “I think I’ve spoiled her day.”

Sedova did not wait for the Serhatis to decide whether to allow Caesar’s Ghost to land. Shaking as main engines at emergency power reduced her speed for reentry, the Ghost started its fall dirtside, the planet’s largest continent-a dark sprawling mass under scattered clouds tinged gold and pink in the early-morning sun-opening out below them. Sedova ignored the Serhati controller’s increasingly hysterical bleatings of protest as she fine-tuned the lander’s vector for reentry.

“Go for it, Kat,” Michael said.