Cobra Alliance

'That's precisely our point,' Jame said calmly, showing a self-control and courage far beyond his nineteen years. 'The government is trying to solve the Cobra problem, clearly. But this isn't a solution; it's merely a postponement.'

'And yet, the Cobras were generally unhappy in their new civilian roles,' D'arl pointed out. 'Perhaps this will actually be better for them.'

Jame shook his head, his eyes still holding D'arl's. 'No. Because you can't keep them there forever, you see. You either have to release them again someday—in which case you're right back where you started—or else you have to hope that the problem will... work itself out.'

D'arl's face was an expressionless mask. 'What do you mean by that?'

'I think you know.' For just a second Jame's control cracked, and some of the internal fire leaked out. 'But don't you see? It won't work. You can't kill off all the Cobras, no matter how many wars you put them through, because the Army will be making new ones as fast as the old ones die. They're just too blasted useful for the brass to simply drop the project.'

D'arl looked back at Stillman. 'If this is all you wanted, to throw out ridiculous accusations, then you've wasted my time. Good day to you.' He stood up and headed toward the door.

'It isn't,' Stillman said. 'We think we've come up with an alternative.'

D'arl stopped and turned back to face them. For a moment he measured them with his eyes, then slowly came and sat down again. 'I'm listening.'

Stillman leaned forward in his chair, willing calmness into his mind. Jonny's life was riding on this. 'The Cobra gear was designed to give extra speed, weaponry, and reflexes to its owners; and according to Jame, Jonny told him the original equipment included vision and auditory enhancers as well.' D'arl nodded once, and Stillman continued, 'But warfare isn't the only area where these things would be useful. Specifically, how about new planet colonization?'

D'arl frowned, but Stillman hurried on before he could speak. 'I've done some reading on this in the last few weeks, and the usual procedure seems to involve four steps. First, an initial exploration team goes in to confirm the planet is habitable. Then a more extensive scientific party is landed for more tests; after that you usually need a pre-colony group to go in with heavy machinery for clearing land and starting settlements. Only then does the first main wave of colonists arrive. The whole process can take several years and is very expensive, mainly because you need a small military base there the whole time to protect the explorers from unknown dangers. That means feeding a few hundred men, transporting weapons and lots of support gear—'

'I know what it involves,' D'arl interrupted. 'Get to your point.'

'Sending in Cobras instead of regular soldiers would be easier and cheaper,' Stillman said. 'Their equipment is self-contained and virtually maintenance-free, and they can both act as guards and help with the other work. True, a Cobra probably costs more to equip than the soldiers and workers he'll replace—but you've already got the Cobras.'

D'arl shook his head impatiently. 'I listened this long because I hoped you might have come up with something new. Committe H'orme considered this same idea months ago. Certainly, it would save money—but only if you've got some place to use it. There are no more than a half-dozen habitable worlds left within our borders and all have had a preliminary exploration. We're hemmed in on all sides by alien empires; to gain more worlds we would have to go to war for them.'

'Not necessarily,' Jame said. 'We could go past the aliens.'

'What?'

'Here's what we have in mind,' Stillman said. 'The Trofts just lost a war to us, and they know that we're still strong enough to really tear into their empire if we decided to invade. So it shouldn't be too hard to talk them into ceding us a corridor of space through their territory, for non-military transport only. All the charts show there's at least some unclaimed space on the far side of their territory; that's where we set up the colony.'

D'arl was gazing into space, a thoughtful look on his face. 'What if there aren't any habitable planets out there?'

'Then we're out of luck,' Stillman admitted. 'But if there are, look at what you've gained. New worlds, new resources, maybe even new alien contacts and trade—it would be a far better return on the Cobra investment than you'd get by killing them off in a useless war.'

'Yes. Of course, we'd have to put the colony far enough past the border that the Trofts wouldn't be tempted to sneak out and destroy it. With that kind of long-distance transport, using Cobras instead of an armor battalion makes even more sense.' He pursed his lips. 'And as the colony gets stronger, it should help keep the Trofts peaceful—they must surely know better than to start a two-front war. The Army might be interested in that aspect.'

Jame leaned forward. 'Then you agree with us? You'll suggest this to Committe H'orme?'

Slowly, D'arl nodded. 'I will. It makes sense and is potentially profitable for the Dominion—a good combination. I'm sure the... trouble... with the Minthisti can be handled without the Cobras.' Abruptly, he stood up. 'I expect both of you to keep silent about this,' he cautioned. 'Premature publicity would be harmful. I can't make any promises; but whatever decision the Committee makes will be quick.'

He was right. Less than two weeks later the announcement was made.

The big military shuttle was surrounded by a surprisingly large crowd, considering that only twenty-odd people would be accompanying Jonny from Horizon to the new colonist training center on Asgard. At least ten times that many people were at the Port, what with family, friends, and general well-wishers seeing the emigrants off. Even so, the five Moreaus and Stillman had little trouble working their way through the mass. For some it seemed to be fear that moved them out of the way of the red and black diamond-patterned Cobra dress uniform; but for others— the important ones—it was genuine respect. Pioneers, Jonny reflected, probably had a different attitude toward powerful men than the general populace. Not surprising; it was on just those men that their lives would soon be depending.

'Well, Jonny, good luck,' Stillman said as they stopped near the inner edge of the crowd. 'I hope things work well for you.'

'Thanks, Mr. Stillman,' Jonny replied, gripping the mayor's outstretched hand firmly. 'And thanks for—well, for your support.'